Predator Euro Tour Series
Alpina Hotel, St Johann
2026 Predator Austrian Open
QUARTER-FINALS SET AFTER NIGHT OF DRAMA
27th June 2026
WE’RE DOWN TO final eight players in both men’s and women’s tournaments as the Predator Austrian Open enters its final day. In an evening of high drama in St Johann where two matches went to final rack deciders alongside a host of other tight games, the quarter-finals are determined.
In the men’s tournament, Wiktor Zielinski showed some huge fortitude, first defeating Max Lechner 11-10 in the round of 16 and then ending Felix Vogel’s epic Austrian run by the same scoreline. He can look forward to Albin Ouschan for a place in the semi-finals on Sunday morning.
Ouschan defeated Estonian youngster Karl Gnadeberg by 11-6 to keep his run going and will be happy for a night’s rest before he goes again tomorrow. Albin won his first ever European Championship gold in this venue and looks to be in the type of trophy-winning form that may see him emerge at the top tomorrow.
He said, “It was rough and the table was super hard to play so it was a hard battle. I’ve played good overall, the whole day, I’ve played almost perfect especially the first match against Wojciech Szewczyk in the morning and then against Daniel (Maciol) in the first single elimination round. Against Karl, I played a good set but it was hard to get good position. I’m happy today is over and I’m looking forward to tomorrow.
“I think we know that in the last eight, pretty much everyone can win from now on and every match could be a potential final. Before the tournament you set yourself small goals; you want to reach the single elimination and then you want to reach the final day, which I’ve reached now. Of course, semi-final would be great as that’s the next step and if you’re in the final, you don’t want to lose so two more steps to go.”
The tournament’s surprise package has been Austria’s Stefan Huber who enjoyed an 11-3 win over Petr Urban to advance to his first ever Euro Tour quarter-final. A full-time electrician by trade, Huber plays a couple of Euro Tour events annually, and he enjoyed wins over the likes of Ralf Souquet, Max Benko and Dimitris Loukatos on his St Johann journey.
He can now look forward to a dream match against rampaging Joshua Filler tomorrow.
Commented Stefan, “I’m very excited and I played so good today in all matches, it’s very nice. It’s my home country, I’m only one hour away from here and my goal was to have fun and play pool. I work 40 hours a week and play the Euro Tour here every year and sometimes Treviso. I’m looking forward to Joshua – I’ve never played him and I like his playing style so I’m going to enjoy it and have fun.”
In the Predator Austrian Women’s Open, Nina Torvund, who has been busy taking her Masters degree, won through 9-8 over Pia Filler in a nerve-wracking contest. Either player could have snatched it at the last but it was Torvund who downed the 9-ball after Filler’s miss.
Commented Torvund, “This match wasn’t easy and I felt kind of nervous the whole way, I didn’t know if I would win or lose – it felt very uncertain and the table was tough and hard to read. I was just lucky, I think. We both made mistakes but I played with focus and good heart so I’m happy. I really hope this will be my week, I will be doing everything I can and do my best, focus on every shot so I’ll see what I can do.”
Sunday is finals day and play gets underway at 10.00 with the four quarter-finals in both men’s and women’s. The first round of semi-finals in both tournaments is at 13.00 with the second following at 16.00. Both finals break off at 20.00. As of 2026, WPA World Ranking points are now available on both men’s and women’s Predator Euro Tours.
Tables 1, 2 and 3 at the Predator Austrian Open will be streamed throughout on YouTube, via the Pro Billiard TV channel - https://www.youtube.com/@ProBilliardTV
For all results, live scoring and draw, visit www.epbf.com
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