After another gruelling day of qualifying at the Cue Shot Pool Room in Taipei City, it was former WPA World Junior Champion Ying-chieh Chen who laid claim to the sixth slot in Saturday's main event after beating former Cardiff semi-finalist Chia-hsiung Lai 9 – 6.
It was second time lucky for the 19 year-old from Tai-dong county after he scratched on the final 9-ball of the final rack in yesterday's second qualifier to let fellow countryman Ming-Wei Chien through.
Chen will find himself ensconced in Group 13 and is not shy about his chances in a bracket that includes Dutch ace Niels Feijen and 2003 quarter-finalist Shin-young Park of Korea, “To get into the last 64 should not be a problem but because of the single elimination format after that the chance for me would be either lucky or unlucky!” he said afterwards.
After yesterday's heartbreaker, Chen responded in a positive fashion with solid wins over World Championship veteran Kun-fang Lee in the quarter final and then Tung-yu Yang in the semi.
He can now hone his game as he prepares for Saturday's big break-off; “I can finally relax myself, especially after yesterday's defeat,” said Chen.
