Harrison ends season on a high

Phil Harrison capped what could have been considered, by his high standards, a poor season by hitting top gear, taking the final event of the season and also making the final of the inaugural Premier League knockout.

The Cambridgeshire cueist didn’t have it all his own way and got off to a shaky start. His first round game against Alex Lawrence could have easily been his last of the tournament as he saw a 4-1 lead evaporate before finding himself 6-5 down. But for one loose positional shot to get on black the game was up for Harrison. When his chance presented itself he did what he does best and closed out the match and from then on never looked back. With a long line of quality players ahead including Englands’ Mike King and Karl Sutton and inform player and tour newcomer Shaun Storry, Harrison made short work of his opposition and booked his place in the final.

On the other side of the draw, tour 4 finalist Rob Wharne was having another great tour. A tough match against 3x2017 tour winner Tom Cousins saw Wharne come out a 7-5 victor and this was his only close match until the semi-finals. Here he met fellow Staffordshire player Adam Davis, who comprehensively beat him in the previous final. Davis should have taken a 7-5 lead after potting two fantastic doubles to leave a straightforward black, however he appeared to have a mental block taking a long time on what should have been a drop in only to see it hit the jaws and stay up. This gave Wharne just the opportunity he needed to get back in the match, eventually taking it 8-7 and setting up his second final appearance in a row.

The final was a quality affair with Harrison hitting top gear from the off. He took a 4-0 lead and it looked like the writing could be on the wall until Wharne hit back with back to back clearances from the break. Harrison, with all his experience, was not fazed and as soon as the opportunity presented itself he got back on the scoreboard and never let up, running out an 8-2 victor.