Stephen Maguire beat Alfie Burden 5-1 to reach the semi-finals of the China Open in Beijing. In doing so, the Scot ensured that he would break back into the top 16 in the world rankings just in time to gain automatic qualification to the World Championship in a fortnight. Maguire’s[Read More…]
Tag: John Higgins
Maguire Closes in on Top 16
Stephen Maguire beat Jack Lisowski 5-2 in the China Open second round to maintain his hopes of breaking back into the top 16 in time for the World Championship next month. The Scot is fighting for the last automatic spot for the Crucible with another former semi-finalist in Sheffield, Ding Junhui.[Read More…]
Holt Halts Rocket
Michael Holt stunned Ronnie O’Sullivan in a first round decider of the World Grand Prix on Tuesday. The Englishman raced into a 3-0 lead with breaks of 88 and 119 but watched as his opponent rallied to force a final frame. There, one would have backed O’Sullivan to continue his[Read More…]
Selby Stuns Brecel in Important Gdynia Open
Eight players booked their places in the last 16 of the Gdynia Open on a busy Friday in Poland. The final European Tour event of the season is important in respect to many of the respective rankings races. The final places for the upcoming Players Championship and World Grand Prix[Read More…]
Seeds Dominate Welsh Open
It was another good day for the majority of the marquee names as the Welsh Open field got whittled down to the last 16 on Wednesday. The biggest upset, of sorts, came with the defeat of Shaun Murphy, but that can hardly legislate as a major surprise given his loss[Read More…]
Irish Duo into Last 32
Veteran Dubliners Ken Doherty and Fergal O’Brien secured two deciding frame victories on the second day of the Welsh Open to reach the third round. The Irish pair, who together have more than half a century of professional years on the Main Tour under their belt, edged out David Gilbert[Read More…]
Welsh Open Preview
The 2016 BetVictor Welsh Open gets under way on Monday in Cardiff. Since its move to the Motorpoint Arena last year, the Welsh Open is one of only two ranking events which can be played from start to finish at the same venue, and without the need for qualifiers elsewhere.[Read More…]
Williams out of China Open
The China Open qualifying round concluded on Thursday but not before another top name fell foul of the system at the Metrodome in Barnsley. Mark Allen had been the biggest casualty of the tournament so far when he lost his opening tie on Wednesday while another Mark, this time Williams,[Read More…]
O’Sullivan and Hawkins into Masters Semis
Ronnie O’Sullivan and Barry Hawkins were the first men to reach the semi-finals of the Dafabet Masters at the Alexandra Palace on Thursday. O’Sullivan controlled the eagerly anticipated contest with world no.1 Mark Selby, while Hawkins took advantage of a lacklustre Mark Allen to advance to the last four for[Read More…]
Higgins Battles Through Liang Test
John Higgins and Neil Robertson completed the quarter-final line-up on Wednesday after coming through their respective opening tests in the Masters. In a day that almost mirrored Tuesday’s action, Higgins first had to emerge from a tight high-quality tussle with Liang Wenbo before Australia’s Robertson enjoyed an easier time of[Read More…]