"It would be quite scary if this was my last Crucible but I've got my hands on the trophy once. Who knows whether I will be back or not?"
Ken Doherty, 1997 champion, after his first-round Crucible defeat to Liang Wenbo

Lee felt pretty low after losing again in the first round

"I am sick and tired of packing my suitcase only to unpack it again soon after. It's dragging me down."
Stephen Lee might join Doherty after an equally demoralising loss to Joe Swail

"I think I broke a tile in the toilet. My hand just 'slipped' and I heard a crack and didn't look back."
Stephen Maguire was a frustrated figure after stumbling on a 147 maximum chance

"If I'm that much of a problem, that bad an advert for the game and I'm that awful, then OK, but I don't really see it like that."
Ronnie O'Sullivan apologising for his Carry On-style humour at the China Open

"We have a gambling sponsor, why don't we take the championship to a casino and have a real game of chance?"
Shaun Murphy showing his disdain for the table following his defeat to Ali Carter

"I don't think the tournament director is doing his job correctly."
John Higgins targets tournament chief Mike Ganley as the man responsible for 'Tablegate'

"It's like my living room, I put my pipe and slippers on and get my feet under the table."
Seven-time winner Stephen Hendry on the World Championship

The excitement of Chelsea's win over Man Utd got to Robertson

"I left my shoes in Cambridge and didn't realise until half an hour beforehand. I had to buy some new ones and they weren't very comfortable.

"Also, I was watching the Chelsea [v Manchester United] game and it was 1-1 with 15 minutes left. I went from being very calm to heading every ball. I completely lost my focus and was caught off guard."
Hats off to Chelsea fan Neil Robertson, who lost 13-7 to Stephen Maguire in the second round, for one of the all-time great excuses

"I'll be getting a Bentley convertible now - I've been dying to get one!"
Ronnie O'Sullivan writes out his one-item shopping list after winning �157,000 for a 147 maximum

"I'm going to buy a Ford Focus convertible, I've been dying to get one!"
Cheeky Ali Carter after securing a 147 the following day and halving O'Sullivan's pay cheque