Ryan Bowgen is the CDSA 2026 Shootout champion after an entertaining evening at the Mackintosh Sports Club saw 24 players battle it out in the annual curtain-raiser to the season.
He featured in the opening match of the first round as he defeated Dan Bridle, with Eassa Din beating Chris Johnson before an impressive performance from Andy Holman saw off Renato Ridolini, followed by Geoff Shepherd’s close win 26-24 against Mike Nessbert. Nural Khan was at his fluent best as he defeated Andrew Champion, before the shock of the round saw two-time defending champion Jacob Boyle knocked out by Clive Marsh. The mastermind behind the CDSA’s shootouts of its first three years Darren Gill lost the next to Carlo Schiazza, before his team-mate Nathan Dunne was edged out in a very tight frame by Ben Griffiths.
The last 16 saw eight players join the draw after receiving a bye, with the pairings being drawn before each round. There were early wins for Twm Sion Jones over Schiazza, Geoff Shepherd against Din and Griffiths over James Wigmore. Some good potting from Steve Flanaghan saw him overcome Ronnie Allen, before Khan booked a quarter-final place after his win over Clive Marsh. It was a case of what if for Justin Jones as a missed blue denied him the chance to defeat Bowgen, before victories for Paul Chichester and Andy Holman against Steve Wellbeloved and Lee Cornock respectively completed the last eight line-up.
With each match lasting a maximum of 10 minutes, with only 15 seconds per shot allowed for the first half of the frame and 10 seconds for the remaining 5 minutes, there were lots of nerves on show as we were treated to an outstanding quartet of quarter-final matches.
Steve Flanagan won the first against Geoff Shepherd in a tight frame, before a tremendous contest between Bowgen and Ben Griffiths saw the County Cons hotshot edge it to seal a place in the semis. Paul Chichester then won a high-quality frame versus Twm Sion Jones and the final spot in the last four looked like going the way of Andy Holman, before a crucial foul gave Nural Khan the chance and he made no mistake to qualify for the semi-finals.
After already winning three matches to reach the semis, Bowgen now faced in-form Chichester for a place in the final and one of the frames of the night saw both players have opportunities, but Bowgen held his nerve to win 28-25 and book his place in the final. A fluke in the next frame proved crucial as Nural Khan missed a black on a break of 22, but it flew up the other end of the table and into a baulk pocket, and he made the most of the chance with a 49 break to seal the frame against Steve Flanaghan and with it a spot in the final.
After a long night for both players, they treated the crowd to a brilliant spectacle as Ryan Bowgen took control early on and seemed like he was coasting to victory, but a careless foul presented Khan with the chance to win the match. However, he missed a red on a break of 16 and a few shots later Bowgen sealed the win with a red and blue to take the title and be crowned the CDSA Shootout champion for 2026!
