Jayson Shaw is one of the front runners heading into the inaugural UK Open Pool Championship, with 256 players battling it out for the $200,000 prize fund

It‘s the second Euro Tour tournament of the year and the fifth on the 2022 nineball world rankings The Treviso Open takes place between April 30 and May 2 in Italy, acting as the second stop on the 2022 Euro Tour schedule and yielding ranking points towards the world nineball rankings. Wiktor Zielinski will be vying to secure his third successive Euro Tour accolade, having reigned victorious in Treviso in November and backed that up with Lasko Open success last month in Slovenia. The eventual champion will earn themselves €6,000, with the likes of Joshua Filler, Alexander Kazakis, David Alcaide and Francisco Sanchez Ruiz using the event as preparation for next week’s World Pool Masters in Gibraltar. The Euro Tour plays a crucial part towards automatic qualification for December’s Mosconi Cup, as well as next year’s Premier League Pool, World Pool Championship and World Pool Masters. Each round will contested across a race-to-nine, winner breaks format, with coverage broadcast via Kozoom for subscribers as well as selected free matches via the EPBF Facebook page, including Monday’s men’s final. The Women’s Treviso Open also runs simultaneously at the BHR Treviso Hotel. Spain’s Amalia Matas will be hoping to win back-to-back titles. 2022 TREVISO OPEN EURO TOUR Draw Bracket Last 16 Wiktor Zielinski 9-6 Marc Bijsterbosch Tobias Bongers 9-3 Denis Grabe Ronald Regli 9-3 Nikos Ekonomopoulos Joshua Filler 9-5 Konrad Juszczyszyn Alexander Kazakis 9-6 Ralf Souquet Tomasz Kaplan 9-6 Francisco Sanchez Ruiz Eklent Kaci 9-7 Niels Feijen Max Lechner 9-8 Andreja Klasovic Quarter-Finals Wiktor Zielinski 9-7 Tobias Bongers Joshua Filler 9-6 Ronald Regli Tomasz Kaplan 9-3 Andreja Klasovic Eklent Kaci 9-2 Max Lechner Semi-Finals Joshua Filler 9-4 Wiktor Zielinski Eklent Kaci 9-3 Tomasz Kaplan Final Joshua Filler 9-5 Eklent Kaci Click here for live scores and full results via the EPBF website Prize Fund Champion - €6,000 Runner-up - €4,600 Semi-finalists - €3,000 Quarter-finalists - €1,500 Last 16 losers - €1,000 Last 32 losers - €600 Winners Qualification losers - €300

Shaw snapped off the latest event on the world nineball rankings after defeating fellow Brit Appleton in the final

Van Boening fulfilled his destiny and landed his maiden world title at long last after dethroning Ouschan Shane Van Boening is the champion of the world after dethroning defending champion Albin Ouschan in the 2022 World Pool Championship final at the Marshall Arena, Milton Keynes. Van Boening won the lag, before taking the opening rack in a comfortable fashion. The American was pegged back in the second though after missing a routine 2 ball to the bottom pocket. At that, Ouschan found his groove to put daylight between them both at 3-1 after four racks. Van Boening got some table time and made the most of it, as he twisted the screw with a pinpoint jump shot on the three ball followed by a raking effort to pot the four and make it 3-2. Ouschan did reassert a two-rack different in the sixth rack, but it was short-lived after scratching on the break in the resulting rack. It was a case of blink and you miss it as Van Boening turned the contest on its head to take the eighth rack to level at four apiece, before a simple one-nine combo put him in front for the first time since 1-0. A tie between two modern greats was always going to deliver with very little to separate the pair. As quick as Van Boening took the lead at 5-4, it was soon Ouschan back ahead at 6-5 with a break and run. The crowd was kept entertained throughout and the duo put on a clinic in safety play, with a standout moment coming in the twelfth as Ouschan found himself with no eye on the pocket on the one ball, he played a sweet safety to tuck the cueball behind the four and six ball whilst leaving the one near the bottom pocket. Despite what looked like an effortless safety, the American kicked out like the demon he is to make the one ball and soon level again at 6-6. Van Boening’s cue action has delighted many for so long and it was a case of it being as clean as ever and no better rack showed that than the way he kept the cue ball on a piece of string. From 6-6, it was the American who quite literally ran home with an expert performance and deliver his first-ever world title leaving Ouschan with very few opportunities at the table as he wrapped up an emotional 13-6 win. An emotional Van Boening said: “I have been trying for years. Two times I’ve been in the final and two times lost in the final. I just knew I was going to win the World Pool Championship. I dreamed I would be world champion. It teaches you to work hard, follow your dreams and never give up.” “It was just a fantastic week. That match for me against Mika, changed things. I could’ve been going home at 10-3 down. But I fought my way through. “I am lost for words. I am so happy for myself, thank you to all the fans in this sport. I put in so many hours in my career. I dreamed of being world champion. Today is that moment.” Van Boening added: “Matchroom is the best thing to happen to this sport. Without them, this would never even be possible. It is a dream come true. It makes me hungry for more, I will go home and go fishing for a bit, but then I will be working hard again.” Ouschan, meanwhile, was rather gracious in defeat. “To the middle of the match, it was back and forth, I played a safety then didn’t make a shot for the rest of the match,” the Austrian ace said. “Shane played a great tournament with great comebacks. He deserved it today. I am disappointed, but it is fair to say he played better. He had some rolls but without that, you cannot be world champion.” Van Boening’s win sees the American shoot up to the top of the live 2023 nineball world rankings, with over £60,000 in prize money. The win putting Van Boening in a commanding position to keep his place in the Team USA Mosconi Cup team this November 30-3 December at Bally’s Las Vegas. Next up, fans can expect news in the coming days of the four wild cards for the upcoming World Pool Masters at the Europa Point Sports Complex in Gibraltar from May 5-8.

Defending champion Ouschan and Van Boening will contest the 2022 World Pool Championship final in Milton Keynes Albin Ouschan and Shane Van Boening will contest the 2022 World Pool Championship final this evening at the Marshall Arena, Milton Keynes, live on Sky Sports Arena in the UK. Ouschan headed into the day looking to become only the second player in history to defend his title and win it three times, emulating Earl Strickland. The Austrian set up a semi-final clash with Kuwait’s Abdullah Al-Youssef after victory over Mosconi Cup teammate Joshua Filler yesterday evening. Al-Youssef, meanwhile, came through a dramatic quarter-final showing with Max Lechner of Austria. It was Ouschan that got off to the quicker starts after winning the lag, the Austrian taking the opening eight racks without reply to leave Al-Youssef, playing in his first World Championship semi-final, glued to his chair. Into the ninth rack and Ouschan found himself struggling for position off the break, allowing Al-Youssef back to the table to put a mini run of three racks together. In truth, Ouschan was always in control of proceedings despite the mini-comeback from Al-Youssef. In the twelfth rack, the Kuwaiti missed what looked to be a simple two ball and that was his last chance at the table as Ouschan ran out a comfortable winner to meet Van Boening in the final. Van Boening won the lag against Kazakis and took the opening two racks, two more racks than he had achieved against the Greek in last year’s World Pool Masters final. Kazakis did hit back though to make it two all before hitting the front for the first time at 3-2. At 3-2, it would’ve been easy for Van Boening to start seeing last year’s World Masters final in his periphery vision, but he took the match by the scruff of its neck to run into a rampant 8-3 lead, including a golden break in the ninth rack. Dry breaks have been rare this week for Van Boening but he made one in the twelfth rack to allow Kazakis back to the table and make it 8-4. A break and run in the next made Kazakis’ difference only three and it quickly became two after Van Boening scratched after being offered an opportunity in the 14th. Kazakis kept his momentum flowing to be to cut the deficit to one rack when he scratched on the break gifting Van Boening a two-rack advantage once again. ‘The South Dakota Kid’s grappled to keep his dominance on the match and broke and run to get to the hill first at 10-7. Despite a dry break from Van Boening in what proved to be the final rack, it was the American who managed to get the better of Kazakis in a brief safety battle, luring the twelfth seed into a thin cut on the one ball that he left over the pocket. Van Boening from there on cleared the table to reach his third World Pool Championship final, in a repeat of the 2016 final. The 2022 World Pool Championship final gets underway from 5.30pm as Ouschan takes on Van Boening to claim the newly-increased £60,000 first-place prize and to move to number one on the live nineball world rankings.

Four players remain in the reckoning for glory at the 2022 World Pool Championship, with Ouschan two matches away from defending his title Albin Ouschan is still on course to defend his World Pool Championship heading into Finals Day at the Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes, with America’s Shane van Boening, Greece’s Alexander Kazakis and Kuwait’s Abdullah Al-Youssef all making it into the final four. There were some stellar morning clashes in the last 16 as Joshua Filler got the better of Darren Appleton from 10-8 down to set up a repeat of the Premier League Pool final just a month ago, for a spot in the semi-finals against Ouschan. Ouschan, meanwhile, didn’t seem to have to break a sweat as he downed fellow two-time winner Thorsten Hohmann 11-5. Al-Youssef pulled off an upset against the 2021 US Open runner-up Aloysius Yapp who did reach the hill first. Max Lechner stood between the Kuwaiti and the semi-finals and it didn’t come without drama. After only a few racks, it seemed the nine ball was rolling off. After much consultation between Lechner, Al-Youssef and the organisers, the decision was made the continue the match on another table. When the match resumed, Lechner led at 9-8 and he looked to be reaching the hill first before failing to cut the nine ball in and in the process allowing Al-Youssef to pull it back to 9-9. The Kuwaiti will be hoping to emulate compatriot Omar Al-Shaheen who reached last year’s final, and he will be hoping to keep luck on his side, the eventual winning rack saw Al-Youssef fluke the seven before cleaning up to deal a hammer blow to Lechner. Derby City Classic semi-finalist Al-Youssef came into the tournament as the 50th seed and will face top seed Ouschan for his spot in the final. Ouschan’s route to the final against Filler could’ve been much worse after finding himself down 4-0, but that is when the Austrian found his ‘Mean Machine’ nickname to keep Filler frozen out, much like in the Premier League final. The two-time champion seems to have Filler’s number of late and came out victorious in his typical calm demeanour. Kazakis has plugged away all week the Greek put on a convincing display of how far his game has come to overcome Ronald Regli of Switzerland in the opener 11-4. The 2021 World Pool Masters champion beat Van Boening 9-0 in the final last year and will face the five-time US Open winner for a maiden World Championship final after beating close friend Oliver Szolnoki in a hill-hill finish. It was a contest of highs and lows for both players as it soon went 7-7, but it was Szolnoki who reached the hill first at 10-7. A golden break and combo later, Kazakis was back in the contest as he drew it back to pull off a memorable comeback and set up his showdown with Van Boening. Van Boening had arguably two of the biggest matches in recent time of his career, with a repeat of the 2015 World Championship final against Ko Pin-Yi his first task and one that he duly rose to. Ko was returning to the nineball fold for the first time since the pandemic, but Van Boening had two golden breaks along the road map to a 11-8 win and revenge for 2015. Chang Jung-Lin was next on the American’s agenda, having beaten Naoyuki Oi earlier on in the day. The break was key to Van Boening’s day as he crunched countless balls in on the break to lead Jung-Lin 8-3. The pair have great mutual respect but, in truth, it was always Van Boening’s game to lose as he ran out a 11-8 win. Revenge on Kazakis is next for the USA man.

Van Boening continued his quest for an elusive World Pool Championship title by staging a remarkable comeback Shane van Boening produced a comeback for the ages as he came from 10-3 down to defeat Hall of Famer and former world champion Mika Immonen 11-10 to reach the Last 16 of the 2022 World Pool Championship at the Marshall Arena. Van Boening will face Chinese Taipei’s Ko Pin-Yi, who downed Mosconi Cup MVP Jayson Shaw in a hill-hill finish as action heated up dramatically. Shaw had taken the early lead, but it was Ko who hit back to lead 8-6 before reaching the hill first at 10-7. The Brit was never down and out though after a huge fluke on the nine ball after he kicked the two ball into it and in. Ko, though, is a former world champion, and he showed the qualities that won him that title in 2015 to beat Shaw by a slender margin to meet Van Boening next. Elsewhere, last year’s runner-up Omar Al-Shaheen made a remarkable comeback from 10-1 down to beat Daniel Guttenberger in the last rack in the last 32, before making lightwork of Masato Yoshioka in the last 16 to set up a clash with Oliver Szolnoki, who reached the semi-finals last year. Two-time champion Thorsten Hohmann will meet fellow two-timer Albin Ouschan in the opening last 16 match tomorrow morning on table one after Hohmann knocked out Francisco Sanchez Ruiz in the afternoon and Ko Ping-Hang in the evening. Austrian Ouschan, meanwhile, got the better of Nicholas De Leon and Norweigan Mats Schjetne, who gave the defending champion one of his toughest matches of the tournament so far, sneaking through 11-8. Darren Appleton keeps rolling back the years overcoming Tomasz Kaplan and Lo Ho-Sum, only dropping three racks in the process. The former world champion will face his sternest test to date though tomorrow against the Killer, Joshua Filler. There was drama wherever you looked at the Marshall Arena and Naoyuki Oi’s match with Oscar Dominguez for a place in the Last 16 delivered. Oi had cantered in front against Oscar Dominguez at 8-1 before it was the American who reached the hill first with Oi trailing by two racks at 10-8. The Japanese stalwart, though, showed why he renowned as one of the world’s best to book a last 32 spot against the last remaining Pole, Konrad Juszczyszyn. Juszczyszyn proved no match for Oi, who had found his groove though, and now meets Chang Jung-Lin, who slew Niels Feijen. Feijen, a previous winner of the tournament himself, was frozen to his chair and 6-0 before he knew it after losing the lag, but he fought back to 6-4. It did prove to be all in vain though as Jung-Lin pushed back to make it two Chinese Taipei players in the last 16.

Third seed Alcaide and Woodward were amongst the casualties on day two of the World Pool Championship David Alcaide and Skyler Woodward became two of the biggest exits so far as the 2022 World Pool Championship field was whittled down to the last 64 at the Marshall Arena, Milton Keynes. Losers’ round one saw the first few scalps of the day as both Woodward and Alex Pagulayan were punished as they exited without a win to their name. Woodward lost out to Daniele Corrieri in the opening match and he went hill-hill with Qatar’s Ali Al Obaidli who fluked the nine in the penultimate rack to hold the break in the final one, while Pagulayan was much-fancied heading into the tournament but he faltered against former Euro Tour winner Craig Osborne of Great Britain to exit early on the second day. Rolling into the evening, it was losers’ qualification with 32 final players set to join the last 64 and the same amount heading home. On table one, Jayson Shaw demolished Jakub Koniar 9-3 to see the two-time Mosconi Cup champion draw Finland’s Petri Makkonen in the last 64. Alcaide was a semi-finalist just under 12 months ago and his cueing suggested it would be straightforward against Hong Kong’s Lo Ho Sum, who was knocked into the losers’ bracket by defending champion Albin Ouschan. Lo, though, held his nerve in some cagey early moments to pull through and find himself in the last 64. Pia Filler put in a stellar day to beat Ivan Meng Li in the afternoon and Bashar Hussein Abdulmajeed 9-6 to reach the last 64 for the first time and set up an enticing table one match with Mario He at 11am. Things didn’t get much better for Mosconi Cup captain Jeremy Jones as he witnessed Billy Thorpe, Chris Reinhold and Tyler Styer all exit on day two, but positives were taken from seeing Nicholas De Leon beat So Shaw and Toh Lian Han by 9-2 and 9-7 scores respectively. De Leon will now face Ouschan. There was also no such luck for Chris Melling on home soil, who exited at the hands of Bahram Lotfy who will now meet five-time US Open champion Shane van Boening tomorrow. From now, it is single elimination with matches becoming race to eleven up until the final. The draw saw the 32 players who won in winners’ qualification drawn against the 32 players who won in losers’ qualification this evening. Mosconi Cup USA hopeful Shane Wolford has been drawn against Masato Yoshioka, whilst Derby City Classic champion Francisco Sanchez Ruiz faces two-time world champion Thorsten Hohmann. Brit Elliott Sanderson overcame a hill-hill finish with good friend and a man he sponsors in Tom Staveley to set up a clash with Chinese Taipei’s Chang Jung-Lin tomorrow.

Reigning champion successfully began his title defence as the World Pool Championship commenced in Milton Keynes Albin Ouschan got off to the perfect start as he began the defence of his World Pool Championship title at the Marshall Arena, Milton Keynes. The Austrian faced a tricky opening encounter against Hong Kong’s Lo Ho Sum to begin proceedings on table one and he lived up to expectations to deliver a 9-3 victory. Ouschan came into the tournament in hot form after winning the inaugural Premier League Pool title and he got off to the best of starts to amass a 6-3 lead in the race to nine contest. ‘The Mean Machine’ continued on his way to set up a winners’ qualification match against Daniel Maciol in which the Pole was no match for the two-time world champion as he romped into the last 64 in a 9-1 win. This year sees the World Championship take on a new double elimination structure. The afternoon session saw all 128 players play their opening match. The losing 64 moved to tomorrow’s losers’ round one whilst winners faced off in winners’ qualification in tonight’s session. The losing players from the evening moved immedietely into tomorrow evening’s Losers’ Qualification where they will meet the winners of tomorrow’s Losers’ Round 1 matches. Two upsets involved two potential 2022 Mosconi Cup prospects for the USA as Skyler Woodward found himself on the end of a defeat to Italy’s Daniele Corrieri to fall into losers’ round one whilst there was joy for Shane Wolford. Wolford faced 2021 semi-finalist David Alcaide to book a place in the last 64 and the American admitted after a thrilling 9-7 win from behind 7-5 down that it was perhaps his biggest win to date. Alcaide could have to face compatriot Jose Alberto Delgado but that’s only if Delgado beats Ho Sum. Fans were treated to a vintage Jayson Shaw display in the afternoon as he overcome Vincent Halliday 9-2 on table two, but the two-time Mosconi Cup MVP faltered against Michal Gavenciak in a 9-7 loss. The loss means Shaw will face the winner of Jakub Koniar and Roman Hybler in losers’ qualification tomorrow evening. Francisco Sanchez Ruiz danced through his opening matches relatively unscathed with a 9-0 whitewash over Albania’s Besar Spahiu before closing out table one action in a satisfying 9-3 win over Dang Thanh Kien of Vietnam. Sanchez Ruiz’s efforts see him get a day off tomorrow and a last 64 tie with Corrieri on Friday morning. Action returns tomorrow with Wiktor Zielinski in main table action against Bulgaria’s Kristina Zlateva from 11am UK time on Sky Sports Arena, DAZN, Viaplay and other networks worldwide.

Poland‘s Szewczyk became the first-ever world tenball champion from his country after overcoming Peru’s Tevez

Jones and Lely will lead the respective American and European teams for the second year in a row Jeremy Jones and Alex Lely will return as captains for Team USA and Team Europe respectively at the 2022 Mosconi Cup, Bally’s Las Vegas from November 30 until December 3. Jones returns to lead the United States for the first time on home soil after leading the side for the last two years in Europe as he guns to return the trophy to American hands for the first time since 2019 in Las Vegas. Europe’s two-time winning captain Lely will return for a third stint as chief as he looks to seal a three-peat and a first victory in the USA since 2017 when Europe ran out 11-4 victors. The USA put up a spirited display last year with Jones having to step up to playing captain after losing Earl Strickland just 24 hours before the action got underway and will be seeking to take inspiration from their showing last year in Las Vegas this time around. Jones is fired up more than ever to deliver success for the home fans: “I am grateful. I wanted this opportunity again to put the last two years to bed and show what the USA is all about. I can’t freakin’ wait to get revenge on Europe in front of a home crowd. I want to give them something to cheer about. “Fans, be prepared. We’re red, white and blue all the way through and we will deliver a year to remember for USA and most importantly Lely. This will be the best Mosconi Cup ever.” Lely led his side to a dramatic turnaround after a slow opening two days in 2021 to seal an 11-6 win at Alexandra Palace with Jayson Shaw starring as MVP for the second year in a row. The Dutchman is aware this year will be a much sterner challenge though: “It feels great. I am honoured and I am looking forward to going to the USA. I am happy I get the chance to defend the cup in Las Vegas. “I will fight for it more than ever before. The atmosphere will be intimidating, and my players must react to it. In 2019, it was the first time the fans got into the European players faces. “I know how much the USA want to take the Mosconi Cup trophy back. I’m not willing to let them get their hands on it. We have so much more to give, and we will silence the USA crowd.”

Wiktor Zielinski snapped off the biggest 10-ball success of his young career with a straight sets victory over the Michigan Open champion Wiktor Zielinski became the third different champion on the 2022 US Pro Billiard Series, winning the prestigious Las Vegas Open with an impressive victory over US Open finalist Aloysius Yapp. Poland’s Zielinski received the full experience on Saturday night. Playing on the final day of the Alfa Las Vegas Open, he shut out Switzerland’s Dimitri Jungo 4-0 in the first set of the quarter-finals only to have Jungo defeat him by the same 4-0 score in the following frame. He survived back-to-back shootouts, first against Jungo and then against Billiard Congress of America Hall of Famer Mika Immonen in the semi-finals. And in the finals against Singapore’s Yapp, he looked like he’d miss his chance to snag the opening set only to have a fortunate roll toss it right back into his lap. Through it all, the 21-year-old persevered, defeating Yapp in straight sets 4-3, 4-0 to win the Open at the Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino, pocketing $30,000 and an automatic invitation into next year’s World 10-Ball Championships. Zielinski not only won, but did so in an event that was equal parts double-elimination tournament and endurance test, with a record 192 players competing over four days to crown a champion. After Yapp climbed onto the board in the first set with an opening rack win, Zielinski used a victorious safety exchange and a missed 2 ball from his opponent to jump out to a 2-1 advantage. Yapp snagged the next two games when he ran out the fourth rack after his opponent couldn’t pocket a ball on the break, then added a break-and-run but relinquished table control in the sixth game when he failed to pocket any balls on the break. Zielinski cleared the table to tie the match only to break dry again in the seventh game. As Yapp worked his way through the rack, he appeared positioned to clear the table and snatch the set until he overran position on the 6 ball and played safe. Zielinski left an opening after a safety attempt of his own but watched as Yapp left the object in front of the side pocket, handing his opponent a routine shot and a 4-3 first set victory. The second set was all Zielinski, taking advantage of a Yapp miss, a victorious safety exchange and a break-and-run to build a commanding 3-0 lead. The young man from Singapore had one last chance to mount a comeback in the fourth rack but watched as the cue ball caromed off of another ball into the side pocket after he pocketed the 1 ball. Zielinski cleared the table then tossed his cue on the table and raised both arms in victory. The three-time EuroTour champion earned the victory despite struggling with his break throughout the championship match, failing to pocket balls on the opening shot four times and scratching once. Zielinski reached the finals by overcoming unforced errors and breaking struggles of his own to down a resurgent Mika Immonen in a shootout in the first semifinal match of the afternoon. After Zielinski used a foul and scratch by Immonen in the first two games to take a 2-0 lead, the Hall of Famer tied the score by capitalizing on a dry break by his opponent in the third game then tacking on a break-and-run. As Immonen worked his way through the fifth rack, he misplayed position on the 4 ball then fouled when he failed to make contact with the ball. Zielinski cleared the table to grab a 3-2 lead then took advantage of an opening left by his opponent on a safety attempt in the following game to claim the set, 4-2. The young man from Poland would struggle in the second set and Immonen took advantage, capitalizing on missed shots by his opponent in the first and fifth games and a dry break in the fourth rack to steal victories. Zielinski continued to battle, taking advantage of two Immonen breaks where he failed to pocket a ball to snag wins of his own. Standing at the table with a 3-2 advantage, the Hall of Famer broke and ran to send the match to an extra set shootout. Immonen struggled in the spot shot extra frame, missing on his first and third attempts while Zielinski managed only one missed shot I three tries. The 49-year-old Immonen continued to apply pressure to his young opponent, making his fourth and final attempt and forcing Zielinski to either make his last attempt and secure the victory or miss and move on to sudden death. The young man from Poland calmly executed the shot, ending the match and sending Zielinski to the championship match to face Yapp. Playing in the quarter-finals against Poland’s Mateusz Sniegocki, Yapp controlled the opening set from the start and cruised to a 4-1 victory. Sniegocki, a three-time winner on the EuroTour, was far from finished, taking advantage of a couple of openings and squeaking out a 4-3 win to force sudden-death shootout. When Yapp and Sniegocki locked up to determine who would advance to the semifinals, it practically looked two guys in practicing free throws at the end of a basketball game. Neither one missed, as 10 ball after 10 ball continued to tumble into the corner pocket. They remained deadlocked after the opening innings, then remained tied after the first round of sudden death, then the third, and then the fifth. Finally, in the 11th frame of the set, Yapp successfully pocketed his ball and watched as his opponent blinked, handing the young man from Singapore the win. As he advanced to the semifinals, Yapp had to be wondering who he may have upset in Warsaw to receive the draw he did. Waiting for him was Wojciech Szewczyk, a 27-year-old who twice won the European Pool Championships as a junior. The Pole jumped out to an early 2-0 advantage in the first set thanks to a victorious safety exchange and a missed 4 ball by his opponent in the second rack. Yapp climbed onto the board in the third game after his opponent failed to pocket a ball on the break but lost control of the table in the next game when he lost a safety exchange with Szewczyk, who cleared the table to take a commanding 3-1 lead. Yapp tied the score with back-to-back victorious safety exchanges on the 1 ball but forfeited the table again when he failed to pocket a ball on the break. Szewczyk appeared positioned to clear the table but missed a cut shot on the 6 ball, handing Yapp the table and the victory, 4-3. After Yapp won the first rack of the second set he scratched on the break in the next game, handing the table back to his opponent who tapped in a combination shot on the 10 ball to tie the score. Szewczyk added another rack after his opponent scratched after pocketing the 6 ball but misplayed a safety on the 1 ball in the next game that allowed Yapp to carom the cue ball from the 1 ball into the 10 ball and tie the score. Standing at the table with a chance to regain the lead, Yapp failed to pocket a ball on the break once again and watched as his opponent walked to the table and once again fired in a combination shot on the 10 ball to regain the lead. Yapp had chance to tie the match after Szewczyk failed to pocket a ball on the break but misplayed position on the 6 ball, then lost a safety exchange on the ball which allowed his opponent to win the set and send the match to a shootout. Shockingly, the player who had pocketed 11 consecutive spot shots in the previous match, missed his first attempt. Then he missed his third. Thankfully for him, Szewczyk was struggling as well, missing three straight shots down the stretch to hand Yapp the victory, 3-2.