Aussie Neil Blows Chance Of Second Welsh Open Snooker Maximum To Stay Composed In Cardiff

Neil Robertson blew any chance of scoring back-to-back 147 maximums breaks after a fellow Aussie yelled: “Go on Neil, make another one.”

World number 10 Robertson, from Melbourne, had just compiled a 147 on his way to a 4-1 win against Jordan Brown and took a short break to regain his composure.

Snooker fans rushed to ask for selfies and he had to tell them: “Look guys, after the match no problem.”

Robertson returned to the arena and when the Australian fan from Adelaide shouted his encouragement he made a big decision by shunning the black in favour of blue.

That ended the chance of a maximum and Robertson said: “I took blue pretty early on to settle myself down and remind myself there was a job to do.”

Ever wondered what it's like to make a 147?

Let @nr147 tell you.

He's just knocked in his FOURTH! #WelshOpen pic.twitter.com/Cqicy8DjFX

— WST (@WeAreWST) February 13, 2019

He still returned a 140 break, an impressive follow-up to his 147.

That was the seventh maximum scored in Welsh Open snooker and Robertson said: “It was amazing because I haven’t been feeling great over the last fortnight.

“When I potted a red below the pack on 64 the other reds split almost perfectly. From that point I controlled the white really well and just thought ‘when you get to the colours hold yourself together’.

“Then it was just about trusting my technique and staying composed.

“Making a 140 after a maximum is pretty rare. I’m really stoked at how well I played.”

The next test for Robertson is against Gary Wilson and he said: “He’s dangerous in his own right. I have to focus on maintaining my levels.”

'It was how a 1⃣4⃣7⃣ should be made' @nr147 talks us through his maximum…and his potential to do it again in the following frame!#HomeNations #WelshOpen pic.twitter.com/VLLT5Jlbty

— Eurosport (@eurosport) February 12, 2019

It was a fourth career maximum for Robertson and the 148th overall in professional competition and he stands to earn a £17,000 bonus if the feat isn’t matched this week. 

That would be £15,000 from the rolling maximum 147 break prize fund and an extra £2,000 for recording the highest break of the tournament.

It was a hectic day of action as the first round matches were completed and the initial 128 players was educed to 64 at Cardiff’s Motorpoint Arena.

Ronnie O’Sullivan and Mark Selby both earned 4-2 wins, beating Sanderson Lam and Anthony McGill respectively.

Four-times Welsh Open champion O’Sullivan set up an intriguing clash with Yuan Sijun, while Selby plays Adam Duffy.

https://twitter.com/WorldSnooker/status/1095458848821907456

First round results: Oliver Lines 4, Fergal O’Brien 2; Ding Junhui 4, Chris Totten 2; Duane Jones 4, Xiao Guodong 3; Ricky Walden 4, Lee Walker 2; Nigel Bond 4, Alan McManus 3;

Scott Donaldson 4, John Astley 2; Joe Swall 4, Li Hang 2; James Cahill 4, Gerard Greene 2; Joe O’Connor 4, Rhys Clark 2; Ronnie O’Sullivan 4, Sanderson Lam 2; Ian Burns 4, Luo Honohao 1;

Mel Xi Wen 4, Michael Holton 3; Barry Hawkins 4, Sunny Akani 0; Ben Woollaston 4, Lu Ning 1;  Michael Georgiou 4, David Lilly 0; Jimmy White 4, Andrew Higginson 2; Kyren Wilson 4, Andy Lee 0;

Stuart Bingham 4, Ali Carter 0; Gary Wilson 4, Robin Hull 0; Thor Chuan Leong 4, Rory McLeod 0; Paul Davison 4, Lyu Haotian 1; Zhao Xintong 4, Jackson Page 1; Mark Selby 4, Anthony McGill 2;

Mike Dunn 4, Robert Milkins 0; James Waltana 4, Chen Zifan 3; Billy Joe Castle 4, Simon Lichtenberg 3; Kurt Maflin 4, Luca Brecel 2; Elliott Siessor 4, Alex Taubman 2; Tom Ford 4, Ashley Carty 2;

Zhang Anda 4, Martin Gould 3; Neil Robertson 4, Jordan Brown 1; Mark Davies 3, Joe Perry 4.

Welshman Mark Williams is in the second round. Pic: Getty Images.

Second round draw:

10am: Soheil Vahedi v Craig Steadman; Jack Lisowski v Marco Fu; Ken Doherty v Sam Craigie; Jak Jones v Peter Lines; Robbie Williams v Anthony Hamilton; Martin O’Donnell v Ricky Walden; Jimmy Robertson v Nigel Bond; James Cahill v Shaun Murphy.

1pm: Oliver Lines v Ding Junhui; Judd Trump v Duane Jones; Zhang Jiankang v Alexander Ursenbacher; Xu Si v Noppon Saengkham; Thepchaiya Un-Nooh v Lucas Kleckers; Hossein Vafaei v Ross Muir; Scott Donaldson v Joe Swail; Ian Burns v Liang Wenbo.

2pm: Zhao Xintong v Zhou Yuelong; Yuang SiJun v Ronnie O’Sullivan; Mei Xi Wen v Mark Allen; Thor Chuan Leong v Paul Davison.

3pm: Hammad Miah v Joe Perry; Mike Dunn v James Wattana; Billy Joe Castle v Kurt Maflin; 

4.30pm: Joe O’Connor v Kyren Wilson.

7pm: Stuart Bingham v Matthew Selt; Mark Selby v Adam Duffy; Michael Georgiou v Jimmy White; Elliot Slessor v Tom Ford; Zhang Anda v Mark Williams.

8pm: John Higgins v Dominic Dale; Barry Hawkins v Ben Woollaston; Neil Robertson v Gary Wilson.