Walsall snooker ace Mark Joyce hits 147 on way to Q Tour final and shot at pro return

The Black Country potter fired a 147 in Tuesday Q Tour play-offs semi-final victory over Wales' Dylan Emery in Antalya, Turkey, on Tuesday.

Walsall's Joyce cruised past talented fellow amateur Emery 6-2 in the crunch event at the end of the Q Tour campaign, Joyce's first as an amateur having dropped off the professional World Snooker Tour at the end of last season.

Adding to his maximum, Joyce also fired in a break of 111 in a strong display.

He now faces a final on Wednesday against fellow English player Steven Hallworth, another former pro, in a long best of 19 frame final for a two-year tour card. There is £2,000 prize money on the line but the significance is all on a pro return.

Joyce reached this stage of the event by dispatching of Connor Benzey 5-2 at the quarter-final stage on Tuesday.

There are three two-year tour cards available for the winners of the three play-off sections.

Joyce's 147 was only the fourth in the history of the Q Tour series. He is only the third player to make one after two from Chinese sensation Zhao Xintong and one from Ukraine's Iulian Boiko this term.

Joyce, 41, is a former world number 29 and Riga Masters runner-up in 2019. In 2021 he reached the World Championship for the first time, where he made his Crucible debut and opened up the showpiece with defeat to champion Ronnie O'Sullivan.