Dept of Health to sponsor Irish Masters

The Department of Health has announced a major new sponsorship deal that will save the Irish Masters snooker tournament from extinction.

The move is part of the Department's plan to replace recently-banned tobacco sponsorship of Irish sporting events with more health-focused alternatives.

The Department's Health Promotion Unit, along with the recently established Office of Tobacco Control and CityWest, will pay £200,000 a year for three years to sponsor the event.

It had been feared that the tournament would have to close because of the withdrawal of sponsorship from tobacco company Benson and Hedges.