Bourne cueman pocketed a £700 pool prize in the Potteries
Ace Bourne cueman Mark Gray swapped snooker and 9-ball pool for the 8-ball pool game over the weekend and came close to pulling off a TV triumph.
Gray took part in an English Pool event at the Players Pool Lounge in Stoke and lost in the quarter-final 7-6 to Jake Dylan Newlove from Hull.
Gray lost in the first round of the 128-man event 7-5 to eventual winner Jez Graham, but battled his way through the losers bracket to reach the last 32.
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Hide AdHe recorded wins of 5-2, 5-0, 5-1 and 5-0 in qualifying before winning 7-5 in the last 32 and 7-0 in the last 16.
The tournament was tele vised on Freesport and carried a first prize of £8k, Gray won £700.
“Gutting to get so close to £8k,” Gray said. “But realistically I did better than I ever thought I would playing a new game. I still have plenty to learn.”