Here is WST report on day 3 at the 2023 Scottish Open Qualifiers

Donaldson Earns Spot In Home Event

Perth’s Scott Donaldson battled from 3-1 down to beat Ashley Hugill 4-3 and earn a place in the final stages of the BetVictor Scottish Open.

World number 51 Donaldson looked as if he might miss out on his home event in Edinburgh when he fell 3-1 behind. But the former Championship League winner came from 48-4 down to take a scrappy 58-minute fifth frame on the colours, and that proved the turning point as he added the sixth then won the decider with a break of 65.

The final stages run from December 11-17 at the Meadowbank Sports Centre in the Scottish capital.

Performance of the day at the qualifying round in Leicester came from Belgium’s up-and-coming Ben Mertens as he beat Ahmed Aly Elsayed 4-0 in 50 minutes with runs of 70, 100, 72 and 139.

Ricky Walden came from 2-0 and 3-2 down to beat Hammad Miah 4-3, while BetVictor English Open runner-up Zhang Anda saw off Andy Hicks 4-2.

Joe O’Connor top scored with 82 in a 4-0 win over Andy Lee, while a run of 116 helped Tom Ford win a Leicester derby against Louis Heathcote 4-1.

As always some results are “missing” but you will find them all on snooker.org.

At least this time not all matches involving non British/Irish players have been “ignored”.

Ben Mertens’ win over the former Pan American champion was indeed some performance. It was basically “one chance” snooker. Of course, Ahmed Aly Elsayed isn’t a top player but, honestly, most players would have struggled with Ben’s scoring power yesterday.

Of the three matches played during the first session of the day, only Zhang Anda’s win over Andy Hicks is reported on. Maybe Ryan Day’s victory over rookie Jiang Jun was expected but the encounter between Lyu Haotian (nr 34) and Joe Perry (nr 26) was the highest profile match of that session and likely to be a close one. Lyu won it by 4-2 from 2-1 down, finishing with breaks of 65, 54 and 64.

Another Scot was in action yesterday, Ross Muir, who was beaten by Dominic Dale (4-1). Ross has been suffering from ocular migraine again in recent times and it’s a very painful and crippling condition. I know by personal experience that migraines are very difficult to treat and painkillers are not really efficient to “tame” them. It’s not just the pain; you can’t see properly and nausea usually comes with it too. Ross is very courageous to try to play under the circumstances. It must be awful.

Jenson Kendrick didn’t win a match in his first year on tour, but got another win yesterday. He beat Anton Kazakov by 4-2 with breaks of 67 and 100. Staying on tour may prove very difficult for Jenson, but, at least, hopefully, with a few wins this season, his first experience as a professional will not be all doom and gloom.

On another old theme…

Lewis yesterday mentioned that the reason for Dechawat Poomjaeng to resign from the main tour was his inability to secure proper sponsoring. Living in the UK is very expensive for non British/Irish players. Unlike the British/Irish players they can’t easily get another job to complement their snooker earnings because the type of visa they get only allows them to work in snooker, and, of course, most can’t live with their parents or family because the said parents/family are in their home country.

This is WST report about what happened yesterday at the 2023 Scottish Open Qualifiers.

Whirlwind Set For Edinburgh

Jimmy White scored his first match win of the season with a thrilling 4-3 defeat of Welshman Duane Jones at BetVictor Scottish Open qualifying.

The ten-time ranking event winner enjoyed a strong 22/23 season, which saw him earn a fresh two-year tour card thanks to his performances on the one-year list. However, as of yet, he hasn’t quite carried that into the current campaign.

Having trailed 3-1 this afternoon, White took the fifth frame and then made a crucial 61 in the sixth to set up a decider. He controlled the final frame and earned his place in the final stages in Edinburgh, which kick off on December 11th.

Last week’s BetVictor Northern Ireland Open runner-up Chris Wakelin showed no signs of a let up in form, scoring a 4-2 win over Mark Joyce. Wakelin composed breaks of 72, 66, 67 and 71 to ensure his progression.

Jordan Brown top scored with a run of 130 in his 4-2 win over Adam Duffy and David Gilbert came through a final frame decider to beat Jak Jones 4-3.

Aaron Hill earned his place with a 4-1 win over close friend and mentor Ken Doherty, while 2015 World Champion Stuart Bingham whitewashed Michael White 4-0.

It’s hard not to love Jimmy White who, at 61, is still loving the game, still trying hard and still playing some decent stuff most of the days. I understand why he’s making the headline of this report.

What I don’t accept though is WST – WORLD Snooker Tour – once again totally excluding the non British/Irish players from their report. Do they know that there are snooker fans outside their island(s)? Do they care? I wonder. I doubt it very much.

Yesterday’s results can be found on snooker.org.

SEVEN non British players were in action yesterday, FOUR of them WON their match: Lukas Kleckers from Germany, Xu Si from China, Thepchaiya Un-nooh and Manasawin Phetmalaikul from Thailand. NOT ONE of them is mentioned in the above report. NOT ONE! Manasawin Phetmalaikul, a rookie ranked number 123, beat Ben Woollaston, the number 45 and a former ranking event finalist, and … nothing. NOTHING. If it were Stan Moody it would probably be the headline. Not that Stan wouldn’t deserve the exposure, he would but it should not be because he is English but because he played well and won… and therefore the four above deserve it just as much.

… and meanwhile Willo is in China playing Chinese pool. Good on him!

Here is the report by WST:

Three The Magic Number For Magnificent Trump

Judd Trump became the fifth player in snooker history – and first for a decade – to win three consecutive ranking titles as he crushed Chris Wakelin 9-3 in the final of the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open in Belfast.

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From 2-1 down, Trump confirmed his status as the best player on the planet on current form as he won eight of the last nine frames with three centuries and four more breaks over 50 to take the £80,000 top prize and the Alex Higgins Trophy.

In an extraordinary October, Trump has also captured the BetVictor English Open and Wuhan Open titles, a winning streak of 20 consecutive matches which has earned him £300,000. The only other players to have landed three ranking titles on the spin are Ray Reardon, Steve Davis, Stephen Hendry and most recently in 2013, Ding Junhui. It’s his fourth Northern Ireland Open crown having taken the top prize in 2018, 2019 and 2020, and he extends the sequence of exclusively left-handed winners since this event was first staged in 2016.

Bristol’s 34-year-old Trump moves on to 26 career ranking titles, ahead of Mark Williams and behind only Ronnie O’Sullivan (39), Hendry (36), John Higgins (31) and Davis (28). He extends his lead at the top of the one-year rankings and BetVictor Series list, and though he remains third in the official rankings, he closes the gap on leader O’Sullivan to just £10,000. He will go to the International Championship in China in early November with his sights on the top spot, and the chance to become the second player to win four straight ranking titles, chasing Hendry’s record of five in a row set in 1990.

Wakelin, playing the biggest match of his life, started strongly and led 2-1, but then could do little to stop an outstanding opponent at the top of his game. Nuneaton’s Wakelin missed the chance to double his tally of ranking titles having landed the BetVictor Shoot Out in January. Still, the 31-year-old has made huge strides forward in his career this year and the £35,000 runner-up cheque lifts him to 21st in the world rankings.

Trump did most of the damage in the opening session, taking a 6-2 lead. A packed house at the Waterfront Hall may have hoped for a Wakelin fight back, but instead they were treated to a Trump potting masterclass as he fired runs of 101 and 125 to extend the advantage to 8-2.

He had first chance in frame 11 but ran out of position at 31-0. Wakelin responded with 52, then got the better of a safety exchange and added the points he needed for 8-3. But the underdog couldn’t bring the contest to a mid-session interval as Trump stroked in a long red to initiate a match-winning 129, bringing cheers from the crowd as he finished with a series of exhibition shots.

“Things have happened so fast over the last three weeks, it feels surreal now and it has not sunk in,” said 2019 World Champion Trump. “The last session tonight was the best I have felt in the whole 20-match run, I felt really sharp. Once I get in front I can relax, play my best and over-power my opponents. When you are playing well, people miss at the right times, you scrape through in deciders and live to fight another day. Mentally I have been in a good place when the chances come up.

“You have to remember how many tight games I have won. I could have lost all of them, they are often a 50-50 shoot out. The margins are so fine in snooker and when it’s your time you have to take advantage.

“I’ve had a lot of tournament wins within the last five years. There have still been people saying I have not been playing well, maybe because they expect more from me. It’s the same with Jack Lisowski, I suppose we make the game look easy sometimes that people expect even more. But it’s not that easy.

“Chris has improved a lot and scores heavily, he looks more confident on the shot. He works on his weaknesses, which a lot of players don’t. That has really helped him and it’s nice to see someone out there with a smile on his face in such a great arena.”

Wakelin said: “It has been magical for me. Winning the Shoot Out was phenomenal, but to get to the final of an event like this, with such a great crowd was amazing. If I could pick anyone to play in the final it would be Judd. One day I’ve got to beat him, I think he has paid off his mortgage just from matches against me.

“When I was 2-1 up I thought ‘here we go, I’ve got this in the bag!’ But Judd has won the last three tournaments, he is one of the best players ever to play the game and I hope he keeps that going for the rest of the season. This time last year I was in a bad place but the last 12 months have been great for me, on and off the table. To have the privilege to play in this arena tonight was fantastic.”

Congratulations Judd Trump!

There is no doubts that Judd Trump is the best player – and the form player – at this moment in time. Such success can only come through hard work and the right attitude, on top of natural talent. Judd will be the first to tell you how much his brother Jack has contributed to his current success, by his presence and the positive influence he’s had when it comes to Judd’s attitude and mental state.

The “statisticians”¹ are out in force speculating on if and when Judd will beat “the records”, a number of which belong to Ronnie. If he can keep this form into his late 40th, he will almost certainly beat most, maybe all, of those records. Judd however said a few interesting things in the studio this week. Notably he said that he had/has nobody in his generation able to challenge him. Actually, he could have had Ding as a fierce challenger but somehow Ding fizzled out, which is sad to see. Asked who his biggest rival is, he nodded to Ronnie and added that the “Class of 92” remained his biggest challengers. Not Mark Allen, who is not that much older than him, not Mark Selby or Neil Robertson … no … he named three players who are 13 or 14 years older than him, three players whose combined statistics are absolutely extraordinary and who are still competitive. That’s the biggest compliment anyone could give to the “Class of 92”.

Statistics are only meaningful when kept in context. Here are a few examples to illustrate what I mean.

• Steve Davis has won 28 ranking titles. He’s won the UK Championship 6 times, but only 4 of these UK titles were “ranking”. For a long period of time, only the World championship was ranking.
• When the “Class of 92” were Judd’s age, at the start of the millennium, there were only about 6 or 7 ranking events each season. in the years pre-Covid there were about 18 -20 of them. This years we have 16 ranking events. You can only play in and win what is available to you.
• Tournament statuses change over time. As mentioned above, the UK Championship wasn’t ranking for the first seven years of its existence. The Shanghai Masters used to be ranking, but isn’t anymore.
• Or this stats, kept on snooker.org. Ronnie has the same win % as Hawkins and Selby BUT Hawkins has played 27 matches, Selby 18, Ronnie only 9.

I’m not trying to belittle anyone’s achievements, let alone Judd Trump’s achievements. He’s currently the best out there. It’s just that I’m a mathematician and as such I can’t help to cringe at the way some – including pundits and commentators – read and use statistics.

1. Yes David Hendon… you and a few others 😉 ↩︎

Here are WST reports on quarter-finals day in Belfast

Afternoon session

Lisowski And Hawkins Into Semis

Jack Lisowski, yet to concede more than a single frame in a match this week in Belfast, reached his first ranking event semi-final in eight months with an emphatic 5-1 defeat of Ricky Walden at the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open. Barry Hawkins is also into the last four, edging out David Gllbert 5-4.

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World number 13 Lisowski won each of his first four matches by a 4-1 scoreline at the Waterfront Hall, and again cruised to victory in his quarter-final against Walden, making a century and two more breaks over 70.

The 32-year-old from Gloucestershire is into his 12th ranking semi-final and first since the German Masters in February. He will meet Chris Wakelin or Yuan Sijun on Saturday at 1pm, and victory would put Lisowski into his seventh ranking final and first since the 2021 Gibraltar Open. He is just two wins away from his first professional title.

Walden might have won the opening frame but missed the penultimate red to a top corner, playing with the rest, when he led 68-27. Lisowski cleared with 42, before Walden levelled with a superb break of 132. A scrappy third frame went Lisowski’s way, then he stepped up a gear with a 128 to lead 3-1 at the interval.

In the fifth, Walden led 37-0 when he missed a straight-forward pink to a centre pocket, and his opponent punished him with an 81 clearance. And the left-hander wrapped up the result in frame six with a 73.

Lisowski said: “Ricky is an amazing player, the break he made in the second frame was the best I have seen all week. I thought I was really in for a game. But he missed a few balls at key points and I made some nice clearances. Maybe the scoreline flatters me a bit. I felt good all game, I’m in a good place and enjoying my snooker. The venue is great and when it gets busy it’s a brilliant place to play snooker in front of an Irish crowd.

“It’s unusual for me to win all my matches comfortably because I’m usually quite reckless and open. I am trying to play better safety. I am trying to think more, to do the simple things better, not rush around the table. That goes against my natural tendencies, which feels a bit weird.”

Lisowski has former World Champion Peter Ebdon in his corner and they have regular phone conversations. He added: “I always speak to him. Hopefully if I get to the final he’ll come out. I love working with him and I think he’s happy so far this week.”

A high-quality battle between Hawkins and Gilbert included three centuries and five more breaks over 50. BetVictor European Masters champion Hawkins came out on top and continued his quest for a second ranking title of the season. The 44-year-old Londoner is into his 31st ranking event semi-final and will meet Judd Trump or Stephen Maguire on Saturday at 7pm.

Hawkins is second, behind Trump, in the BetVictor Series Rankings, so victory this week would leave him on target to win the £150,000 bonus which will be awarded after the eighth and final counting event – the BetVictor Welsh Open in February.

Hawkins made breaks of 138 and 134 in taking a 3-1 lead. Gilbert pulled one back with a run of 58, before Hawkins won frame six with a 66 to lead 4-2. The heavy scoring continued as Gilbert fired runs of 65 and 106 to level at 4-4.

A mid-range red set up a chance for Hawkins in the decider, albeit with pink and black out of commission. He played a series of superb positional shots, using the blue and baulk colours, to craft a run of 57 which proved enough.

“It was a fantastic match,” said Hawkins. “There were very few balls missed. David looked like he fancied the job, even at 4-2. I’m delighted to come through especially with a good break in the last frame. I kept coming awkward on the reds and having to pot long blues, those shots can be easily missed.”

Evening session

Trump Overturns Maguire In Belfast Thriller

Judd Trump came from 3-1 down to beat Stephen Maguire 5-4 in the quarter-finals of the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open and is now just two wins away from joining the elite group of players to land three consecutive ranking titles.

Trump has won a remarkable 18 matches in a row, a golden run that has seen him lift the trophy at both the BetVictor English Open and Wuhan Open within the past three weeks. If he can complete the hat-trick on Sunday he will join Ray Reardon, Steve Davis, Stephen Hendry and Ding Junhui as the only players to capture three ranking titles in a row. His next opponent on Saturday evening will be Barry Hawkins, who beat Trump in the final of the BetVictor European Masters in August.

Chris Wakelin is also into the last four in Belfast after seeing off Yuan Sijun 5-2, and he’ll meet Jack Lisowski in the first semi-final on Saturday from 1pm.

Scotland’s Maguire won a scrappy opening frame tonight before Trump levelled with a break of 78. Maguire, playing in his first ranking quarter-final since the 2022 World Championship, regained the lead with a 74, then got the better of a safety battle on the brown in frame four and took advantage for 3-1.

World number three Trump stormed back after the interval with 109 and 81 for 3-3. Frame seven came down to the last red, and a safety error from Trump gifted his opponent the chance to edge ahead. But Trump’s 71 made it 4-4, and early in the decider he stroked in a long red to set up a break of 54. After a safety exchange, the Bristol cueman added 24 to keep his winning streak going.

Trump, though to his 57th ranking semi-final, said: “I made two really good breaks in the last two frames to get over the line. At 3-1 down I felt I hadn’t done much wrong and I would get my chances, I was never worried. When I got a chance in the decider I really felt I would take it. This arena comes alive when we go down to one table so it will be great to experience that tomorrow. Barry is in great form, he is more consistent than he has been for a long time. He’ll fancy his chances, just as I will.”

Wakelin won the BetVictor Shoot Out last season but had otherwise never previously reached the semi-finals of a ranking event. The Nuneaton cueman made breaks of 62 and 76 in taking a 2-1 lead before China’s Yuan levelled at 2-2. After the interval, world number 25 Wakelin made a vital 34 clearance to win frame five, took the next with a 54 and then ground through frame seven to complete the scoreline.

“It was a scrappy match and trying to get over the line felt like climbing Mount Everest,” admitted the 31-year-old. “If it had gone 4-3 then the pressure would have grown so I was pleased to get it done. To get to the semi-finals feels like a big step in my career thought I don’t feel I have played my best. I have battled well and I have not shown that in recent years. I’ve had a tendency to go into my shell and be scared of losing. This week I have battled from the heart, I have put everything into it.

“Tomorrow will be a big challenge, Jack is a phenomenal player. But he is yet to win silverware and that’s a monkey on his back. That’s something he’ll be looking to cross off and he might fancy his chances against me. But I wouldn’t want to play me at the moment. My game is as good as ever and I’m filled with confidence and belief that I belong in the later stages of these tournaments.”

Chris Wakelin is a completely different player since he won the Shoot Out. Maybe winning an event – any event – was what he needed to be able to unleash his full potential, or, maybe, it’s the added financial security that “freed” him. Whatever it is, it worked wonders. Prior to that win, Chris had to battle mental health issues. He didn’t withdraw, lonely, in a corner. He took on ballroom dancing and it helped him massively: he lost weight, got fitter and made new friends. He deserves everything good coming his way. He’s played his QF match on table 2 and that may put him at a disadvantage. We shall see. His opponent, Jack Lisowski, also seems to finally mature. This week, he’s been able to “control” his attacking instincts better and to play more of a percentage game, without being negative. I look forward to their match.

Judd and Barry have met many times over the last 15 years. Each of them has got significant wins over the other. They have contrasting styles. This match is hard to predict but I would be very surprised if it was one-sided. With the time difference, I may not be able watch it to its conclusion… 😴 … not out of boredom, just that I’m not a night owl …

Ronnie was in the studio yesterday. He looked well and happy. Asked about his arm injury he said that he hopes to be fully fit for the International Championship. Fingers crossed.