Chatteris cueman Joe Perry took a big step towards turning his recent ill fortunes around by qualifying for the China Championship this week.
Perry booked his place at the tournament which offers the largest prize outside the UK – a tasty £150,000 – by seeing off the challenge of Graeme Dott and Eden Sharav at Preston Guild Hall.
The 42-year-old edged Dott 4-3 in their best-of-seven frame clash before easing past Scot Sharav 5-1 on Tuesday afternoon.
The Gentleman racked up breaks of 64, 75 and 105 on his way to victory. His qualification will come as welcome relief after he failed to make the grade for the World Championships, which were won by Mark Selby last month.
The China Championship title, currently held by John Higgins, will be contested between August 16 and 22.
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