Sniegocki Rules in Italy

POLAND’S MATEUSZ SNIEGOCKI landed the DYNAMIC BILLARD Treviso Open today as he defeated Felix Vogel 8-5 in the championship match. It was the 39-year-old Pole’s fourth Euro Tour triumph, following wins in Bosnia (2013), Portugal in 2015 and Albania the following year. For Vogel at just 16, it was his second Euro Tour final of the season, which in itself is an incredible feat and augurs well for the coming years.

The match was never easy for both players as they struggled to deliver the type of breaks that are essential for 10-ball success and it was Vogel who got the match underway. A miss on the 1 ball left an open, albeit difficult table for Sniegocki but he too failed on the yellow. There were multiple visits on the 1 ball before the Pole dropped it and completed the runout to take the early lead.

That soon became 2-0 as Sniegocki ran out from the break. Vogel downed a ball off his next break and left himself a clear go on the 1 ball. With a nice open table, he ran out to reduce the arrears. There was more safety play on the 1 ball after Sniegocki‘s next break but it was Vogel who got the first good look at it and he duly cleared to level the match up.

A missed 3 ball from Vogel in the next left a jump for his opponent but he was unable to capitalise. However, a ball-in-hand opportunity came Sniegocki‘s way after a good safety and he cashed in to restore his lead at 3-2.

With an unforgiving break, there was more safety play in the sixth game as they both looked to put the 3 ball away. A loose one from Vogel gave the chance to Sniegocki and it set him on his way to a 4-2 lead. Vogel delivered the best break of the match so far, with two balls down and a nice spread. He hooked himself though, going from 3 to 4, and his one rail escape saw him scratch. With another ball-in-hand, Sniegocki increased his lead to 5-2.

A dry break got Vogel back to the table but only a push out was available. He managed to completely hook himself and his jump escape failed to come off. Things were looking bleak for the young German as Sniegocki took ball-in-hand and he made no mistakes to stretch his lead to four racks.

A ball down from Vogel on the next break resulted in no shot on the 1 ball. He pushed out and Sniegocki decided to take on the jump shot which he executed with aplomb. There was nothing available on the next ball – the 3 – and his solid safety kept the initiative. Vogel returned the favour and Sniegocki missed his kick to give his opponent a glimmer of hope. He held his nerve to move the score to 6-3.

Sniegocki came up dry and left the 1 ball available for Vogel. With little to work with by way of scoreline, he could ill-afford any errors but a miss on the 3 ball set his opponent up and he comfortably cleared the table to put himself on the hill.

With no margin for error, Vogel took the next, closing out the rack with a courageous bank on the 10 ball. There was a tough layout for Sniegocki, following his break, and he made three difficult pots but his kick on the 3 was in no-man’s-land and left it for Vogel. He pocketed it and then the rest of the table to stay alive in the match at 7-5. A dry break from Vogel left the 1 ball on and it was there for Sniegocki‘s taking. There were a couple of difficult moments but he held himself together well to take the Dynamic Billard Treviso Open.

Commented Sniegocki, “Of course I’m very happy and satisfied with the result. That was my fourth and there was a few year’s break before my last one. I didn’t play that bad during that period between titles but there’s always something that goes wrong. There were a lot of good players who played better than me and the break was my biggest problem for most of the Euro Tour, especially 9-ball, so I’m very glad that it’s 10-ball.

“Vogel is a very talented player, he plays very wise, especially at such a young age and his time will come so I’m not feeling very guilty that I won and I’m sure he will win a lot of good titles. I’ve been here many times in Treviso, I’ve always liked the place and now I like it even more,” he added.

That is the conclusion of the men’s event, but the Predator Women’s Treviso Open got underway earlier today. From a starting line-up of 46 players, the field played down to the last 16 today and resumes at 10.00 on Sunday morning. The final is scheduled for 16.45.

For viewers at home, Tables 1 & 2 will be streamed throughout on YouTube. Table 1 will be on the Kozoom channel, while Table 2 will be available throughout on the EPBF platform. All other tables can be viewed on the Kozoom.com website, where there are a variety of subscription options.

Table 1 link = https://www.youtube.com/@KozoomTV/streams

Table 2 link = https://www.youtube.com/@theepbf/streams

Tables 1-20 = https://home.kozoom.com/en/all-cue-sports