Maguire wins epic Welsh Open final
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E-mail China.org.cn, February 18, 2013
Stephen Maguire stayed cool to overcome Stuart Bingham in a last-frame thriller to secure the Welsh Open and his first major title in five years.
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Glory at last for Stephen Maguire after winning the Welsh Open. |
"I forgot what it felt like to be a winner at the end of a tournament - it's the best feeling ever," Maguire said.
Having beaten Judd Trump in the last-four, world No. 6 Maguire carried that form into the final going 2-0 up with breaks of 71 and 62 before clocking up two centuries, 110 and 114, to re-establish his lead at 4-2.
But Bingham, who won the last two frames to win his semi-final against Ding Junhui, showed his fighting spirit again and ended the afternoon brilliantly to level at 4-4.
Bingham won his third on the spin at the start of the evening session to take the lead for the first time. The Essex man then maintained his buffer by constructing a 118 break.
Maguire had said before the final that if he let this one slip away from him, he would not be able to speak and he must have been at least tight lipped at the mid-session interval as he was 7-5 down following another frame to Bingham.
At 7-5 ahead, world number 10 Bingham missed a crucial shot, leaving Maguire to take advantage.
Maguire did not look back, taking the following two frames to be within one of victory at 8-7.
But Bingham did not fold and won the 16th to force a winner-takes-all final frame which Maguire eventually won, showing how much the victory meant to him by punching the side of the table as he closed in on the win.
"I've been playing snooker non-stop since the new year and I'm match sharp," said Maguire before lifting the Welsh Open trophy.
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