by Matt Lynch • August 9, 2023
Stuart Bingham launched his Nineball career in sublime fashion as the 2015 world snooker champion got the better of Lo Ho-Sum and Sullivan Clark to reach Winners Qualification at the 2023 European Open Pool Championship in Fulda, Germany.
Bingham was pushed for large parts of his opening contest with former World Pool Masters finalist Lo before pulling ahead at 5-5 to a 9-5 win. A match-up with New Zealand World Cup of Pool representative Clark next if he was to ensure a safe passage to tomorrow’s Winners Qualification. Clark struggled to cope with Bingham’s potting prowess as he ran into an early ascendancy. Bingham, who has followed Nineball for some time, looked right at home as he cleared up for a 9-1 victory and two-time Mosconi Cup MVP Skyler Woodward in his way to reach the Last 64 at the first time of asking.
Woodward meanwhile made tough work of his afternoon Winners Round assignment in Damien Massey for the tie with Bingham. The Bluegrass Bad Ass was made to sweat despite amassing an early lead before being pegged back to 8-7 in a cagey affair. For Woodward though, it was a relief having had to find his way through the losers’ side in the previous two tournaments to make the final stages.
World Nineball Tour No.1 Francisco Sanchez Ruiz downed Jani Siekkinen in under half an hour 9-0 before seeing off Giuseppe Iacobucci 9-4 to set up a tie with Emil-Andre Gangflot tomorrow for the last 64. The shock of the day came in recent Sharks International 9-Ball Open champion Ko Ping Chung losing his Winners Round 1 contest with Can Salim 9-4 to head to the losers half where victory over Kalin-Feliks Stefanov of Bulgaria kept his tournament alive.
Mosconi Cup legend and veteran of the pool scene, Oliver Ortmann won his opening match of the tournament before coming up against current WNT number six Mario He where it was tough going as he kept close before the Austrian blew him away for 9-6. Ortmann was then knocked out by Ashik Nathwani of India 8-6.
