Barry Hawkins admitted it was a case of mixed emotions after being routed in the final of the Masters on Sunday evening.

The outmatched Ditton potter was beaten 10-1 by Ronnie O’Sullivan at London’s Alexandra Palace, as The Rocket moved alongside Stephen Hendry as players to have lifted the Masters trophy on six occasions.

It was the most one-sided Masters final since the showpiece switched to the best-of-19 format in 1996 as Hawkins failed to produce the fantastic snooker that saw him reach the final.

It should not be forgotten that the 36-year-old had a remarkable week at Alexandra Palace – reaching the final despite never having won a Masters match in five previous attempts.

But he was devastated not to do himself justice in the big match itself.

“If someone had told me at the start of the week I would make it to the final and play Ronnie in the final, I would have ripped their arm off but you want to perform and I didn’t,” said Hawkins.

“It was disappointing for me that’s for sure – it feels like the final was over in a blink of an eye.

“I was sitting there and I was thinking, ‘I don’t feel like I’ve even been involved in the final’.

“I felt so good against Judd (Trump) in the semi-final and I was hoping to feel the same out there but I just didn’t get going at all.

“Ronnie said he was cueing round corners the other day but I was definitely cueing round corners today – it didn’t feel like my arm. It’s still a great achievement to get to the final, though.”

Hawkins actually got off to the perfect start on Sunday afternoon as he pinched the opening frame of the match, only to see O’Sullivan become the first man in history to reel off 10 consecutive frames in a Masters final.

O’Sullivan is now the second-oldest winner of the event after Ray Reardon in 1976 while Hawkins is convinced he will be able to take the positives from the tournament once he has recovered from his sub-par display in the final.

“I wasn’t timing the ball well, so I was losing the white but things started going awkwardly as well,” he added.

“When you lose your confidence it snowballs really. I didn’t feel great out there and Ronnie looked like he was getting stronger and stronger, which he does when he’s in front.

“When I get back home in a couple of days time I’ll look back and realise I did well to make the final.

“That was the best I’ve played this season, so I can take the positives from that and it still shows that I can perform on the bigger stage.”

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