BLADE coach Gary Filtness will play in the World Seniors Championship next week in Scunthorpe at the Baths Hall as one of two qualifiers replaced by pull outs.
The Blade Cue and Coaching master @GaryFiltness showing his joy at playing in the World Seniors next week with our good friend the fabulous Whirlwind Jimmy White.@MAMentoring @Snookerlegends @chrisgaynor2 @Ccp639David @RRCueCases @markking147 @SeanTheStorm147 @kendoherty1997 pic.twitter.com/Rw3eZkAGX5
— The Blade Cue (@TheBladeCue1) March 14, 2018
In this tweet (above) with Jimmy White, the 54-year-old London Coach as he is nicknamed, shows his joy at being in the World Seniors Championship, with a possibility of playing seven-times World Champion Stephen Hendry in the next round if he can topple another former professional Barry Pinches.
Hendry, the snooker giant who retired in 2012, has been practicing hard of late, and he will have to overcome the talented qualifier Jonathan Bagley in the first round.
Filtness, who also competed in the UK Seniors Championship, in which the Whirlwind went onto win, to match his 1992 UK Championship and make it the double as a former UK Champion and UK Seniors Champion, has been demonstrating the benefits of using the Blade Cue to great success.
Tornado Drago pulls out
According to tweets from Snooker Legends, the Tornado Tony Drago, who was due to play qualifier Patrick Wallace has withdrawn due to personal reasons not stated but another qualifier Simon Dent will take Drago's place.
The Maltese Falcon as he was known in his heyday, Drago is still the record holder of the fastest century at just over 3 mins 33 seconds (see video above).
Filtness coaches at the Grove Academy, where the likes of Ronnie O'Sullivan, Judd Trump have trained, as well as an up and coming female player Emma Parker - who has been rising through the ranks of the World Women's Snooker tour.
He was put into the draw as the Legend Willie Thorne had to also pull out because of a bad back.
He tweeted he couldn't bend over.
Legends 11
That means there are now 10 qualifiers in the draw for Scunthorpe, rather than eight.
Five of the six Legends left in the event have 11 World titles between them with Hendry obviously having seven of them.
All the qualifiers have a chance of not only toppling a legend, but also scooping a £10,000 first prize and a chance of entering the World qualifiers next month at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield.
Since the Blade cue and coaching has come on the scene, it has proved very popular with a string of players, with the likes of ranking event winner Mark King speaking about it in high regard.
Filtness has apparently since using the Blade cue in coaching been able to diagnose player's problems in less time and to repair those problems.
This game is all about memorising and repairing and adapting.
King, a ranking event winner last season said there are no excuses now, the mistakes are right there in front of your eyes.
The London coach has over 35 years experience in the game and has been a 3 time London winner and captained England in snooker.
Filtness retired in 89 due to injury but since taking up with the Blade cue coaching has re-ignited his hunger to compete and is now the Number one seniors player.
In the UK seniors, Filtness was a whisker away from playing Stephen Hendry in Redhill, but lost on a black ball decider to Tony Knowles 3 - 2.
Bagley had a great run and reached the semi-finals, but lost to the eventual in form Jimmy White.
The World Seniors runs from the 20 - 24th March.
