BILLY Castle was buoyed by the words of a former world champion after his baptism of fire on the professional snooker circuit.

The 24-year-old lost both of his first-round matches at Preston Guild Hall but vowed “to improve” before the Indian Open qualifier in August.

Castle scored just 73 points in a 4-0 defeat by Swiss pro Alexander Ursenbacher in the Riga Masters but competed far better in a 5-0 loss to the 2015 world champion Stuart Bingham in the China Championship.

He said: “In the first game, I was a bit nervous and getting used to the environment but my game against Stuart was really close. It could have gone either way.

“Stuart said after the match it was a really tight game and that I’ll be fine on the Main Tour when I get used to it all.

“I wasn’t expecting much in my first two games as it came really quick after Q School for me. I’ve gone from amateur to pro overnight but I’m more than ready for it all.

"I’ve seen where I need to improve and I will.”