The defending champion was one of four players, along with ‘The Tornado’ Tony Drago, Barry Pinches and Dechawat Poomjaeng, to book their places in the quarter-finals on the second day of action at the Crucible Theatre as the first round came to a dramatic conclusion.

‘The Whirlwind’ began the defence of his title in the second match of the afternoon session and it was former professional Norman, who was making his first ever appearance at snooker’s most iconic venue, who was standing in the way of the four-time and reigning champion.

Despite the occasion, Norman showed few signs of nerves as he took a scrappy opening frame before firing in a steely break of 65 when trailing by 48 points to double his lead and move one frame away from completing a first round upset.

White got in first in frame three and looked set to reduce his deficit before breaking down on a break of 54 and leaving Norman in the balls with a golden opportunity to earn a whitewash victory.

A missed black off the spot on 25 from Norman may haunt him for some time, as White capitalised to pull a frame back before winning a scrappy fourth frame to force a decider to close out the afternoon session.

Both players had their chances in the fifth, but after Norman missed a tricky final red with the spider while on 52, it was the defending champion who eventually cleared from brown to pink to salvage the win – much to the joy of the Crucible crowd who let out a roar as the winning ball found the pocket.

White, who was carrying with him a card from his grandson as a lucky charm, said: “I was very lucky to win the game. I was very glassy today, I was struggling and I didn’t feel good so I’m pleased.

“I’m playing some good stuff – that looked like a banana skin but I’m through now so hopefully I can play better next time.”

Drago Downs Judge

Drago booked his place in the Mr Vegas World Seniors Championship quarter-final for a second consecutive year courtesy of a 3-1 victory over Michael Judge in the first match of day two.

The Maltese cueist, who reached the semi-finals last year, was averaging 13 seconds per shot after three frames but struggled to offer sizeable contributions in a scrappy affair against the Irish former professional.

A break of 46 in the opener was enough for ‘The Tornado’ to take an early lead, despite Judge’s best efforts to find snookers late in the frame, and Drago then doubled his advantage in frame two on the final pink to move one away from victory.

Frame three was also decided on the colours as Judge took it on the last blue to reduce the deficit. The Irishman, who made three appearances at the Crucible during his professional career, looked on course to force a decider but a dramatic moment late in the fourth saw a blue that looked certain to drop freakishly bounce off the leather at the back of the pocket and land back on the baize.

Drago was able to capitalise and secure the victory, reflecting afterwards: “I could have won comfortably but in the end I won in a freakish way. It’s not my fault and if I say I am not happy to go on to the next round then I will be telling a lie – but I would rather Michael had missed by miles than the blue coming back out of the pocket.

“I didn’t make centuries but I scored fifties and that’s all you need in best of fives. I’m just going to chill out and be ready for tomorrow.”

Pinches Powers Through

An impressive display from Pinches saw him set up a quarter-final meeting with James Wattana by overcoming the 1986 World champion Joe Johnson 3-1.

The former English Amateur champion was utterly dominant in the early stages of the match, forcing his opponent to go more than 30 minutes without potting a ball as he charged into a 2-0 lead with breaks of 54 and 50.

Pinches would ultimately go 203 points without reply before Johnson finally got back into the game in frame three, as the Norwich cueist began to show signs of trying to defend his lead. A dramatic frame eventually went the way of Johnson, who potted the final black with a cross-double to reduce his deficit to 2-1.

It was Pinches, however, who managed to get over the line in the fourth and he now meets Asian superstar Wattana in Friday’s last eight.

Post-match, Pinches said: “I was really pleased with my scoring. The third frame went a little bit more scrappy and Joe made some good pots to win that frame on the black but I managed to build and early lead in the next and finish it off.

“Best-of-five frame snooker is just so tough. You’ve only got to lose that one frame and you’re bang under it, even if you’re 2-0 up that’s 2-1 and you’re under the cosh.

“I haven’t played James for a few years – I think we played once or twice as professionals but we did have a couple of really big amateur matches so it’ll just be great to play him again. I’ve always admired James, he was the trailblazer for Asian snooker so it’ll be nice to play him.”

Dechawat Delights Crucible Crowd

Thailand’s Dechawat Poomjaeng made a winning start to his maiden Mr Vegas World Seniors Championship campaign by defeating 2011 winner Darren Morgan 3-1.

Poomjaeng was making his first Crucible appearance since 2013, when he reached the last 16 of the World Championship, and he was determined to enjoy every second of the experience – arriving into the arena adorning two separate pairs of sunglasses to Robbie Williams’ “Let Me Entertain You” by Robbie Williams.

A break of 41 in the opener saw Poomjaeng take the frame and he quickly doubled his advantage with a solid performance in the second.

Despite missing the frame ball red, a whitewash looked inevitable when the Thai cueist compiled a 57 in the third. But Morgan, who up until this point had a high break of 9 and was visibly struggling with back issues, suddenly found a John Higgins style clearance of 68 from nowhere to keep his hopes alive.

Sadly for the Welshman, however, it wasn’t to be as Poomjaeng managed to reach the winning line in frame four and will now face 1997 World champion Ken Doherty on Friday afternoon.

“I really enjoyed it and I am very happy to see the crowd happy.” Poomjeng said after the match.

“(Darren) has pain in his back and he still played like this – I don’t believe it! I have had pain before and I cannot play like that. He’s a very dangerous player.

“(Ken) is an amazing player. I will just play and have fun and be happy to play with Ken tomorrow.”

Tomorrow will see all four quarter-finals played across two sessions and you can watch LIVE on Channel 5 and 5 Action in the UK.

Limited tickets remain available.

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The tournament sees a global field of 16 cueists head to the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield aiming to secure the prestigious title at snooker’s most iconic venue. This year, for the first time, the Mr Vegas World Seniors Championship will be broadcast live on Channel 5 in the UK from 8-12 May.

First Round Schedule

Wednesday 8th May

• 12pm
• James Wattana (Thailand) vs. Rodney Goggins (Ireland)
• Ken Doherty (Ireland) vs. Tyson Crinis (Australia)
• 7pm
• Tony Knowles (England) vs. Stuart Watson (England)
• Igor Figueiredo (Brazil) vs. Tessa Davidson (England)

Thursday 9th May

• 12pm
• Tony Drago (Malta) vs. Michael Judge (Ireland)
• Jimmy White (England) vs. Andrew Norman (England)
• 7pm
• Joe Johnson (England) vs. Barry Pinches (England)
• Darren Morgan (Wales) vs. Dechawat Poomjaeng (Thailand)

Jimmy White arrives in Sheffield looking to secure a record-extending fifth World Seniors crown and he will begin his campaign against Andrew Norman in the second match of the afternoon session on day two, following Malta’s Tony Drago against Michael Judge.

The honour of opening the event falls to qualifier Rodney Goggins and James Wattana, who is competing in the Mr Vegas World Seniors Championship for the first time since 2019, who will be followed by 1997 World champion Ken Doherty against Australia’s Tyson Crinis on the first afternoon.

Wednesday evening sees former World number two Tony Knowles begin his campaign against Stuart Watson before Igor Figueiredo and World Women’s Snooker Seniors champion Tessa Davidson face off in the final match of day one.

Former World champion Joe Johnson then headlines the second evening, taking on veteran former professional Barry Pinches, before Darren Morgan and Dechawat Poomjaeng conclude the opening round of action.

The quarter-finals and semi-finals will be played on Friday 10 and Saturday 11 May.

The 2024 Mr Vegas World Seniors Championship final will get underway at Sunday 12 May at 12 o’clock.

Tickets are now on sale from just £17.50 via the Crucible on 0114 2496000 or online at www.sheffieldtheatres.co.uk

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The tournament will be held in Sheffield at snooker’s most iconic venue for the sixth consecutive year and will be broadcast live on Channel 5 in the UK for the first time.

A global field of 16 cueists will embark on the steel city where reigning champion Jimmy White, aiming for a record-extending fifth World Seniors title, will start his title defence against former World Snooker Tour professional Andrew Norman.

Former World champion Ken Doherty, who is looking to complete a unique grand slam by adding the Seniors crown to his World Under-21, World Amateur and World Professional titles, faces Asia-Pacific Seniors champion Tyson Crinis in the opening round while fellow former Crucible king Joe Johnson begins his campaign with a tough tie against veteran Barry Pinches.

One of the ties of the opening round sees 2011 World Seniors champion Darren Morgan face tournament debutant Dechawat Poomjaeng, while Asian superstar James Wattana meets Ireland’s Rodney Goggins to complete the bottom half of the draw.

Joining White and Norman in the top half are ‘The Tornado’ Tony Drago’ and former world number two Tony Knowles – who contest opening round ties against Ireland’s Michael Judge and England’s Stuart Watson.

The first round draw is completed by Pan-American Seniors champion Igor Figueiredo taking on World Women’s Snooker Seniors champion Tessa Davidson – with the winner set to potentially meet ‘The Whirlwind’ in the quarter-finals should he make it that far.

First round matches will take place on Wednesday 8 and Thursday 9 May, with the quarter-finals and semi-finals taking place on Friday 10 and Saturday 11 May before the Mr Vegas World Seniors Championship final takes place on Sunday 12 May.

Tickets are on sale and can be purchased from just £17.50 at www.sheffieldtheatres.co.uk

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The tournament will take place at the iconic Crucible Theatre in Sheffield from 8-12 May with a global 16-player field representing five continents competing for the coveted World Seniors Championship crown at the home of snooker.

Channel 5, which has shown live coverage of the two Mr Vegas Snooker 900 events staged this season, will provide live coverage of the World Seniors Championship for the first time.

Defending champion Jimmy White will be searching for a record-extending fifth World Seniors title while former World champions Ken Doherty, winner of the recent Mr Vegas Snooker 900 event at Goffs, and 1986 Crucible king Joe Johnson among those aiming to stop the Whirlwind.

Other notable names include former world number two Tony Knowles, ‘The Tornado’ Tony Drago from Malta and Asian superstar James Wattana – who returns to the event for the first time since 2019.

Asia will be further represented by Dechawat Poomjaeng, who competes in a World Seniors Championship for the first time, while reigning European Seniors champion Darren Morgan will be looking to regain the crown he won back in 2011.

Regional seniors champions Igor Figueiredo (Brazil), Mohammed Khairy (Egypt) and Tyson Crinis (Australia) will also compete at the Crucible, as will two-time and reigning World Women’s Seniors champion Tessa Davidson.

The line-up is completed by veteran former professionals Barry Pinches, Michael Judge, Rodney Goggins and Andrew Norman, who earned their spots via qualifying events held across the season.

The winner will take home £20,000 and earn a spot in the Champion of Champions event later in the year.

Jason Francis, Chairman of World Seniors said “It is fantastic to welcome Mr Vegas as our title sponsor for the World Championship following our partnership on the two recent Mr Vegas Snooker 900 events. We are also delighted to secure a major free to air broadcaster in Channel 5.”

Ulle Skottling, deputy CEO of Videoslots, the UKGC-licensed online casino company running the Mr Vegas brand, said “We are pleased to continue our partnership with World Seniors Snooker. We like to bring a bit of Vegas in our sponsored events and we’re sure that the snooker at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield will rock and roll.”

Tickets are now on sale via the Crucible on 0114 2496000 or online at www.sheffieldtheatres.co.uk

To find out more about Mr Vegas please visit www.mrvegas.com

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• View the draw and schedule here

The pinnacle of the World Seniors Snooker Tour, it is the fifth consecutive year that the event will be held at the iconic Sheffield venue. Following the completion of several qualifying competitions across the season, this year’s field looks to be the strongest yet with nine nationalities represented in the 16-player main draw. 

Some tickets are still available for the Championship via the Sheffield Theatres website here, but if you’re not able to be there in person, details on how to watch the live coverage throughout can be found here. 

The draw was conducted during the professional championship a few weeks ago; let’s check out the ties we can look forward to…

Top Half 

Heading the top of the draw and helping break off the tournament on Wednesday night is reigning and defending champion Lee Walker. 

The Welshman memorably ousted Jimmy White in last year’s final to win the biggest title of his career. He faces a very tricky opening round tie against Gerard Greene, who has been competing on the professional circuit this season. 

Throughout the history and different iterations of the world seniors snooker championship, only one player has successfully defended, or even just won the event more than once – White in 2010, 2019 and 2020. 

Champion in 2017 and one of the most decorated players in seniors tour history, Peter Lines is back for another tilt at the title. The Leeds cueist meets former English amateur champion Ben Hancorn, who will be making his Crucible Theatre bow.

Seven-times world professional champion Stephen Hendry is aiming for his maiden world seniors crown, although the Scot has a tough first rounder against former winner Darren Morgan, who also has a further two final appearances in this event to his name, including here in 2019. 

An intriguing tie, Hendry defeated Morgan here four times in the professional championship during the 1990s – contributing to a very one-sided head-to-head career record. However, Morgan did get the better of Hendry the last time they dueled here in this tournament four years ago in the last eight. 

Completing the top half of the bracket is Ken Doherty versus Alfie Burden. 

Having won world junior, amateur and professional championships throughout his illustrious career, Doherty is still looking to achieve an unprecedented quadruple. He very nearly did so three years ago but agonisingly lost 5-4 to White in the final having been 4-0 up. 

Burden will make an emotional return to Crucible, a quarter of a century on from his sole appearance there in 1998. 

Bottom Half 

The World Seniors Snooker Tour’s most successful player, three-time champion White has reached the final in all four previous editions of the event here – winning 14 out of his 16 matches in total.

Off the back of his best season on the professional circuit in several years, the 61-year-old plays Golden Ticket event winner Philip Williams on Friday night in Sheffield. The final slot in the draw to be filled, Williams booked a third successive appearance here when he caused somewhat of an upset by defeating Craig Steadman in the event final. 

Professional champion in 1986, Joe Johnson has also tasted glory here on the seniors circuit when he claimed the Seniors Masters in 2019. Now aged 70, JJ is 30 years older than his opponent in the first round, Adrian Ridley. 

The Yarrawonga-based star has travelled across the world to perform under the Crucible Theatre lights for the first time; the Australian qualified after winning the Asia-Pacific Seniors Championship in March – dropping just two frames in seven matches.

The popular Tony Drago will make his return to the tournament for the first time since 2019 when the Maltese legend plays Canada’s Vito Puopolo on Thursday night in a cosmopolitan clash. Puopolo – making his debut at the venue – qualified courtesy of claiming the 2022 PABSA Pan-American Seniors Snooker Championship in Toronto last October.

Completing the draw is 2016 winner Mark Davis – five players in this year’s main event have been the champion – versus two-time ranking event winner and three-time Crucible semi-finalist Tony Knowles, who was a late replacement for Egypt’s Mohamed Khairy who withdrew due to visa issues.

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• View the draw and schedule
• How to watch

Rory McLeod was the first player to advance as he defeated Frank Sarsfield, 3-0. The European Tour event winner made breaks of 51 and 73 during his victory and is set to face Joe Johnson next. 

In what was the tie of the preliminary round, 2011 winner Darren Morgan was made to sweat as he ousted former finalist Patrick Wallace in the tournament’s first deciding frame finish. 

Morgan claimed the opening frame but Wallace responded well by levelling and then taking the third frame on the final black to lead. The Northern Irishman manufactured a 51 break in frame four to put himself on the brink, but Morgan came back to square the match on the final pink. 

Now with the momentum, the former world number eight crafted an effort of 51 in the decider which helped him get across the line and earn a date with tournament favourite Michael Holt. 

In the afternoon session, Bradford-based Wayne Cooper was cheered on by local support as he impressively racked up runs of 54, 70 and 58 on his way to defeating the reigning Pan-American Seniors champion Ahmed Aly, 3-1. New Yorker Aly created history by becoming the first American to play at Crucible Theatre. Cooper comes up against Ken Doherty in the next round.

The 1995 world professional championship runner-up Nigel Bond is no stranger to winning on the one-table set-up in Sheffield, and he notched up another victory under those conditions as he dispatched Stuart Watson 3-0 with the aid of 61 and 67 breaks. Bond, winner of this title in 2012, goes on to challenge John Parrott.

More history was made during the evening session as former world women’s number one Maria Catalano became the first woman to feature in the final stages of a world seniors tour event.  

The five-time world women’s championship finalist gave a fine account of herself – registering a half-century break in the iconic arena – but it was Egypt’s Wael Talaat who was celebrating after a 3-0 win.

The African Seniors champion set his stall out early on with breaks of 40 and 81 in the first frame. Talaat’s prize is an encounter with three-time champion Jimmy White on Friday night.

Three-time London champion and Super Seniors event winner Gary Filtness was the final cueist to book a berth in the last 16 as he caused the upset of the round with a 3-1 success over current main tour professional Michael Judge.

Former UK Seniors champion Judge went 1-0 ahead but Filtness made a 67 break in frame two whilst levelling, before controlling the remainder of the match to record a memorable victory. He’ll look to further his run against current UK Seniors champion Peter Lines in the next round.

Friday sees the start of the last 16 where the seeded players enter the fray. Live coverage can be found on BBC digital channels and Matchroom.Live. 

The post Last 16 Confirmed in 2022 World Seniors Snooker Championship appeared first on WSS | World Seniors Snooker.

• Tournament Draw
• Tournament Schedule
• How to Watch

White stretched his undefeated run in this event at the Crucible Theatre to 10 matches after a 4-1 triumph over former winner Darren Morgan.

A rerun of the title match here in 2019, Londoner White racked up runs of 46 and 41 in taking the first frame, but Morgan lit up the stage in the next with an amazing total clearance of 134 – bettering the previous tournament high break of 112 that he crafted in round one. It is the highest break in this championship since 2015.

Welshman Morgan continued his fine scoring into the third frame although he missed on 52. He later had another chance, but it was White who finished the frame with a smile on his face as he cleared up with 36 to pinch it by a single point.

The Whirlwind would deal another big body blow to his opponent in frame four. Morgan was on the cusp of levelling the match when on a break of 49 but a miss on a difficult red allowed White to clear with 40 and win on the black ball again for 3-1.

Frame five was a scrappy affair but the defending champion held the advantage almost throughout, later claiming it to set up an intriguing last four tie with Brazil’s Igor Figueiredo.

Lilley produced a steely clearance in the deciding frame to resist a comeback from Ken Doherty and arrange a semi-final date with Patrick Wallace on Sunday afternoon.

The tone for a topsy-turvy encounter was set in frame one when Lilley cleared up with 31 to swipe it on the black. He then doubled his advantage in a low-scoring second frame.

With his opponent struggling to settle, Lilley looked like making it 3-0 when on a break of 41 and nearing the snooker’s required stage before an unexpected miss let the 1997 world professional champion in. It was an opportunity Doherty grasped, constructing a morale-boosting clearance of 63 to halve his deficit.

A potential turning point, the Irishman headed towards parity on an effort of 57 – but when he jawed a red – roles were reversed from the previous frame and the three-time English Amateur Champion mopped up with 55 to chalk up his second black ball success in the match.

Momentum would shift again, though, as Doherty bounced back with the aid of 34 to pocket frame five before forcing it all the way come the conclusion of frame six.

The six-time ranking event winner edged closer to completing the turnaround before a pink went awry on a run of 40. In what was the final swing of the pendulum, Lilley later in the frame seized this lifeline, compiling a cool break of 69 to go through in dramatic circumstances.

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• Tournament Draw
• Tournament Schedule
• How to Watch

The tournament began with a quality all-Welsh affair between Lee Walker and the 2011 champion Morgan; two players who qualified from the Seniors Q-School in Reading last month.

A former world professional championship semi-finalist in 1994, Morgan got off to a perfect start, constructing a break of 112 to claim the first frame.

The 55-year-old from Newport then doubled his advantage and looked set for a 3-0 win when he was well placed in the balls in frame three. However, he unexpectedly missed a straightforward pink on a break of 22 which proved to be a turning point as current main tour professional Walker pounced to get on the board, before a run of 68 helped him take the tie to a deciding frame.

With momentum firmly on the side of his opponent, Morgan regrouped well in the fifth frame, compiling efforts of 52 and a 64 clearance to progress 3-2 and possibly set up a quarter-final meeting with reigning champion Jimmy White.

Speaking to Rob Walker after the match Morgan said “I’m really pleased with the way I cued. I have been practicing; the last three weeks I’ve been going into my club for an hour every morning. In practice I’ve been playing great.”

Lilley Lands Quarter-Final Berth

Whilst the previous players had both graced the iconic Sheffield venue earlier in their careers, England’s Lilley and Wales’ Philip Williams were making their competitive debuts there.

It appeared as if Williams was going to claim the opening frame before missing frame ball brown. Lilley later laid a telling snooker that yielded rewards as he crafted a fine 22 clearance to take it, yet former professional Williams bounced back from this disappointment, making a classy clearance of 88 to level up.

Three-time English Amateur Championship winner Lilley would retake control, though, as breaks of 32 and 40 allowed him to secure frame three, and his place in the last eight was stamped when he chalked up the fourth to record a 3-1 victory.

The man from Washington will face either Ken Doherty or Joe Johnson on Saturday.

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Over 90 players entered the week-long competition at the Crucible Sports and Social Club in Berkshire hoping to obtain one of the four remaining berths for the final stages of the championship that will once again be broadcast live on BBC platforms.

Following on from the year’s opening Seniors Q School in January, this second edition was split into two phases with 12 players emerging from the first six day’s action to contest ‘Judgement Day’ on Sunday.

The Qualifiers

Patrick Wallace is set to feature at the iconic Sheffield venue in this event for the second consecutive year.

The former world number 34 – who reached the quarter-finals of the world professional championship on debut in 2001 – got the better of current main tour player Gerard Greene whilst advancing from Thursday’s action. Returning a couple of days later, the 51-year-old from Dungannon was flawless, making breaks of 81 and 61 as he defeated Steve Crowley 4-0 before further runs of 100 and 73 in another 4-0 victory, this time over Stuart Watson.

Wallace will be hoping to go one better than 2018 when he lost to eventual champion Aaron Canavan in a deciding frame final in Scunthorpe.

Lee Walker was the only active professional to make it through this time in Reading, and he needed to endure deciding frame finishes in order to do so.

A graduate of the WST Q-School last summer, 45-year-old Walker came top of his initial group on Tuesday before having to win the final two frames of his playoff match with 2012 champion Nigel Bond in which he compiled runs of 91 and 89.

He recommenced his challenge with a 4-0 victory (breaks of 62 and 72) over Wayne Townsend, before crossing cues with Canavan in an all-or-nothing encounter.

Jersey national champion Canavan led the tie three times, crafting a 58 to move one away from qualification. However, faced with the same predicament he experienced earlier in the week, Walker constructed breaks of 62 and 55 to win 4-3.

It will be Walker’s first time in the main draw of the world seniors championship and he will return to the Crucible Theatre for the first time as a player since 2004.

Winner of this title in 2011, Darren Morgan will be back in Sheffield for the third year running after he eliminated another former champion in the shape of 2017 victor Peter Lines at the final hurdle.

The former world number 8 – who has made the final on two further occasions, including at the Crucible two years ago – finished top of his group on Tuesday before sweeping aside Alfie Burden 4-0 with breaks of 63 and 70 in the end-of-day playoffs.

On finals day he ousted Ant Parsons 4-3 on the final black – despite needing a snooker in the deciding frame – before efforts of 55 and 62 helped him deny main tour exponent Lines 4-2 in a winner-takes-all clash.

Qualification will be of relief to Morgan as he was pipped by Barry Pinches in the final round during January’s Q-School.

A former professional of nine seasons, Phil Williams will fulfil a lifelong dream when he plays at the Crucible Theatre for the first time next month.

The 53-year-old survived a deciding frame against Jonathan Bagley on Wednesday to reach the final day where he upset professional Rory McLeod 4-0 (75 break) and then defeated John Hunter 4-2 with a top run of 53 to head the group and secure his ticket.

It is the second time that Williams has qualified for the final stages of this championship – he did so in 2013 when it was held in Portsmouth under a different guise.

This successful quartet join January Q-School qualifiers David Lilley and Barry Pinches and the players automatically in the main draw for the championship.

Taking place from 6-9 May, the 2021 ROKiT World Seniors Snooker Championship features defending champion Jimmy White who is aiming to lift the trophy at the Crucible Theatre for a third consecutive year.

For the full results, please visit WPBSA SnookerScores.

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• View full results at WPBSA SnookerScores

The event, which represented the first open-entry competition organised by the WPBSA following the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, ran across seven days at the Crucible Sports and Social Club in Reading. Eight places at four tournaments were to be won, with a mix of current professionals and amateur players taking part.

World Seniors Championship

Barry Pinches and David Lilley both successfully came through an 86-player draw to secure their places at the venue stages of the World Seniors Championship this May.

Pinches secured his place at the Crucible following a dramatic 4-3 victory against former World Seniors champion Darren Morgan in his final qualifying match. Welshman Morgan had led 2-0 and 3-2, but it was Pinches who claimed the last two frames to secure his return to a venue at which he competed three times as a professional, memorably reaching the last 16 in 2004.

Three-time English Amateur Championship winner Lilley meanwhile produced a high-quality performance to defeat Wayne Townsend 4-2. Breaks of 72, 63, 60 and 60 were enough to see the 45-year-old prevail and earn a debut at snooker’s most famous venue in just a few months time.

UK Seniors Championship

Four places at the UK Seniors Championship in Hull were decided with Barry Pinches, David Lilley, Phil Williams and Kuldesh Johal all making it through to the final four of this week’s qualifying tournament.

For Pinches and Lilley their victories ensured that it was a near-perfect week of snooker as the pair qualified for two of the three available events, with 4-1 victories against Stuart Watson and Mark Gray respectively enough to secure their places at the Bonus Arena.

Both Williams and Johal however were pushed all the way, Williams defeating former world number 42 Andrew Norman in a deciding-frame, while Johal was also a 4-3 winner against Wayne Cooper.

Seniors Masters

Also up for grabs last week were two places at the upcoming Seniors Masters tournament, scheduled to be held at the Alexandra Palace.

The first was claimed by Darren Morgan, who won seven matches, including four against current professional players to win the Masters qualifying tournament. Having defeated Peter Lines, Nigel Bond and Andy Hicks to reach the final, he would deny David Lilley a qualification hat-trick by coming through a deciding-frame to claim the place.

He will be joined there by Gary Filtness, who overcame recent back problems in recent weeks to defeat Ashley Beal 4-0 in the final of the Super Seniors tournament for players aged 55 or over.

Further Information

For further information on the ROKiT World Seniors Snooker Tour please visit the official Facebook page. You can also view the latest WPBSA Group Events Calendar at this website.

The WPBSA and World Seniors Snooker would like to thank everyone who contributed to the success of this week’s tournament during these most challenging of times, including the players, officials and venue staff, without the cooperation of which the event would not have been possible.

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