Former European Champion Oly Bale is one of 8-ball pool’s most effervescent characters.

Known for his rapid speed on the table, ‘The Bullet’ has been around the top echelons of the sport for the past two decades but his competitive enthusiasm remains the same.

The highlight of his career came in 2006 when he defeated fellow Welshman Ryan John 8-5 in the final of the European Championship in Bordeaux, France.

Later in the same year, he narrowly missed out on pocketing what was at the time the richest ever first-prize in the sport at the Pub Pool Challenge. Around 15,000 players across the UK entered the one-frame event – with the latter stages televised at the Ricoh Arena in Coventry – and Bale made it all the way to the final but was denied the winner-takes-all £50,000 cheque.

A World Championship semi-finalist in 2007, Bridgwater based Bale has also won titles on the Gansters and South West Pool Tours. In 2011 he made the semi-finals of the European Championship again and in 2020 he reached the final of the European Seniors Championship in Malta.

Whilst representing his country, Bale was part of the European Team Championship winning Wales side in 2011.

Bale is also well-known for his unique talent of playing one-handed. In 2021 he challenged 16-time World Darts Champion Phil Taylor to a one-off match with that particular twist. You can watch that video here.

Away from the competitive arena, Bale owns and runs Bullets Sports Bar in Yeovil.

Follow Oly on Twitter

Best UPG Tournament Results

Professional Series: 1x Event Semi-Finalist (2021 Event 8)
Professional Cup: Last 48 (2021)
Champions League: Opening Groups Phase (2020/21)
Professional Grand Slam: Joint 33rd (2022)
Masters: Last 64 (2021)
Champion of Champions: N/A
Pairs Cup: Opening Groups Phase (2021/22)

Having picked up match wins earlier in the season, Bale finished his 2021 Professional Series campaign on a high, defeating youngsters Geo Edgar and Aaron Davies to reach the semi-finals of Event 8 where he was stopped by Scott Gillespie.

Alongside playing partner Russell Burgess, Bale narrowly missed out on making the last 16 of the Eative Pairs Cup when the experienced duo bowed out via a 6-reds shootout.