Snooker ace slams the wall twice and quits the match in a dramatic on-table meltdown.
Stephen Maguire suffered an angry outburst during his loss to Gao Yang in the qualifiers for this year’s German Masters. The Scotsman went down 5-4 and failed to hit his usual high standards throughout the contest. His frustration peaked in the deciding frame after a costly mistake left his hopes of winning in tatters.
With Yang sitting on 63 points and Maguire trailing on 35, the four-time ranking event winner still had a chance to turn things around. After potting the final red, he looked set to clear up and steal the frame to take the match. But while attempting the black before moving on to the colours, he hit the shot with excessive force and accidentally sent the cue ball into the far corner pocket.
Instead of staying to watch Yang finish off the colours, Maguire chose to concede both the frame and the match. He shook hands with his opponent and returned to his table to gather his belongings.
Moments later, his frustration erupted, as the 44-year-old lashed out and struck a nearby wall twice while heading back towards the dressing room.
This latest incident is not the first time Maguire has struggled to control his emotions in recent times. Back in November, he angrily criticised the condition of the table after being knocked out of the UK Championship, following a missed red at a crucial moment in his match against Judd Trump.
After the match, he vented his frustration, saying he was extremely angry and blamed the table for his defeat. He felt it had cost him the frame at 3-3 and ultimately the match, leaving him deeply unhappy with the situation.
He insisted his opponent was there to be beaten and believed he was the superior player who should have come out on top. He explained that when he played what should have been a straightforward shot into the middle pocket, the cue ball struck the slate and reacted unpredictably, almost causing him to miss the red entirely, leaving him questioning what more he could have done.
Maguire also criticised the standard of the conditions, pointing out that the event is meant to be the second biggest tournament in the world and arguing there was no excuse for the table not being prepared properly. While he admitted the table generally played well and the pockets were tight for both players, he singled out the slate as the main issue.
He concluded by saying the match was his to win at that stage and the shot itself was simple. He added that Judd Trump was clearly not at his sharpest, yet despite that, he found himself eliminated through no fault of his own, which only added to his frustration.
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