BARRY Hawkins admitted the snooker gods must have been on his side as he beat Gerard Greene to win the Wyldecrest Parks PTC Finals and claim a second ranking title.
Read MoreHAWKINS: THIS TITLE WAS MEANT TO BE MINE
HAWKINS READY FOR JUDDERNAUT CLASH
BARRY Hawkins was in the mood to get on with it against Yu Delu to avoid another late night at the Wyldecrest Parks PTC Grand Finals on Friday.
Read MoreTRUMP WHITEWASHES MURPHY TO REACH QUARTERS
JUDD Trump became the new tournament favourite at the Wyldecrest Parks PTC Finals on Thursday night after whitewashing Shaun Murphy 4-0 in Preston.
Read MoreSTUNNED O'SULLIVAN DUMPED OUT BY DELU
RONNIE O’Sullivan was dumped out of the Wyldecrest Parks PTC Finals last night by practice partner Yu Delu – a shock exit that blows the tournament wide open.
Read MoreNUGGET ENJOYS NOSTALGIC RETURN TO PRESTON
Steve Davis dropped in to the Guildhall on Thursday, up in Preston to do an exhibition at the football stadium with local hero Ian McCulloch in tow. Noting that the venue where he won six UK titles “hadn’t changed one bit” since his 1980s heyday, the six-time world champion, who now needs to win at least one World Championship qualifier at Ponds Forge in April to salvage his tour place, enjoyed a quick technical discussion on cues and tips with John Higgins before getting some practice in ahead of his evening duties.
PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT FOR ALLEN
MARK Allen eased into the quarter-finals of the Wyldecrest Parks Players Tour Championship Finals in Preston with a 4-1 win over regular sparring partner Fergal O’Brien on Thursday.
Read MoreARE PTC FINALS REALLY ONE THEY CAN ALL WIN?
SHORTER formats used in the Players Tour Championship should in theory give the outsiders more of a chance - but is that actually what we are seeing?
Read MoreO'SULLIVAN WHITEWASHES SCOT DONALDSON
RONNIE O’Sullivan routed Scott Donaldson 4-0 in Preston to set up a last-16 clash with China’s Yu Delu in the Wyldecrest Parks Players Tour Championship Finals.
Read MoreTREADMILL TAKING ITS TOLL
Maybe the demands of a long, hard season are catching up with a few of the players with both world No1 Neil Robertson and world No3 Ding Junhui, two of the undoubted men of the current campaign, suffering with illness during their first-round defeats in Preston. With the China Open following fast after this tournament, a few extra days recovery might not prove the worst thing in the world for either player – especially given the proximity of the World Championships just over three weeks away. It is there that both will want to peak, something they failed to do 12 months ago.
Robertson is just one of the top players who may be looking to follow Ronnie O’Sullivan’s example and attempt to be in peak condition for the major tournaments rather than play in just about everything in a mad scramble for points and money. Admittedly, a luxury that is far easier for a player to indulge with recent tournament successes and a few quid in the bank behind him. Michael Holt was another pleading “the worst case of man flu”, a state of distress not helped by the turmoil surrounding his beloved Nottingham Forest who sacked manager Billy Davies this week with their play-off chances starting to fade away.