Denkha pockets World Snooker Q School opportunity
filed on Monday, December 17, 2019. 9:26am PT/USA
The United States' Renat Denkha has pocketed the opportunity to compete in the 2020 World Snooker Q School in England, after he won a qualifying competition this past weekend at Golden Break Snooker & Pool Club in Toronto, Canada.
Golden Break Snooker & Pool Club in Richmond Hill, Toronto, Canada
Photo courtesy of Golden Break Snooker & Pool Club
The qualifying competition was conducted by Snooker Canada, which is an organization established to help develop snooker in Canada, who opened the event up to sixteen players on December 15 to do battle in a single-elimination format with all matches the best-of-7-frames.
Two of the sixteen-player field were from the United States, Denkha and Thomas Kalinowski, the son of the five-time United States National Snooker Champion, Tom Kollins, who were drawn to play each other in the round of 16.
The United States players Renat Denkha (pictured left) and Thomas Kalinowski
Photo courtesy of Anita Kalinowski Foran
Denkha won the tie comprehensively 4-0, and he then went on to deliver the same scoreline in his quarterfinal defeat of Ontario's Greg Quesnelle.
Ontario's Jason Williams gave Denkha a very tough semifinal of which he came through 4-3, and he then went on to overcome Manitoba's Blake Martel in the final 4-1.
Renat Denkha (pictured right) with runner-up Blake Martel
Photo courtesy of Renat Denkha
Denkha's prize is an expenses paid trip to England next May to compete in the 2020 World Snooker Q School, which is an annual snooker event in which players from all around the world have the chance to try and qualify to compete as a professional on the World Snooker Tour for a minimum of two years.
Denkha was one match victory away from turning professional earlier this year, as he was runner-up to Brazil's Igor Figueiredo in the Pan American Snooker Championship in Houston, Texas.
