Jayson Shaw and Wu Jiaqing are the final two players to join the star-studded line-up for the 25th World Pool Masters, which takes place at Victoria Stadium, Gibraltar this March 2-4, with tickets on sale now at www.buytickets.gi
The duo take the two wildcard spots in the event and join 14 previous World Pool Masters champions including the likes of Francisco Bustamante, Earl Strickland and Ralf Souquet in the 16-man invitational event with the draw to be made shortly.
Shaw has been one of pool’s most dominant players over the last two years, with the US Open, Kuwait Open and two Mosconi Cups among the many titles he has collected in becoming arguably the world’s best.
Jiaqing won the China Open in 2016 and was a bronze medallist at last year’s World Cup of Pool. He’ll first played in the Masters in 2005.
A spokesperson for Matchroom Multi Sport commented: “The field for the 25th World Pool Masters is now complete, and what a feast of pool we can look forward to. With so many of the greatest players of the last two decades in attendance it is set to be a fantastic celebration of the tournament’s quarter centenary.
“Every player is a pool legend in his own right and it is impossible to pick a winner from the 16 players taking part. This year’s World Pool Masters guarantees excitement, drama, and world-class pool. It’s going to be one of those ‘I was there’ tournaments.”
Tickets for the 25th World Pool Masters are on sale now priced £7-12 per session with season tickets available for just £34.99 at www.buytickets.gi.
The World Pool Masters will be broadcast live for 20 hours in total on Sky Sports in the UK and on networks around the world. The World Pool Masters is sponsored by the following suppliers: RASSON (tables), IWAN SIMONIS (Simonis cloth), SALUC (Aramith balls), PREDATOR (cues) and ULTIMATE TEAM GEAR (clothing).
第25屆世界美式撞球大師賽 (World Pool Masters) 將於今年3月2日-4日在直布羅陀 (Gibraltar) 的維多利亞體育館進行，賽事陣容目前已全部敲定，繼Ralf Souquet、Francisco Bustamante以及Earl Strickland 等14位名將先後確認參與角逐後，Matchroom公司於昨日公布了最後兩位受邀球員—— Jayson Shaw和吳珈慶。
一年一度的世界撞球大師賽由世界斯諾克母公司Matchroom主辦，是美式9球屆最負盛名的邀請賽事，與斯諾克項目的倫敦大師賽不同，組委會通常不會按照世界排名決定參賽名單，而是在世界範圍內邀請上一年中表現最優秀的16位球員共同爭奪至高榮譽。
賽事自1993年開創以來已經成功舉辦了24屆 (2016年未辦)，在二十多年的歷史中，Earl Strickland、Francisco Bustamante、Tony Drago以及Ralf Souquet等名將都曾問鼎，其中，德國名將Souquet 6次折桂創造了一項難以逾越的驚人紀錄，而美國頭號球星Shane Van Boening則是賽事開辦以來唯一一個個成功衛冕的球員。
今年比賽，為了紀念賽事成功跨入第25屆，組委會在確定陣容時作了一些調整，除了目前頂尖球員的Jayson Shaw、衛冕冠軍David Alcaide、“泰山神童”吳珈慶外，還特意邀請了數位曾經的冠軍得主參賽，如1995年冠軍Daryl Peach、1997年冠軍Earl Strickland、1999年冠軍Alex Lely、2001年冠軍Bustamante、2003年冠軍Tony Drago等等。獎金方面，冠軍獨得20000美金，亞軍為10000美金，即使首輪選手出局也有3000美金的入賬。