Chinese Snooker Player Goes Viral With Never-Before-Seen ‘Safety Shot’

An unorthodox move from a Chinese snooker player during the Scottish Open Final match on Sunday took everyone by surprise, earning him both praise and mockery for it.

In the widely shared footage from the game, Cao Yupeng performed a never-before-seen safety shot that left commentators impressed and a bit confused.

Up against Australian player Neil Robertson, the 27-year-old was placed in a tricky position at one point during the match, forcing him to do a safety shot. But instead of doing a normal safety shot attempt, Yupeng took a rather unconventional approach in a bid to avoid a foul.

What happened next was either a stroke of genius, or an illegal shot — depending on who you ask.

“That’s a first”

Certainly unorthodox from Cao Yupeng! @Eurosport_UK #ScottishOpen http://pic.twitter.com/WnTawmpmwZ

— World Snooker (@WorldSnooker1) December 17, 2017

For his controversial move, Yupeng lightly gripped his cue at the tip and then gave it a gentle tap so it barely touched the red ball. He did successfully evade a penalty call and ended up with a decent shot that set Robertson up for a tricky shot.

But while no infraction was called during the match, netizens could not help but talk about it on Twitter, with many debating whether the move was legal or not.

There are those who are simply calling the shot brilliant and appreciating Yupeng for just attempting something new.

On Twitter, Snooker legend Dennis Taylor said that in 60 years of playing Snooker, he had never seen a shot played like the way Yupeng did.

In 60 years of playing Snooker, I have never seen a shot played like the one Cao Yupeng played on @Eurosport_In the Scottish Open Final.

— Dennis Taylor (@dennistaylor147) December 17, 2017