Rookie Lukas Kleckers produced a gutsy performance to beat defending champion Neil Robertson in the last 64 of the Riga Masters on Friday. The German was playing in only his second match as a professional and the upset represents his first victory since he got upgraded from an amateur after[Read More…]
Tag: Stephen Maguire
Barry Hawkins Qualifies for Latvia
Barry Hawkins and Kyren Wilson were among the top players who advanced from Riga Masters qualifying on Thursday in Preston. Hawkins, the second seed in the absence of several of the world’s best from the opening tournament of the new campaign, was handed one of the hardest ties in the[Read More…]
Preview: World Championship Quarter-Finals
144 have become just eight as the World Championship embarks on the quarter-final stage at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield. Four former champions remain in contention to win the sport’s blue riband event, and with it the whopping £375,000 champion’s cheque. Arguably the tie of the round is the eagerly anticipated clash[Read More…]
Stephen Maguire Thrashes Rory McLeod
Stephen Maguire hammered Rory McLeod 13-3 to reach the quarter-finals of the World Championship with a session to spare on Sunday. An unusual schedule made it appear as though there’d be no match conclusions on the second Sunday in Sheffield, but Maguire raced away to record a convincing victory over[Read More…]
Mark Selby and Stephen Maguire Advance in Sheffield
Mark Selby and Stephen Maguire comfortably won their first round encounters as the World Snooker Championship got under way on Saturday in Sheffield. The pair recorded comprehensive 10-2 triumphs over Fergal O’Brien and Anthony McGill respectively. At one stage, Selby led O’Brien 8-0 and it looked as though only the[Read More…]
Mark Williams Struggling to Qualify from Final Round
Mark Williams has left himself with work to do in the final qualifying round for the World Championship in Ponds Forge. The two-time former world champion trails Stuart Carrington 6-3 after the opening session on Tuesday. Williams began the encounter well, compiling a break of 112 in the first frame,[Read More…]
China Open: Quarter-Final Preview
A high-quality field of eight players remain in the hunt for China Open glory this weekend in Beijing. Seven proven ranking event winners and a multiple world amateur champion make up the impressive line-up in this penultimate tournament of the campaign. Defending champion Judd Trump continued his wonderful run of[Read More…]
China Open: Last 16 Preview
The China Open has been whittled down to the final 16 players after a busy opening few days in Beijing. Many of the heavy-hitters are still in the mix, albeit Ronnie O’Sullivan suffered a surprising 5-4 loss to Mark Joyce in the second round on Wednesday. The “Rocket” knocked in[Read More…]
Stephen Maguire Seals China Open Spot
Stephen Maguire recorded a comfortable 5-0 victory over Boonyarit Kaettikun to qualify for the China Open on Friday. The Scot, champion in Beijing in 2008 and the runner-up four years later, compiled a 125 century in the last frame to complete the routine whitewash win over the Thai. Maguire has[Read More…]
Whirlwind and Rocket to Battle Again
Jimmy White and Ronnie O’Sullivan will meet each other for the second time in as many months after recording comfortable second round victories in the Scottish Open on Wednesday. White continued his resurgence in form this season with a resounding 4-0 defeat of Ryan Day in Glasgow that featured breaks of[Read More…]