Snooker: Higginson Takes First Steps on Road to the Crucible

Welsh Open finalist Andrew Higginson comfortably beat Mark Boyle in the first round of qualifying for the World Championship.

Andrew Higginson, the surprise runner-up in the Welsh Open earlier this month, successfully negotiated his opening hurdle in the qualifiers for the 888.com World Championship by beating Glasgow's Mark Boyle 10-4 at Prestatyn yesterday.

Higginson, a professional for 11 years, won eight matches and led Neil Robertson 8-6 in their Newport final before losing 9-8. "I felt more pressure in this match than I did in the final," he said. "I didn't want to go from doing so well in Newport to falling at the first fence, so it was a really big game for me."

Higginson, 29, needs to win three more matches to qualify for the televised phase at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield in April.

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