Jak Jones got his 2024/25 season off to a positive start by topping Group 8 of Championship League Snooker in dramatic circumstances on Monday.
This year’s surprise World Championship finalist went undefeated at the Mattioli Arena with a victory and two draws from his three round-robin fixtures.
The Welshman began the day with a 2-2 draw with Antoni Kowalski, Poland’s newest professional player who ended up sharing the points in all of his ties.
Jones then beat Hungary’s first ever snooker professional, overcoming Révész Bulcsú 3-1 with a high break of 88 that would ultimately prove to be crucial.
By this point, Jordan Brown had accumulated the same number of points following a 3-1 win and a 2-2 draw with the same opponents.
When Jones subsequently went 2-1 up against Brown in the last match of the day, the latter knew that, with their records set to be identical, only a contribution higher than Jones’ earlier 88 would take him through.
The Northern Irishman indeed won the frame but fell agonisingly short of his target, breaking down on 87 to concede a spot in Stage Two of the competition.
In Group 7, meanwhile, Tom Ford was the highest ranked player but was forced to pull out midway through the day’s action due to medical reasons.
That opened the door for the remaining three contenders, who each secured one win and suffered one loss from the revised three-player format.
It came down to frame difference with the points level, ensuring a terrific start to life on the tour for rookie Robbie McGuigan.
The Northern Irishman’s 3-0 whitewash defeat of Sanderson Lam ended up being critical as he edged out both Lam and Barry Pinches in the final standings.
On Tuesday, Championship League Snooker continues with two more groups in what is the campaign’s first ranking tournament.
Group 24 sees Ricky Walden in action against Martin O’Donnell, Rory Thor, and Umut Dikme.
Wu Yize is the top seed in Group 28, with the young Chinese competitor cueing up alongside Ross Muir, Allan Taylor, and Joshua Cooper.
Championship League Snooker
Stage One Draw
Group 1 | Group 2 | Group 3 | Group 4 |
Scott Donaldson | He Guoqiang | Shaun Murphy | Mark Williams |
Group 5 | Group 6 | Group 7 | Group 8 |
Ali Carter | Gary Wilson | Robbie McGuigan | Jak Jones |
Group 9 | Group 10 | Group 11 | Group 12 |
Ma Hailong | Jackson Page | Ryan Day | Jack Lisowski |
Group 13 | Group 14 | Group 15 | Group 16 |
Si Jiahui | Hossein Vafaei | David Gilbert | Fan Zhengyi |
Group 17 | Group 18 | Group 19 | Group 20 |
Chris Wakelin | Stuart Bingham | Long Zehuang | Stuart Carrington |
Group 21 | Group 22 | Group 23 | Group 24 |
Neil Robertson | Joe O’Connor | Michael White | Martin O’Donnell |
Group 25 | Group 26 | Group 27 | Group 28 |
Matthew Stevens | Alexander Ursenbacher | David Lilley | Wu Yize |
Group 29 | Group 30 | Group 31 | Group 32 |
Ben Woollaston | Jamie Jones | Ashley Carty | Thepchaiya Un-Nooh |
Stage Two
Group A | Group B | Group C | Group D |
Scott Donaldson | David Gilbert | Long Zehuang | Mark Williams |
Group E | Group F | Group G | Group H |
Ali Carter | David Lilley | Jackson Page | Martin O’Donnell |
Stage Three
Final Group 1 | Final Group 2 |
Ali Carter | Jackson Page |
Final (bo5)
Ali Carter 3-1 Jackson Page
Featured photo credit: WST