5 things about shock Welsh Open winner Jordan Brown

Jordan Brown pulled off a huge upset on Sunday night by overcoming six-time world champion Ronnie O’Sullivan to win the Welsh Open title.

World number 81 Brown claimed the title in a deciding frame as he triumphed 9-8 at the Celtic Manor in Newport.

Here are five things to know about snooker’s newest ranking-event winner.

All hands to the pump

Brown initially turned professional in 2009 after being a successful amateur but lasted just a single season on the main tour. The Northern Irishman ended up working at a petrol station and admitted last week that he almost gave up the sport during those “tough years”.  However, Brown regained his place after coming through Q School in 2018.

Early exits

Brown failed to light up the sport in his first couple of seasons back on the main tour, becoming a regular first or second-round departure at tournaments. The Antrim Ferrari’s best ranking-event performances during this period were runs to the third round of the English Open and Paul Hunter Classic in 2018. He almost fell off the tour last year after a string of poor results.

The 2019-20 season did end on a high for Brown as he qualified for a maiden appearance at the World Championship in Sheffield and secured his place on the tour. After getting the better of Rory McLeod and Hossein Vafaei, Brown rounded off his qualifying campaign with an impressive victory over three-time quarter-finalist Ryan Day. He was handed a tough opening-round draw at the Crucible Theatre, losing 10-6 to three-time world champion Mark Selby.

Welsh Open wonder

Brown achieved a new career-best performance in a ranking event by reaching the quarter-finals of the German Masters last month, but few will have foreseen his triumphant run at the Welsh Open. Heading to the Celtic Manor as a 750-1 outsider, Brown won four consecutive final-frame deciders, including against Selby in the last eight, before thumping Maguire 6-1 in the semi-finals. The best was yet to come, however, as Brown pulled off one more deciding-frame victory against O’Sullivan, becoming the lowest-ranked player since Dave Harold in 1993 to win a ranking event and only the fourth Northern Irishman to win such a tournament – joining Alex Higgins, Dennis Taylor and close friend Mark Allen.

What’s next?

Brown’s performance in Newport earned him a place in this week’s Players Championship and he will face John Higgins in the first round on Wednesday afternoon. The 33-year-old’s only previous meeting with Higgins came as an amateur at the 2012 Scottish Open, but it ended in a huge first-round upset, with Brown prevailing 4-3 before ultimately being knocked out by Day in the third round.