FILLER is KING of The Alps

Story by LUKE RICHES - Photos courtesy EPBF

JOSHUA FILLER IS the Dynamic Billard St Johann im Pongau Open champion as he defeated Poland’s Daniel Maciol 9-5 in an entertaining match.

Filler (Germany) can lay claim to his fifth Euro Tour title from 10 final appearances and with his consistent level of high-quality play, there may be many more in store. For Maciol, it was his first Euro Tour final in an eight-year career mixing it with Europe’s finest. In fact, the quarter-finals were the furthest he’d ventured previously.

For the Pole, a slow start proved to be his downfall as he matched Filler in the latter stages but the gap was always going to be too much as the German put his foot down.

Commented Filler, “Today I felt fresh and came with so much energy and maybe I frightened my opponent with my energy and my break was amazing. There were times when I made three, four balls on the break and had the position and that gives you more confidence, especially when you’re four games up. Super proud and super happy.”

Filler took the opening two racks before Maciol scratched on the break in the third game. The German quickly cleared the table to take an ominous 3-0 lead. Three balls off the break and great position on the lowest numbered ball, the 3, meant that Filler took the fourth game to leave Maciol in a hole.

Maciol needed a great break in next and managed to down three balls but his shot on the 2-ball wasn’t any sort of formality. He played an aggressive cannon onto the 4-ball to stay at the table and from there he ran out to get on the scoreboard as well as give himself some confidence given the task in hand.

An illegal break from Filler gave the table back to Maciol but he declined the shot. It was Joshua who got to the 1-ball first and given a sniff, he cleared the table in no time for a 5-1 lead. Maciol though, looked good to take the seventh game and he composed himself to runout. Joshua though, banged in three balls from the next break and fairly quickly it was 6-2.

Three off the break from Maciol and a shot on the 2-ball saw him run out to keep Joshua in his sights at 6-3. With the alternate break format, though, he needed Joshua to falter. Filler made a good break in the tenth rack, spreading the balls out nicely and from there he ran out to increase his lead.