Mark Gray put on another masterful display of 9-ball pool to lift his second consecutive main tour title at the 2009 GB9 Midlands Classic. The performance is something we have become accustomed to from the former European number 1 and Mosconi Cup winner. On this occasion the performance was all the more sweet from Gray as he took out reigning World 9-ball Champion Daryl Peach 11-5.

Gray seems to like the format of the Main event and this probably hails back to when he was a main tour snooker professional. En route to the final Gray had notable wins over Paul Williams, Phil Burford, Bradley Parker and Adam Benn Smith before coming up against Daryl Peach.

Since winning the World title in 2007 Daryl Peach has struggled for some consistent form, especially in the UK, other than a Pro Cup win at the Yorkshore Cup last year this is his first final, and for all of the neutrals it is good to see Daryl back to winning ways.

The biggest performance from the Main tour event was that of Gareth Steele, reaching his first 1/4 final and certainly someone who has shown massive improvement over the last 6 months. He could be a good bet to gain a place in the Pro division for next year.

In the Pro Cup Darren Appleton could not make it two in a row as he came up against Scotlands Michael Valentine, in what was a poor final. The match started at around 11.35pm and finished at around 1:40am the next day! The final score was 11-5. In fairness to the players both of them struggled for consistency on the break which led to a lot of safety play and scrappy racks.

The Pro Cup was where a lot of shocks happened on the Saturday with three excellent results for players promoted from last years Challenge division. Chris Cowie beat Daryl Peach 9-6, David Walsh beat Tony Drago 9-7 and Simon Widlo beat European Junior champion Phil Burford 9-8. All of this happened in the first round!

In the first Challenge Division event of the season all eyes were on former British top 16 player, Anthony Ginn as he made his way through the field to reach the final. He came up against a young talent from Surrey, more renowned for his prowess on a English pool table than 9-ball, in the shape of Steve Petty. In a very fast paced and exciting match Petty picked up his first tour win, in his first season as a tour regular. The score was 11-9.

For full results visit:

GB9 Midlands Classic 2009 (Gb9 Tour website)