Cue Sports Weekly: Filler Makes History, Snooker's New Season Kicks Off & the Ghost Ball Drill You Need This Week

It's been a big few weeks in the world of felt and chalk. Joshua Filler rewrote UK Open history in Essex, the World Nineball Tour rolled out a new ball set that's already turning heads, snooker's 2026/27 season is firing up with qualifiers underway, and Matchroom is taking its biggest show to Chinese Taipei. Oh — and I'm heading into the Lincoln Memorial Comp at the local RSA this weekend, which I'll get to at the end. Let's get into it.

Filler Wins the UK Open — Again

The 2026 UK Open Pool Championship wrapped up at the Brentwood Centre in Essex on 31 May, and Joshua Filler walked away as the first two-time champion in the event's history.

The German star dismantled Poland's Wojciech Szewczyk 13-1 in a one-sided final that wasn't quite as close as the score suggests — Filler was utterly dominant from the first rack.

The real drama came earlier in the draw. Former UK Open champion Robbie Capito produced one of the biggest upsets of the tournament, edging out World No.1 Fedor Gorst in a gripping hill-hill decider — Gorst had led 9-4 at one point and looked destined to advance before Capito clawed it back.

Jonas Souto then gained revenge over defending champion Aloysius Yapp to reach the semi-finals, avenging his 13-1 loss to Yapp in last year's final.

The semi-finals saw Filler dismantle Jayson Shaw 11-2, while Szewczyk crushed Souto 11-3 to set up a Poland vs. Germany final. The total prize fund was $225,000, with Filler taking home $40,000 for the title.

For what it's worth: Filler's form right now is as clean as I've seen it. His break-building has always been excellent but his safety game looks sharper than ever — he's not giving opponents anything to work with. Szewczyk reaching a Major final is also a genuine milestone; the Polish scene has been producing serious talent for years and it's nice to see it reflected at this level.

The WNT Gets New Balls — And They're a Big Deal

Alongside the UK Open, the World Nineball Tour made a significant equipment announcement: the Dynaspheres Titan Series has become the official ball set of the World Nineball Tour, with the UK Open marking the first time Dynaspheres balls have been used officially on Tour.

This is a multi-year partnership, not a one-event trial.

The new Titan Series maintains the iconic yellow and black "bumble bee" colour scheme that nineball players know well, while incorporating a redesign aimed at improving player performance and visibility under arena lighting conditions.

The manufacturer describes it as built for the modern professional game — fast, precise, and engineered for TV clarity.

From a practical standpoint, ball sets at this level matter more than most club players realise. Consistency in roundness, surface hardness, and friction coefficient all affect cue ball behaviour, especially on high-speed shots and long pots.

If Dynaspheres can deliver on those specs at scale, it's a meaningful upgrade for the tour's visual product and for player conditions.

The Titan Series will also be made available for fans and players to purchase soon — something worth keeping an eye on if you're looking to upgrade your home or club set.

Matchroom Takes the World Pool Masters to Chinese Taipei in 2027

Just days after the UK Open closed, Matchroom announced a landmark double-header in Chinese Taipei next January: the World Pool Masters (12–14 January 2027) and the Fullcan Sports Chinese Taipei Open (6–10 January 2027), creating nine consecutive days of world-class nineball in Taipei City.

The 2027 World Pool Masters will feature a historic two-table arena setup for the first time, meaning more matches broadcast live and more action for fans watching worldwide. The Chinese Taipei Open will also make its debut as a co-promoted WNT event, welcoming a 128-player international field through a double-elimination format.

This is a smart move by Matchroom. Chinese Taipei has one of the most passionate pool audiences in the world, and events there consistently produce high-quality fields and engaged crowds. Having Ko Pin Yi competing on home soil — fresh off a dramatic final loss to Jefrey Roda at the earlier Chinese Taipei Open — will give the event a genuine local storyline to build around.

Snooker: Wu Yize Is Champion, and a New Season Is Already Underway

If you missed the end of the snooker season — and the northern hemisphere summer makes that easy — here's the headline: Wu Yize defeated Shaun Murphy 18-17 in a thrilling World Championship final at the Crucible to claim the title. It was a remarkable match. Wu became the second-youngest World Champion since Stephen Hendry in 1990, capping a season in which he already won the International Championship.

Defending champion Zhao Xintong was beaten by Murphy in the quarter-finals, while Ronnie O'Sullivan lost 13-12 to Higgins in the second round.

Murphy's run to the final — past Higgins in the semis — was the story of the latter stages, and at 48 he reminded everyone he's still very much a contender at the top level.

Now the 2026/27 season is already in motion. The Championship League began 22 June at the Mattioli Arena in Leicester, the first ranking action of the new campaign.

For those closer to home, the Asia Pacific Q Tour kicks off 26–28 June at Pot Black North in Perth, with a second leg running 10–12 July at the Papatoetoe Cosmopolitan Club in Auckland — yes, Q Tour snooker in South Auckland.

If that's your scene, it's worth knowing about.

Drill of the Week: The Yo-Yo

Discipline: 9-ball / 8-ball / General pool
Origin: Widely attributed to coach Johan Ruijsink, used by WNT tour professionals
Difficulty: Intermediate–Advanced
What it trains: Stun/crossover position, cue ball speed control, rail-to-rail shape.

The infamous Yo Yo Drill

Setup

Place two object balls, one on each long rail, both frozen to the cushion at the second diamond from the foot end. Place the cue ball in hand in the zone between the side pocket and the headstring — not crossing the midline initially.

The Task

Pot one of the object balls, bringing the cue ball back across the centre line to land in the darkened zone — the area between the side pocket and the first diamond toward the foot rail. The ideal path is to drive the cue ball into the rail between the side pocket and that first diamond, using a stun-style shot. After potting, replace the ball you just pocketed at the same position and repeat on the other side.

Keep alternating side to side. The cue ball should never end up tight to the rail (which kills your stun angle for the next shot) or too far from it (which means you've overhit and lose control of the route).

If you prefer a video here is a great version of it.

Why It Works

This drill exposes speed control errors very quickly. If you fall too close to the rail you can no longer stun the cue ball effectively, making your next shot significantly harder. If you fall too far from the rail you can't control the cue ball's travel, and any significant error builds up rapidly through the sequence. There's nowhere to hide — one bad shot compounds into the next. AzBilliards

It's become a benchmark drill at the elite level. Fedor Gorst has reportedly strung 24–28 balls in a row, and Sky Woodward reportedly holds an unofficial record of around 35–36. For club-level players, getting 10 clean in a row is a solid target to work toward.

The RSA Weekend Test

I'll be running this drill Thursday and Friday before the Lincoln Hopkins Memorial Comp is on Saturday. The RSA table plays a bit slower than I'm used to — the cloth isn't exactly fresh — so speed control is going to matter more than usual. If you're playing in local comps this winter, this drill will sharpen exactly the kind of bread-and-butter positional thinking that separates consistent scorers from streaky ones.

Looking Ahead

The WNT summer schedule is stacked — 11 events across five countries with over $1.2 million in prize money from June through August, including three marquee Major championships in the United States. The US Open is the headline event at the end of that run, and with Filler in this kind of form, he's going to be very hard to stop.

In snooker, Championship League group play continues through July, and the tour builds toward the China Open and Wuhan Open in the second half of the year.

For those of us at club level in New Zealand — the Auckland Q Tour leg in July is worth circling. Even if you're not playing, it's a rare chance to watch high-level snooker live in South Auckland.

I'll report back on how the Lincoln Memorial goes. Wish me luck.

FAQ

Who won the 2026 UK Open Pool Championship? Joshua Filler of Germany won the 2026 UK Open, defeating Wojciech Szewczyk of Poland 13-1 in the final to become the first two-time UK Open champion.

What is the Dynaspheres Titan Series? The Dynaspheres Titan Series is the new official ball set of the World Nineball Tour, introduced in May 2026 as part of a multi-year partnership. It maintains the classic yellow/black nineball colour design with improvements to surface performance and TV visibility.

Where is the 2027 World Pool Masters being held? The 2027 World Pool Masters will be held at the Songshan Cultural and Creative Park in Taipei City, Chinese Taipei, from 12–14 January 2027 — the first time the event has taken place in Asian Taipei.

Who won the 2026 World Snooker Championship? Wu Yize of China won the 2026 World Championship, defeating Shaun Murphy 18-17 in one of the closest finals in recent memory at the Crucible in Sheffield.

What is the Corner-to-Corner Positional Ladder drill? It's a cue ball control drill using seven object balls placed diagonally across the table. Players alternate draw and follow shots to pot each ball while keeping the cue ball on the rail, developing pace control and top/bottom English without relying on side spin.

Is there snooker happening in New Zealand in 2026? Yes — the Asia Pacific Q Tour has a leg scheduled at the Papatoetoe Cosmopolitan Club in Auckland from 10–12 July 2026.