HUNG MENG-HSIA has won the EPBF Lasko Open, her first ever visit to the Euro Tour, as she defeated Pia Filler 7-1in a match she controlled throughout. Hung’s break shot was a critical difference as she delivered it with such high-quality time and again to control the table. Filler was dogged with some misfortune but it was the Australian who was superior in every aspect of the game.
Hung, who hails from Brisbane, Australia, is over in Europe for the WPA World Championships which take place shortly in Klagenfurt, Austria - a mere two-hour drive from Lasko. She absolutely made the most of her visit as she ran undefeated through the event, beating a host of the Tour’s top players on her way to glory.
Originally from Taiwan, Hung has been in Australia for around 10 years and is now a naturalised citizen. Filler won the lag, but Hung got to the table first following an illegal opening break and it was soon a ball-in-hand opportunity for the Australian. There was a straight-forward combination on the 9-ball which she took to open her account.
A crunching break from Hung spread the table but she tied herself up behind the 6-ball with just four left on the table. She came with a terrific kick shot to pocket the 5, though but then missed on the 6-ball to get Filler to the table. The German scratched though trying to execute a safety and with another ball-in-hand, Hung had made it 2-0.
Nothing was going Filler's way as the cue ball was nudged into the centre pocket from her break shot to once again give Hung a chance. She composed herself nicely to run out for a 3-0 lead. Another terrific break off from Hung set up a tidy run out and at 4-0 to the good in the race-to-7 match, things were looking bleak for Filler.
A couple of balls down from Filler in the next finally gave her some table time. She had no position on the 5-ball and laid the perfect snooker only to see the 8-ball take a knock and disappear into the centre pocket. She extracted herself but from it but left the 5 on for Hung and she wasn't going to let her opponent off the hook as she cleared for a 5-0 lead.
Another hefty break from Hung scattered the balls across the table and with a clear shot on the 1-ball, it was another great chance. There was no messing as Hung cleared up to reach the hill at 6-0.
Filler, however, got her first rack of the game with a 2/9 combination following her break but she was now relying on Hung falling down.
The Australian crashed home another break shot which left a difficult but not impossible table, and Hung duly executed it to take home the title.
Afterwards she gave a little of her background, “I’ve been in Australia for around ten years and most of my wins have been in Oceania. I started to travel and play internationally right before Covid but I’ve started to travel more often now that is over.
“Kristina Zlateva, a good friend, invited me to play here as this was my first time in Europe and I’m getting ready for the World Championship. I’m happy to have experienced the Euro Tour and playing in this arena and hopefully it will be a good warm-up for next week,” she added.
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