And cue the snooker jokes as we’ve racked up a sponsorship deal with World Snooker for the European Tour…it’s a pretty big break for us.

Joking aside we are rather proud of the fact that snooker’s biggest names will be dressed in black tailored Hawes & Curtis shirts this season.

The players looked suitably smart for the Riga Open in Latvia which kicked-off the European Tour earlier this month. Mark Selby came from 3-0 down to beat Mark Allen 4-3 in the final.

Mark Allen - finalist in European Tour 1 held in Latvia

Mark Selby, the current World Champion, won his first title of the season and returned to his hometown Leicester with a cheque for €25,000. Selby is a prolific break-builder having made more than 300 century breaks in his professional career. A century is a massive deal for us too and we are immensely proud to have been making shirts for more than 100 years.

The 2014/15 European Tour series comprises of six events across continental Europe, with the top 24 in the final Order or Merit to go through to the Players Championship next March to compete for the £100,000 prize. The second European Tour gets underway today (August 21) with the Paul Hunter Classic in Germany.

Hawes & Curtis’ Brand Manager Edward Smith said: “Snooker has always been the best-dressed sport of all so Hawes & Curtis jumped at the chance to get involved with the WPBSA and World Snooker Ltd to kit out the best players in the world with our shirts for the new European Tour.

“As a sport, snooker is growing by the day and reaching out to new territories across the globe. Our shirts have been best-sellers for more than 100 years so we know they’ll stand up to the intense pressure of the competition.”

The players will be wearing black poplin slim fit or classic fit shirts provided by Hawes & Curtis along with black or dark tailored trousers.

Judd Trump pictured in his Hawes & Curtis shirt

Jason Ferguson of World Snooker said: “This is a unique dress code for the European Tour events and we are excited about the way it will look on television and for the live audiences.

“We’re delighted that such a celebrated brand as Hawes & Curtis is getting involved in snooker. We both have over 100 years of history and we look forward to working together in the future.”

Neil Roberston contemplating his next shot

Images sourced from World Snooker