Oliver Sykes triumphs during testing time

OLIVER Sykes may be restricting his practice time while preparing for his GCSEs but his results on the snooker table have certainly gone up a grade.

The 16-year-old from Chandler’s Ford has hit a rich vein of form recently and this was evident during the sixth leg of the Cuestars Under-21 Gold Tour in Bournemouth.

Sykes, who earlier in the day recorded his first Cuestars century break, pocketed £100 in prize money after beating the world number 99 Jamie Wilson 3-0 in the final at Greenbaize Snooker Club.

As a professional, Wilson (Havant) was conceding a 14-point handicap start to all of his opponents.

Sykes recorded his 28th competitive ton of 108 against last season’s Silver Tour rankings champion Riley Ellis (north Wilts) in the group stages. The previous day, the English Under-21 Championship finalist made a 124 in the Open Series at Chandlers Ford Snooker Club.

Sykes, who lost only one frame out of 16, was particularly pleased to have been scoring more heavily on his travels. He made an 81 break in the final as well as efforts of 84, 79 and 59 in the group stages,

He said: “I haven’t been able to practise much recently so I’m happy to be scoring well. I’m not known for making many tons in tournaments (away from home).”

Reflecting on the day, the talented left-hander added: “I’m pretty happy with myself, competing with Jamie and Connor (Benzey), two tough opponents.”

Benzey (Eastleigh) finished third in the round-robin group and is now just three points behind rankings leader Ollie Briffett-Payne (Wales) with two tournaments remaining. Sykes is fifth, behind Wilson and English Under-14 Championship finalist O’Shay Scott (Eastleigh).

Elsewhere, Gold Tour players Bradley Cowdroy (Bournemouth) and Ryan Hughes (Chandler’s Ford) along with Silver players Simon Bubb (Ealing Common) and Dylan Smith (Tunbridge Wells) earned spots on the EPSB Under-21 Premier Development Tour after qualifying from the play-off in Northampton.

For more information about the event sponsor, Greenbaize Snooker Club, go to www.greenbaizesnooker.com.

Chandlers Ford Snooker Club hosts the seventh leg of eight on Sunday, April 24.

BREAKS

Oliver Sykes: 108, 84, 81, 79, 59.
Jamie Wilson: 99, 77, 54.
Connor Benzey: 73, 62, 40.
Steven Hughes: 41.

GOLD RESULTS

ROUND-ROBIN GROUP: 1st, Oliver Sykes (Chandlers Ford SC); 2nd, Jamie Wilson (Waterlooville Sports Bar); 3rd, Connor Benzey (Waterlooville Sports Bar); 4th, Steven Hughes (Chandlers Ford SC); 5th, Riley Ellis (Chandlers Ford SC).

FINAL (£100/£25, 25/18 points): Sykes 3-0 Wilson.

Pictured, from left: Jamie Wilson, event sponsor and Greenbaize SC owner Debbie Ealy, Oliver Sykes.