Amazing Allen on the Mark in Germany

Mark Allen has won his first title of the season, putting in a dominant performance to beat Ding Junhui 4-1 in the final of the Ruhr Open (European Tour Event 5) in Germany.

Click here for all the results from the Ruhr Open and click here for pictures from the final day of the tournament courtesy of Monique Limbos.

Northern Ireland's Mark Allen had a steady start to the season but had yet to add any silverware to his ever-growing collection.

This changed yesterday in Germany as he put in a terrific performance to beat recent Shanghai Masters champion Ding Junhui 4-1 in the final to claim the Ruhr Open title, the fifth European Tour event.

Antrim's Mark Allen in action at the Ruhr Open final.

Allen took the first frame quickly with a 76 and then added the second on the colours after Ding broke down on 55, missing a simple red to the middle pocket.

A brilliant 100 break in the third followed giving him a clear 3-0 lead, before Ding pegged one back with breaks of 40 and 32 to keep one toe in the match.

But it was all to late for the Chinese no.1 as Allen recorded another superb break, a 74, to take the fifth frame and complete the victory and take home the trophy and the 25,000 Euro first prize.

"The way my form has been over the last few months, it's a big achievement to win here," said the 27-year old man from Antrim. "A lot of it is down to Terry Griffiths, we did some work last week and he made a change on the technical side and helped me to be more positive.

"I was able to have a couple of hours rest after my semi-final whereas Ding had a long match, so maybe he was not as fresh as me for the final, though I'm sure he was just as motivated. 

"The crowd and the atmosphere here were brilliant. Snooker is taking off in a huge way in mainland Europe and Germany in particular and I hope to continue to be a part of it in the years to come."

Professional snooker takes a break this week before travelling for the first time to Delhi for the Indian Open, a brand new ranking event on the calendar. Click here for the draw.

Mark Allen - Ruhr Open (European Tour 5) Champion 2013