WORLD Snooker chiefs hailed the biggest selling UK Championship in the tournament’s 37-year history and praised the passion of York people for the game.

A total of 9,000 tickets were sold over the 12 days of competition - more than 20 per cent up on last year’s 7,300.

The evening session of the final, which saw Ronnie O’Sullivan edge out Judd Trump 10-9 in an epic contest, was a total sell-out of the Barbican’s 1,049 capacity venue and that has delighted the game’s governing body.

World Snooker is set to hold a board meeting later this month, where the future of the Fishergate venue as the host of the tournament will be discussed, but chairman Barry Hearn has already indicated the game’s second biggest event will be staying in the Minster city for the “foreseeable future”.

Ivan Hirschowitz, World Snooker spokesman, said of the total ticket sales: “We are absolutely delighted.

“The great thing is that they are building year on year. Quite often, you can go to a venue and sales will tail off after a few years.

“In York, people keep coming back - and new people too. We did a few different things slightly differently this year in terms of marketing.

“We had a television advertisement for the first time and that seemed to work really well.”

Hirschowitz added: “There is a good buzz about snooker and the tournament in York. Of course, a lot of really good matches help and the final saw the two most attacking players in the game, which was great.”

Responding to the concerns of some players, including O’Sullivan, about several aspects of the tournament - most notably the table conditions - Hirschowitz said: “There were a few complaints from players.

“We will take those on board. We do take them seriously, particularly comments about the tables.

"There are a few things that need to be done better and there might be one or two tweaks next year.

“The board of World Snooker will be meeting in December and it (the future of the Barbican) will be on the agenda.”