Cheltenham has never had a winner of the Snooker World Championship, even though the prestigious event has been held since 1927.
But that could all change in the coming years following the meteoric rise of Jack Lisowski.
The 26-year-old has had by far his best season over the past six months, reaching his first ranking semi-final in Shanghai, and could be an outside bet for the 2018 World Championship at the Crucible in May.
Before that, Lisowski heads to Gibraltar this weekend for his opening round match against Scotland’s Ross Muir, which is due to begin at 11:30am on Saturday morning.
Ahead of that match, find out everything you need to know about Cheltenham’s top snooker prodigy.
Profile
Name: Jack Lisowski
Age: 26
Nickname: Jackpot
Highest ranking: 33 (November 2017)
Current Ranking: 37
Century breaks: 108
147 breaks: 1 (2012 UK Championship Qualifiers)
Turned professional: 2010
Career earnings: £358,246
2017/18 season form
Riga Masters: Round Three
Paul Hunter Classic: Round Two
Indian Open: Round One
World Open: Round One
European Masters: Round Three
English Open: Quarter-Final
International Championship: Round Three
Shanghai Masters: Semi-Final
Northern Ireland Open: Round Two
UK Championship: Round Two
Scottish Open: Round One
German Masters: Round One
Snooker Shoot-Out: Round One
World Grand Prix: Round Two
Welsh Open: Round Three
Chances in Gibraltar
Having ascended himself into the World’s top 40 in November, Lisowski has been entered into the Gibraltar Open in Round Three of the competition.
That means he avoids potential banana skin ties against Jackson Page and Barry Pinches, who both start in Round One, while also avoiding players like Ding Junhui, Stuart Bingham and Lee Selby until the final– who are all in the other half of the draw.
A victory against Scotland’s Ross Muir would set up a clash with either Peter Lines or a pre-tournament qualifier in Round Four.
But he may still have to get past players including Ricky Walden and Ali Carter before a potential final appearance, which would take place at the Tercentenary Sports Hall in the Victoria Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Head-to-Head with Ross Muir
Interestingly, Lisowski and Muir have only met on one previous occasion in professional snooker, that coming in 2015.
It came in a last-128 clash in the European Tour, with the Gloucestershire player prevailing 4-3.
Jackpot hit breaks of 88 and 76 along the way of forcing a deciding frame, which he won through a break of 51.
Lisowski never actually led in the match before that final frame, so Muir will be eagerly wanting to exact revenge tomorrow.
Potential World Champion?
Cheltenham has never had a better chance of a World Champion being crowned at the Crucible.
This year may come a bit too soon for the 26-year old, but he must be considered as a contender for future tournaments if he can replicate his 92% pot success in Shanghai and Cardiff.
Ahead of his exploits in Gibraltar, Lisowski can be backed at 125/1 to lift snooker’s greatest prize.
