Sykes wins Q School place
OLIVER Sykes earned himself a free Q School place after his victory in the third leg of the Cuestars Joe Perry Under-21 Super Series secured the rankings title.
The 19-year-old from Chandler’s Ford emerged victorious from a high-quality event in Newbury – the standard of which was described as “ridiculous”.
As well as collecting another £500 in prize money, he receives the free Q School entry, worth £960, courtesy of Cuestars ambassador Joe Perry.
Sykes, who beat Aidan Murphy 3-1 in the final at The Crucible Sports & Social Club, said: “I battled hard today. I feel like my matchplay is getting stronger even when I’m playing my B or C game.”
He added that the funded Q School place at the Mattioli Arena in Leicester starting on May 21 was the most important thing.
The left-hander’s 138 total clearance to square the match at 1-1 netted him the £1 a point series high-break prize which was sponsored by Andy Lavin of Shots Watford.
Cuestars director John Hunter said: “The standard was ridiculous. The day started with three centuries within the first hour and a half!”
To watch the final on the Cuestars YouTube channel click.. Joe Perry U21 Super Series Event 3 final
“It’s been a great series and it was of the highest standard to date.”
A total of 30 breaks of 50 or more – including six centuries – were recorded.
But if the standard is ridiculous, how about the prize money? There is a guaranteed £500 for the winner of each event. There is a guaranteed £960 prize pot for each event. There is a guaranteed free Q School place worth £960 for the overall rankings winner. And all for just £40 entry fee for each of the three tournaments.
The third leg was sponsored by snookercrazy.com and Pitman Training.
Organisers thanked manager Julie and the staff at The Crucible Sports & Social Club and Phil Watson for refereeing.
BREAKS
Oliver Sykes: 138, 88, 69, 68, 62, 61, 51.
Ollie Briffett-Payne: 133, 75, 62, 52, 52.
Aidan Murphy: 131, 109, 99, 94, 79, 73, 68, 50.
Kaylan Patel: 113, 74, 64, 57.
Ronnie Sullivan: 106.
Jamie Wilson: 99.
Mitchell Berry: 72.
Will Forster: 70, 62.
Riley Ellis: 51.
RESULTS
ROUND-ROBIN GROUP A: 1st, Oliver Sykes; 2nd, Ryan Spratt; 3rd, Riley Ellis; 4th, William Thomson; 5th, Noah Gartell; 6th, Harry Wyatt.
ROUND-ROBIN GROUP B: 1st, Aidan Murphy; 2nd, Ollie Briffett-Payne; 3rd, Will Forster; 4th, Jamie Wilson; 5th, Brandon Nguyen; 6th, Tom McEvoy.
ROUND-ROBIN GROUP C: 1st, Kaylan Patel; 2nd, Mitchell Berry; 3rd, Zac Cosker; 4th, O’Shay Scott; 5th, Ronnie Sullivan; 6th, John Donovan.
QUARTER-FINALS (£30): Oliver Sykes 3-1 Zac Cosker, Ollie Briffett-Payne 3-0 Mitchell Berry, Aidan Murphy 3-0 Riley Ellis, Kaylan Patel 3-0 Ryan Spratt.
SEMI-FINALS (£70): Oliver Sykes 3-0 Ollie Briffett-Payne, Aidan Murphy 3-2 Kaylan Patel.
FINAL (£500/£200): Oliver Sykes 3-1 Aidan Murphy.