Pink Trumps Judd in the Pink Pro Am
Judd Trump missed a straight pink off its spot for a 147 in the Pink Pro Am at the South West Academy in Gloucester.
Trump had to be content with 134 after his pink ball blunder, but further breaks 51 and 53 saw Trump safely into the last 32.
The Pink Ribbon Pro Am had already thrown up a few shocks and disappointments for professionals old and new.
New tour pros Jack Lisowski and Liam Highfield, who dominated the PIOS series last season, were both bundled out in the first round by amateur opposition.
Lisowski went down 4-1 to the fast improving teenager Oliver Brown from Dronfield, while Highfield was edged out 4-3 by qualifier Karl Ashmore.
Matthew Stevens was the first of the 'big names' to take an early bath as he lost out 4-2 to Ben Harrison, another rapidly improving young player.
Event host Paul Mount, no mean player himself, lost 4-2 to James Brown, hardly a surprising result considering he hadn't had a chance to pick up his cue in the last six weeks of frantic preparation of the new Academy.
And a third Brown did the business in the opening round. This time Davis Brown beat Ben Woollaston 4-2.
There were no further shocks in the first round as familiar names rattled in the breaks. Trump smashed in 107 to beat Londoner Ryan Causton.
Jimmy White, Dominic Dale, Gerard Green, Barry Hawkins and Mark Davis, all On Q Promotions players, clocked up comfortable wins.
Round Two saw some of the 'minnows' still in the event, attempting to swin past the sharks.
After Trump's missed pink, Stuart Bingham spurned a chance on 57 with the balls spread nicely. Jamie O'Neill missed on 81 and Paul Mount's plea for a 147 to launch the new Academy still went unanswered.
Alfie Burden smacked in two runs of 131. Ryan Day and Tom Ford rattled in more tons to give the audience some high class snooker to enjoy.
Gloucester's own Michael Wasley beat Jamie O'Neill 4-2 to give the local fans more to cheer about.
Scotland's Anthony McGill, who makes his pro debut next week, produced an excellent display of mature match play to edge out Dominic Dale in the decider.
Liverpool's Allan Taylor popularly known as the 'Albino Assassain' ran Stuart Bingham very close before Bingham made 72 to take the decider, having made 130 earlier in the match.
Fellow Liverpudlian, John Whitty, took Jimmy White to a deciding frame, but much to the delight of the fans, 'The Wind' blew through.
Dave Harold wasn't in the mood to give anything away. So mean was the Stoke Potter that he restricted Kuldesh Johal to just five points in the match, as he compiled breaks of 75 twice.
The Last 32 was condensed into roll-on, roll-off to allow the anxious players to finish in time to cheer on England in the World Cup. Having seen the match, they would have been better off playing a few more frames!
David Grace ended the run of the event's 'Best Amateur', James Loft from the Castle Club in Brighton, with a final frame success. The Castle Club, who ran one of the Pink Ribbon qualifying events now earn a visit from one the the On Q stable for an exhibition evenings.
That is a just reward for the Club who have been supporting grass roots snooker, and have also staged Charity Pro Ams and have more in the pipeline for the coming season.
Gerard Green, with a best effort of 86, beat Nigel Bond, who made 84, 4-2.
Barry Pinches and Dave Harold dished up one of the best matches of the round. It ended 4-2 in Harold's favour after he made breaks of 93, 70 and 72. Pinches added 68 and 47 in the high quality encounter.
Jimmy White edged Jimmy Robertson 4-3 in a quick fire, entertaining match.
Bingham also won 4-3, sneaking past Martin Gould.
Joe Perry beat tour rookie Jak Jones 4-1, but was full of praise for his sixteen year old opponent after the match.
"Mark Williams told me how good Jak is but I wanted to see for myself.
"I was really impressed with how he played. Unlike many of the youngsters, he didn't go for everything, but played good matchplay snooker. You can see how much potential he's got."
Tony Drago was equally enthusiastic about sixteen year old Sam Craigie, after suffering a 4-0 reverse to the Newcastle player. "I'd never seen him play before but he plays a good game. He didn't rush and I'll be watching out for him in the future."
Events like the inaugural Pink Ribbon give the young aspiring players and the club amateurs the chance to rub shoulders with, and compete against their heroes.
James Popplewell, James Loft, Karl Ashmore, Luke Hooper and others went home having met and played their idols, got autographs, and sat and watched some high quality, entertaining snooker.
The Last 16 and Quarter Finals will be played on Saturday, with the Semi Finals and Final on Sunday.
Fans are very welcome to come along to watch.
