ASHLEY HUGILL suffered an early exit at the Welsh Open as he was beaten 4-2 in the first roundby Gary Wilson.

York’s world No.117 took the first frame but lost the next three as Wilson turned the screw with consecutive half-century breaks.

Hugill edged the fifth frame to give himself a chance but Wilson hit back and sealed victory in a scrappy affair.

Meanwhile, a despondent Paul Davison compared using an altered cue to playing with his wrong hand after succumbing to a first-round exit at the Welsh Open.

The Pickering potter went down 4-1 against French youngster Brian Ochoiski at Celtic Manor after a build-up beset by issues with his equipment.

The 49-year-old has not progressed past the first round in a ranking event this season and he was left to rue a combination of cue problems and slow cloths after his poor run continued.

“I’ve had this cue for 35 years so for it to play different is like trying to play left-handed,” he said.

“Under the tip, the wood cracked and fell away so I took half an inch off the cue. It feels completely different and I’ve only had two days’ practice with it, so my preparation wasn’t ideal. I wasn’t expecting much from this tournament.

“You need to be on top of your game against anyone in this sport and if you’re not, you get punished.

“I still felt I played OK but the table was a lot slower than I expected. You expect faster cloths at this level.

“More responsive cloths could have made up for the lack of power in my cue – but it wasn’t to be.”

The match was tighter than the scoreline suggested and Davison was the only player of the two to make a half-century break.

But Ochoiski was more clinical when it mattered and made the frustrated Yorkshireman pay for his profligacy around the pockets.

“I thought I dominated and should have won comfortably,” Davison said. “He potted the balls he had to.”

l Watch the Welsh Open live on Eurosport and Eurosport app.