Page makes first 147 in World Championship qualifier
Welshman Jackson Page made the first maximum 147 break of his career in the qualifying tournament for the World Snooker Championship.
Page made three half-century clearances as well as a 109 break as he opened up a commanding 6-1 lead over England's Allan Taylor in the third round of qualifying.
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The 23-year-old put himself in line for the £10,000 bonus for a maximum during qualifying - as well as the £15,000 high break prize for the event - with his 147 in the eighth frame.
Page then made a break of 94 to win the next frame, leaving him 8-1 ahead and just two away from victory, with the best-of-19 match set to be concluded on Monday.
The qualifying rounds at Sheffield's English Institute of Sport run until 16 April, with the World Championship due to begin at the city's Crucible Theatre three days later.
Page has qualified for snooker's blue-riband event twice before.
In 2022 he was beaten in the second round by fellow Welshman Mark WIlliams, while in 2024 he suffered a 10-1 first round defeat against Ronnie O'Sullivan.
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Advertisement Other non-4 Nations forwards who could be invited to Plymouth include Cooley, Frank Nazar (who was outstanding at worlds with six goals and 12 points in 10 games), Jason Robertson, Alex Tuch, Bryan Rust, Patrick Kane, Conor Garland, Shane Pinto, Matty Beniers and Cole Caufield, who was conspicuous in his absence at worlds. The Americans could also invite youngsters such as Cutter Gauthier, Will Smith, Isaac Howard and Ryan Leonard. The U.S. was essentially a shot away from winning 4 Nations before Connor McDavid ruined its hopes. Could that change the roster construction? 'Look, we could say we're going to take the same team, but we don't know what's going to happen with injuries or guys not playing well at that time or what,' Guerin said. 'We've got to go through the process again. But the Canada-U.S. games, they weren't high scoring, but they were high-checking, and you've gotta be able to play that type of hockey. 'We're not gonna play Canada every night. 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And then there's Calder Trophy winner Lane Hutson, who also didn't go to worlds, and youngster Zeev Buium, who didn't play a lot at worlds but scored one of the biggest goals in the tournament. Advertisement Other potentials include K'Andre Miller, Jackson LaCombe, Ryan McDonagh, Brady Skjei and Luke Hughes. The U.S. will likely return with the same goaltending cast of Connor Hellebuyck, Jake Oettinger and Swayman. Who gets the nod will be determined closer to the tournament, but even though Hellebuyck is coming off his third consecutive subpar postseason with the Jets, he was great in the 4 Nations and likely has the inside track. Oettinger started one meaningless game in the 4 Nations and played well, but lost. And even though his postseason with Dallas started terrifically, it sure ended poorly with him getting chased after allowing two early goals to the Edmonton Oilers in an elimination game during the Western Conference final. Swayman had a rough 2024-25 season after arriving late to the Bruins following a contract dispute, but if he has a solid start next season, his World Championship performance (1.69 goals-against average and .921 save percentage in seven games) could, shall we say, sway things. (Top photo of Matthew and Brady Tkachuk: Maddie Meyer / Getty Images)
