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Marco
Fu on his way to victory
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25
year-old Marco Fu became the first ever overseas winner in
the 17 year history of the Premier Snooker League as he produced
a superb comeback to overturn World Champion and World No.1
Mark Williams in Sunderland.
Fu
was trailing 5 - 3 after the first session of the best of
17 frame final but amazingly won six frames back to back to
claim his first title since turning professional in 1997.
In
addition it was the Hong Kong man's biggest ever payday as
he took £45,000 for winning the title, £12,000
for his share of the 'frames scored' bonus fund and £6,000
for the high break prize - a 139 scored ironically, against
Williams when they met back in January. All in, Fu will be
banking a cheque for £63,000.
Williams
came back in to the final session holding a two frame advantage
following some superb play which included breaks of 57, 65,
99 and a magnificent total clearance of 138.
Fu,
who had looked composed in his difficult semi-final win over
Ronnie O'Sullivan opened the session brilliantly with the
second century break of the final to reduce the deficit to
one frame.
A
run of 57 in the next was enough to put things on a level
footing and another great clearance under pressure, this time
of 71 was enough to put Marco in the lead for the third time
in the match.
A
missed long pink when on 32 by Fu looked to have given Williams
an opportunity to stop the rot but the anticipated break didn't
happen. Marco's 48 clearance, including a fluked final red,
put him two frames ahead.
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Marco
Fu with the trophy
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Following
a re-rack in the 13th - the second of the match - Fu's break
of 51 was enough to take a scrappy frame and put him within
one of the finishing line.
Marco,
who had looked rock solid all weekend completed a 66 break
in what was to be the final frame of the match to take the
Hasseroder Premier Snooker League title.
The
man from Happy Valley was understandably ecstatic; "This
is just different class because I've beaten the best players
in the business to lift the trophy and, in the end, definitely
the best player in the game this season,
"I'm
so pleased and I'm sure this will do a lot for my confidence.
I feel my form is coming together well. I just wish the season
didn't have to finish here. The way I'm playing I don't want
to stop just yet.
"For
a week or so before the world championship I was practising
with Stephen Hendry in Stirling and since I got knocked out
at the Crucible I've been putting in three or four hours a
day. All the hard work seems to have paid off.
"I
expected to win a world ranking title within four years of
turning professional. That hasn't happened for me yet - hopefully
it will next season - but this is very prestigious in its
own right and I'm sure the people back home will be delighted."
Williams,
who took home £33,500 for his efforts, refused to accept
that he had run out of steam only a week after hitting the
heights by claiming his second Embassy world championship
title at the Crucible.
"I
just couldn't get into it tonight. I was too wound up going
into the last session," insisted Williams. "But
fair play to Marco, he played good and deserved to win."
SEMI-FINAL
1
Marco
Fu made it through to his first final since the 1998 Grand
Prix as he beat an out of sorts Ronnie O'Sullivan to follow
up his fine win over the 'Rocket' at the World Snooker Championships.
Neither
player managed to assert themselves prior to the interval
with O'Sullivan's highest break being 63 and Fu's a meagre
34. They went into the mid-session break at two racks apiece
- a fair reflection on the proceedings.
It
was Fu though who found his groove the quickest when they
returned as he posted a run of 67 to go into a 3 - 2 lead.
A 57 in the next opened the gap to two frames, before O'Sullivan
bounced back to take it to 4 - 3.
Fu
took the next to put himself within one frame of victory,
but the Rocket completed a superb clearance in the next to
go 5 - 4.
However
it was Marco who held his nerve in what was to be the last
frame to clear from the final red to the blue to secure a
spot in the final.
Commented
Fu: "I was having trouble crossing the winning line so
I feel very relieved. This tournament means a lot to me as
it is broadcast all over the world and the folks at home get
to see it as well.
"We
both struggled a bit out there but I'm glad I carried on practising
after the World Championships. It's going to feel like my
first final as the last one was so long ago! It
would be so nice to win this title because to do so I would
have to beat the reigning World Champion."
SEMI-FINAL
2
World
No.1 and reigning World Champion Mark Williams stayed on track
for his fourth title of a lucrative season as he moved past
Peter Ebdon in the first semi-final of the 2003 Hasseroder
Premier Snooker League.
Williams
who has picked up the UK, World and Masters titles this year,
opened his account in a scrappy first frame as Ebdon conceded
with two reds remaining.
Although
Williams had not touched his cue since his heroics in Sheffield,
he was focused enough to increase his lead in the second with
a smart 80 clearance. Finding his stride in the third frame,
Mark reeled off a fine 100 clearance to leave a seemingly
uphill battle for the Wellingborough man. Ebdon, though, scrapped
out the final frame before the interval to give himself a
glimmer of hope.
Williams
reasserted himself after the break, taking the brown, blue
and pink to seal the fifth frame before Ebdon closed the deficit
in a hard fought sixth. In a drawn out seventh game, a 56
break by the World Champion was enough to put him within a
frame of the match and he sealed Ebdon's fate in the next
to move through to the final.
"It
was a tough game and I thought I played reasonably well, Williams
said. "It got a bit scrappy at times but that's how it
goes sometimes. I'd love to take this title to finish off
what has been a fantastic season for me."
Ebdon,
adds the losing semi-finalists prize of £12,500 to his
frames scored bonus fund of £12,000 to give himself
a Premier Snooker League pay day of £24,500.
RESULTS
Saturday
May 10 - Semi-Finals
Ronnie
O'Sullivan 4 - 6 Marco Fu
58
- 69 (38), 83 (34) - 25, 24 - 66 (33), 75 (63) - 8, 9 - 67
(67), 0 - 98 (41, 57), 72 (46) - 60 (53), 39 (39) - 80 (55),
67 (67) - 60 (60), 42 (30) - 61 (41)
Mark
Williams 6 - 2 Peter Ebdon
73
(58) - 26, 80 (80) - 52 (52), 104 (100) - 32 (32), 23 - 82
(57), 74 (54) - 57, 49 - 57 (32), 71 (56) - 48, 59 - 32
Sunday
May 11 - Final
Marco
Fu 9 - 5 Mark Williams
83
(59) - 22, 44 (44) - 82 (33), 68 - 57 (57), 50 (43) - 65 (39),
0 - 138 (138), 69 (46) - 52 , 0 - 113 (99), 0 - 66 (65), 131
(103) - 0, 58 (57) - 33 (33), 85 (71) - 49 (36), 80 (32,48)
- 30, 52 (51) - 11, 78 (66) - 0
FINAL
MONEY LIST
Marco
Fu: £63,000
Mark Williams: £33.500
Peter Ebdon: £28,000
Ronnie O'Sullivan: £24,500
John Higgins: £10,500
Jimmy White: £10,500
Steve Davis: £10,000
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