Keynsham potter Judd Trump set for debut at Masters
Bristol snooker player Judd Trump is champing at the bit to make his debut at the Wembley Masters which starts on Sunday.
The Keynsham potter returns to professional action on Monday in the wildcard round of the most prestigious invitational event on the calendar at Wembley Arena.
And having risen 14 places to No 27 in the provisional world rankings, it's no wonder the talented teenager is full of confidence ahead of his clash with Irishman Mark Allen at the £486,000 tournament.
"It's been a good season so far, I've not lost a qualifying match yet," said Trump, who is guaranteed £3,500 in prize money win or lose. That increases to £14,000 if he wins his opening best-of-11 frame match.
Trump beat world champion and world No 1 Ronnie O'Sullivan in reaching the semi-finals of the Royal London Watches Grand Prix in Glasgow earlier this season.
But despite what the 19-year-old still classes as the "biggest win of my career", he still feels he has underachieved.
"I did well in Glasgow, but I don't think I really did anything. I didn't win the tournament, which I was disappointed about," he added.
"I feel as though I should be pushing for titles, I want to win tournaments because I know what I'm capable of.
"It was frustrating at first because it took me time to get used to qualifying and then playing in front of the television cameras, but I'm used to that now.
"It's my first time at the Masters, so I'm just looking to enjoy myself and enjoy the tournament.
"Hopefully I can play well and start with a win, if I do that who knows how far I can get."
Trump won six tough qualifying matches at the English Institute of Sport to earn himself a wildcard entry for this season's event.
And come Monday the left-hander is looking for revenge against Allen, who beat him 5-1 in the Bahrain Championship.
Trump said: "I know I've got a tough match against Mark, but I know I'll get chances because he goes for his shots.
"But I could have easily beat him 5-1 when we played each other in Bahrain, I had enough chances."
A view shared by Allen, who said: "It should be a good match. He could have beat me 5-1 when we played in Bahrain, but he kept making 50 breaks and giving me a chance to clear up. He's definitely going to be a player who breaks into the world top 16 soon."







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