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2015 WPA World 9-Ball Championships
Qatar Billiards & Snooker Federation
Al Sadd Sports Club
Al Sadd Street
Sport Roundabout
Doha
Qatar
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Monday - Friday 7 - 18 September 2015

Photography courtesy of �Richard Walker - used by Pro9 with express permission
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Amidst some of the toughest competition ever assembled, pool's best shine on day 1 of the World 9-ball Championship in Doha.

Like all the top players, Canada�s John Morra just wanted to get out of the starting gates on Day 1 of the 2015 World 9-ball Championship with a win. A loss on the first day of group play can be a total downer as you�re now suddenly faced with a pressure packed, do-or-die match in the double elimination format. If you don�t get your head in the game and your game in gear, you can quickly be headed for the exits in a New York second, you�re dreams of pool glory gone for another 12 months.

That�s the prospect the 26 year old from Toronto surely faced as he found himself down 6-1 and then 7-3 and playing miserably in his opening race to 9 match against Austria�s tough Mario He. Morra, however, has built up a steady stream of high finishes in the last 18 months and understood that winning in championship pool often requires patience, a positive attitude, and the ability to pounce when you�re opponent shows even the slightest bit of weakness.

And so when the big Austrian made a few mistakes, and showed his disgust with himself, Morra took it as his cue that he had life remaining. Slowly Morra fought back, gained confidence, while He became more frustrated with the mounting mistakes. Tied at 8-8 Morra had the Austrian by the throat, played a lockdown safety, and won the match 9-8.

�I was down 7-3, I just couldn�t find my stroke,� a clearly pumped Morra said after match. �I was getting some bad rolls and that�s expected when you�re not playing well. I just clawed my way back game by game. I was saying to myself �you�re going to get your opportunities so just stay calm.� I started breaking well and I trusted my instincts under the pressure and just committed to each shot. Every little mistake he made gave me energy because he was getting upset with himself. I just fed off of that.�

Having turned near failure into opportunity and success, the talented Canadian suddenly feels the experience bodes well for his chances this year.

�I feel like I have a new life now. I was facing defeat and then maybe elimination if I lose my next one so that would�ve been a lot of pressure. But I managed to come back and win. So now I can just come out and play without pressure because I had my back against the ropes and I didn�t expect to win that one but I did.�

Morra�s gritty victory was easily the comeback of the day as the 2015 World 9-ball Championship got under way with 36 matches played out over four sessions at the sparkling Al Arabi Sports Club in Doha. Fans used to stunning upsets in the early going in this event got nothing of the sort. What they did get was a quick reminder of the sheer amount of incredible talent from all corners of the globe and that over the next week, we are surely going to be treated to some of the highest level of pool ever seen.

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