Snooker star and notorious hothead smashes cue on the floor before referee intervenes in ill-tempered clash
SNOOKER star Antoni Kowalski has seen red during a bad-tempered clash with Joe Perry.
The 20-year-old was given a ticking off by the match referee after taking his frustration out on his cue.
Kowalski faced Perry in a Scottish Open qualifying match on Tuesday night.
The World No. 104 cut a tetchy figure throughout and lost his cool in the sixth frame.
Leading 3-2 in the best-of-seven matchup, Kowalski missed a regulation red to the bottom right pocket.
Walking back to his chair, the visibly frustrated youngster smashed his cue hard into the ground.
He was given an immediate telling-off from the match referee, who held his arms out wide in exasperation.
It came after an earlier incident where Kowalski fluked a pink on his way to a 63-49 fifth frame.
As the ball dropped into the pocket after hitting two cushions, Perry could be heard appearing to say “p***k” from his seat.
One fan gasped on X: “Why would you do that, especially against a young inexperienced player. Unbelievable.”
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Another said: “A lot going on in this match!”
While a third argued, referencing Kowalski’s rush of blood: “I don’t understand why the ref had a go there to be honest. A bit of emotion makes for good viewing.”
Kowalski held on to win the bad-tempered match 4-3.
It continued a poor run of form for Perry, who has now won just three of his last 10 matches since July.
Rising star Kowalski has earned a two-year tour card after impressive performances on the amateur circuit.
He courted controversy earlier this year after claiming seven-time world champion Ronnie O’Sullivan was “arrogant.”
Speaking to the Metro, he said: “My hero when I was six or seven years old was Shaun Murphy.
“Mostly because I met him then, the first professional I met, as well as Mark Selby.
“I also love John Higgins, I like how he plays, he’s just class.
“Also Judd Trump, just a great player.”
Referencing O’Sullivan, he added: “I don’t know how to say it, but he’s pretty arrogant.
“No, he’s a good guy, genius on the table for sure, he’s one of the best players of all time, but he’s not one of my favourites, if I put it like that.”