SNOOKER: Stuart Bingham wants to continue ‘riding the wave of success’ as he gears up for the Bulgaria Open this weekend.

The European event is the first since he was triumphant at the Shanghai Masters last month, his second major title, and now the 38-year-old has the taste for success he says he wants more.

Bingham flies out to Sofia tomorrow and says he wants to continue his impressive form when he gets his tournament underway on Saturday.

“It has been an enjoyable few weeks,” said the new Shanghai Masters champion. “It has been nice to spend a bit of time with my family and the last week or so has been aimed towards training for this competition.

“I still have to pinch myself when I see the trophy and think I have actually won it.”

The win was Bingham’s second after the Australian Goldfields Open in 2011 and he says he is looking to improve his record at European Tour events, beginning in Bulgaria this weekend – where he will play world number 99 David Grace.

“I have a new tip on my snooker cue and have been practicing with my coach (Stephen Feeney) and I feel good,” he said. “It is a good feeling going into a tournament off the back of a big win so I hope I can keep riding the wave and keep the success going.

“I have struggled in European events in the past,” said Bingham. “I want to go as far as I can in this event and show that I can follow-up my win in Shanghai with more success in the coming months.”

“David is a good player,” he added. “He is on the tour so I can expect a hard match, but so can he. Winning early in the season gives you the confidence for the rest of the season and takes a bit of the pressure off as well so I am keen to push on and win again. I want to put pressure on myself and hopefully success will follow.”