Jack Lisowski is a ranking event winner for the first time in his career after beating Judd Trump 9-8 in a thrilling Northern Ireland Open final.
The Cheltenham cueist finally brings the curtain down on his long-running act as snooker’s best player never to win silverware.
Lisowski, a professional since 2010, had lost in six previous ranking event finals – including three times against the same opponent as in Sunday’s showdown in Belfast.
As the world number one and a record four-time champion of the tournament, Trump obviously began the title-deciding affair as a pretty big favourite.
However, there was never more than a single frame between them as the momentum ebbed one way and then the other.
Neither player was at his best, but the pair combined to produce an enthralling spectacle that had the packed Waterfront Hall crowd on the edge of their seats.
Lisowski took a scrappy opening frame of the contest but lost the next two to instill fear that he might quickly drift further behind as he had done in his prior finals with Trump.
But by taking a close fourth frame, he went into the mid-session interval all-square and with a firmer foothold on the encounter.
Trump regained the advantage to lead 3-2 and 4-3 only for Lisowski to twice respond with breaks of 112 and 62 to end the afternoon bout of play with parity restored.
When play resumed in the evening, there was an electric atmosphere and it was clear that most of the vocal support was for the underdog.
Trump took the front another three times but his typically adept scoring prowess wasn’t firing, with only four half-century contributions to speak of throughout the entire fixture.
Each time that he fell a frame behind, Lisowski managed to immediately get back on even terms – perhaps underlining the renewed determination in his game since recently teaming up with renowned coach Chris Henry.
A break of 51 in the 14th frame evened it up again, but Lisowski then took to the front for the first time since the opening frame with a run of 60.
Trump needed a couple of chances but the 30-time ranking event winner duly forced the deciding frame, which was preceded by a warm handshake between the two close friends.
With tension inside the arena at an all-time high, both players spurned opportunities at the end and with the winning line in sight.
But after a botched attempt with the rest from Trump, Lisowski had the balls at his mercy and ultimately held himself together for a famous victory.
Lisowski was the underdog in the Northern Ireland Open final but delighted punters, with snooker fans able to sign-up to https://bh.1xbet.com/en/login to wager on upcoming tournaments on the calendar.
There was a warm embrace between them afterwards with Lisowski paying tribute to Trump in his post-match interview, referencing the support he received from his childhood pal in the aftermath of his father’s death earlier this year.
Indeed, it has been a long and often harrowing road for the former world number 10, who recovered from Hodgkin Lymphoma when he was a teenager.
Lisowski has long been spoken of as a player with immense talent – arguably one of the most naturally gifted the game has ever produced.
His failure until now to get himself on the top step of the podium has been a source of immense frustration for both him and his fans.
With the monkey finally off his back, it will be fascinating to see if Lisowski, still just 34 and relatively young in snooker terms, can now force his way into contention at the major tournaments.
For now, he can revel in the fact that he is simply a winner on the World Snooker Tour, with the £100,000 top prize in his back pocket and an immediate reward of a spot in the upcoming Champion of Champions to go with it.
2025 Northern Ireland Open Draw
Round of 32 (bo7)
Kyren Wilson 4-1 Ryan Day
Wu Yize 2-4 He Guoqiang
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 4-1 Mark Davis
Jack Lisowski 4-2 Mark Selby
Long Zehuang 2-4 Yuan Sijun
Chris Wakelin 1-4 Tom Ford
Jimmy Robertson 3-4 Ali Carter
Zhou Yuelong 4-2 David Grace
Judd Trump 4-2 Jackson Page
Gary Wilson 4-2 Martin O’Donnell
Stephen Maguire 0-4 Si Jiahui
Pang Junxu 3-4 John Higgins
Barry Hawkins 3-4 Aaron Hill
Mark Allen 4-3 Ben Woollaston
Elliot Slessor 2-4 Shaun Murphy
Ashley Hugill 0-4 Jordan Brown
Round of 16 (bo7)
Kyren Wilson 4-2 He Guoqiang
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 2-4 Jack Lisowski
Yuan Sijun 2-4 Tom Ford
Zhou Yuelong w/o Ali Carter
Judd Trump 4-1 Gary Wilson
Si Jiahui 1-4 John Higgins
Aaron Hill 1-4 Mark Allen
Shaun Murphy 2-4 Jordan Brown
Quarter-Finals (bo9)
Kyren Wilson 3-5 Jack Lisowski
Tom Ford 4-5 Zhou Yuelong
Judd Trump 5-2 John Higgins
Mark Allen 5-2 Jordan Brown
Semi-Finals (bo11)
Jack Lisowski 6-1 Zhou Yuelong
Judd Trump 6-3 Mark Allen
Final (bo17)
Jack Lisowski 9-8 Judd Trump
Featured photo credit: WST
Who’s the best player not to win a ranking tournament now?
Congratulations to Jack on his maiden ranking victory. A great opponent to beat into the bargain. Highly memorable success.
It will be fascinating to see if Jack can keep his focus after his inaugural win. It is fairly common in any sport to lose the spark in later competition. The Belgian Bullet (LB) comes to mind. ( Jack must resist distractions such as …er, Ferraris) . Just a thought!
I think Jack is well deserved for the trophy. However, Judd’s performance in the decider should raise eyebrows of most of the audience. His missing of 3 easy reds, particularly the first one near the corner pocket, gives rise to suspicion of match fixing albeit probably for sentimental reasons. I think WST should institute an investigation with a view to maintaining the sport integrity. In addition, they are and ought to be seen to be applying the same yardstick to minnows as well as star players.