King lived in Granville, New South Wales during his childhood. He was the Australian amateur snooker champion in 1980 and 1981. He turned professional in 1982.In the 1983/1984 season, he qualified for the semi-final group in the 1984 International Masters, recording a 2–1 victory over Alex Higgins in his qualifying group. In the 1984 World Championship, he defeated Tony Jones 10–9, Mike Watterson 10–8 and Dave Martin 10–8 to qualify for the televised stages at the Crucible Theatre; there, he was drawn against incumbent World Champion Steve Davis, but having held Davis to 2–2, he could not prevent a 3–10 loss.