Here at Home Leisure Direct, we have had a close relationship with four times Blackball World Champion Gareth Potts for many years, sponsoring him in tournaments, filming videos and hosting coaching sessions with him. Because of Gareth’s fantastic track record, he was invited to play Chinese Eightball out in China with an all-star line-up of top cue sportsmen from around the world, including snooker legend Stephen Hendry, American Pool pros Darren Appleton and Shane van Boening and many more.
Chinese 8 Ball is a really tough game with tight pockets in comparison to the ball size and strict rules, designed to eliminate flukes and reward the highest performing player. Cue sports are hugely popular in China, so Gareth’s success in this format has earned him superstar status out in China - this may seem a little unusual to us here in the UK, but after watching these videos, you can see why he is so popular.
Check out our videos below, showing footage from the Chinese 8 Ball Masters 2014 as we’re certain you’ll be glued to the screen match after match.
Here's Potts in the First Round, up against one of China’s best players Dai Yong.
In the Second Round match, Potts plays against the hugely talented 9 Ball player Shane Van Boening from America.
In the Quarter Final match, Gareth Potts plays against the Chinese pro pool player Li Hewen.
By the Semi Finals of the 2014 Chinese 8 Ball Masters, Potts was playing against another Brit - Darren Appleton of American Pool 9 Ball fame - in a battle to make it through to the final round.
Having made it through to the Final round, Gareth Potts was up against Shi Hanqing, a recently turned professional snooker player.
Here at Home Leisure Direct, we have really enjoyed watching these Chinese 8 Ball matches and can’t wait for the 2015 Masters. We hope you enjoyed our videos and would love to hear your thoughts in the comments below, or you can join us on Facebook or Twitter.
Written By: Abi Ponton