Robson gets a big break at age of 16
BLYTH potter Andrew Robson caused a major surprise by winning the latest one-day handicapped pro-am event at Whitley Bay Snooker Centre.
Robson - who graduated through the centre’s junior Saturday morning coaching School - beat Gateshead’s Brian Hall 3-2.
Robson’s game has improved so much over the last few months he now competes off a low handicap of 15.
He could not have wished for a better early morale-booster than beating the only other coaching school main winner in his opening match - seeing off North Shields 16-year-old TJ Rendles (off 15) 3-1.
He then knocked out another former winner, Hartlepool’s Vincent West, 3-2 to reach the semi-finals where he beat Scotland’s Stuart Findlay (off 25) 3-1 t.
Hall emerged the 3-2 decidingframe winner of his opening contest against Whitley’s Tony Robson.
His following two matches were equally close.
Local potter Karl Foster, conceding five points, fought tooth and nail - only to lose the decider on the colours and the match 3-2.
In the semis Hall faced Forster’s namesake Scott - but the result was the same, another 3-2 win for the Gateshead player.
Even with a 20-points-a-frame deficit in the decider, 16-year-old Robson always looked the more confident of the two finalists.
It came as no surprise he took the opening frame 68-33 and raced into a 2-0 lead by running away with the next 71 (21-32)-42.
The next two frames were both close affairs, both going the way of the Gateshead player 65(24)-43 and 68(19-21)-53(26).
However, it was Robson who celebrated victory by wrapping up the decider 72(26-21)-47.
Top break on the day went to Brian Hall with a run of 68 against Tony Robson, who went on to beat Karl Foster 2-0 in the final of the plate competition.