Ray Reardon | Snooker Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia Edit Reardon was born on 8 October 1932, in the coal mining community of Tredegar in Monmouthshire. Wanting to play snooker, he turned down a place at Grammar School to become a miner at Ty Trist Colliery aged 14, following in the footsteps of his father. After a rockfall in which he was buried for three hours, he quit mining and became a police officer when his family moved to Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire. Amateur career Edit Aged 15, Reardon beat fellow Welshman Jack Cowey in the British youth championship. Having won the Welsh amateur title from 1950–1955, Reardon failed to win the English title when he entered the event in 1956 and 1957. Finally upon re-entering the 1964 event, he won the English Amateur title, defeating John Spencer 11–8 in the final. This victory led to an invitation to tour South Africa. This proved to be so successful that Reardon was offered the chance to tour it again as a professional.

On the back of this, Reardon resigned as a policeman and duly turned professional in 1967. Professional career Edit Reardon's first appearance at the World Championship was in 1969 , and he won his first title the following year , beating John Pulman 37–33 at London's Victoria Hall. After winning the title, Reardon was in big demand for exhibitions and on the holiday camp circuit. Winning the first ever Pot Black in 1969 made him instantly recognisable, and Reardon and John Spencer were the first two men to capitalise on the snooker boom in the early 1970s. Entertainer Edit Reardon also became popular because he added a touch of humour and entertainment to his game. A deadly long potter and tactician in his prime, he played seventeen World Championship matches without defeat and won the title four years in succession. He won his second in 1973 in Manchester when he beat Eddie Charlton 38–32, but the match of the championship was the semi-final between Reardon and Spencer, which Reardon won 23–22.

Reardon beat Graham Miles the following year , and in 1975 , when it was held in Melbourne, Australia, he had a tough quarter-final with Spencer which he won 19–17. He then beat Alex Higgins 19–14 before meeting local hero Eddie Charlton in the final. Reardon initially trailed by 29 frames to 23, putting Charlton two frames away from the title, but Reardon then won seven consecutive frames to lead 30–29. Charlton took the sixtieth frame to tie the match but Reardon took the vital sixty-first and won his fourth title. A special recognition of Reardon's status within the game came in January 1976 when, during the recording of the Ladbroke International Series at Thames Television, Reardon was surprised by Eamonn Andrews , clutching his This is Your Life book. Reardon had actually been suggested as a candidate for the programme by Snooker Scene editor, Clive Everton . The snooker playing fraternity was represented by Alex Higgins, John Pulman, Jackie Rea , Graham Miles, John Spencer, Eddie Charlton, Cliff Thorburn and female professional Joyce Gardner .

Reardon won his fifth title the next year in Manchester, beating Alex Higgins 27–16. Earlier that year, he had won the Benson and Hedges Masters in London, his second snooker title after the World Championship. In this event Reardon defeated John Pulman in the quarter-final 4–1, in a match of such poor quality that the highest break was 22 (by Pulman). Reardon improved his form in the semi-final to defeat Eddie Charlton 5–4 and Graham Miles 7–3 in the final. Reardon would never win the event again but defeated Rex Williams 4–1 and Graham Miles 5–2 in the 1977 event only to lose 7–6 to Doug Mountjoy in the final. Reardon's unbeaten run at the World Championship ended at the first Crucible championship in 1977 , when he lost to John Spencer in the quarter-finals 6–13, his first defeat since Rex Williams in 1972 .

Reardon regained the title in 1978 winning it for the sixth and final time by beating Doug Mountjoy 13–9 (after trailing 7–2), Bill Werbeniuk 13–6, Eddie Charlton 18–14 and finally Perrie Mans 25–18 in the final. Reardon remains the oldest winner of the World Championship at the age of 45 years and 6 months. Straight after this Reardon regained the Pontins Professional Title, defeating John Spencer 7–2 in the final. Towards the end of 1978 Reardon beat Patsy Fagan 6–1 and Alex Higgins 11–9 in a high quality final to win the one-off 'Champion of Champions' event sponsored by the Daily Mirror and held at the Wembley Conference Centre. 1979 saw Reardon regain his Pot Black title by defeating Doug Mountjoy 2–1 in the final. It was Reardon's first win since he won the inaugural event in 1969, although he was runner up in 1970, 1972 and 1980.

That same year Reardon joined Mountjoy and then World Champion Terry Griffiths, to win the first 'World Challenge Cup' for Wales, defeating England (Fred Davis, John Spencer and Graham Miles) easily 14–3 in the final. Indian summer Edit After Reardon's sixth world title he remained one of the world's very best players for some years. He was beaten by Dennis Taylor in the 1979 quarter-final, and by David Taylor at the same stage in 1980. He went a step further in 1981, beating John Spencer 13–11 and Bill Werbeniuk 13–10 before being surprisingly beaten by fellow Welshman Doug Mountjoy in the semi-finals in what was Mountjoy's best ever World Championship performance. Mountjoy scored a championship record break of 145 during the match, which he won 16–10. It was the rise of Steve Davis in 1980–81 that saw Reardon and his generation lose their grip on the game. However, Reardon, despite approaching 50, did not surrender his crown easily.

For the 1982/3 season Reardon returned to number one in the world rankings and the following season won two major events. Reardon also had the distinction of whitewashing Steve Davis twice during the latter's prime. Firstly 6–0 in the 1982 Highland Masters semi-final (an event Reardon went on to win) and secondly in 1988 (see below). However, despite Davis' domination over an 18-month period between late 1980 and the spring of 1982, Reardon remained a major force in the game. At 49, he reached the World final in 1982 , losing to Alex Higgins 15–18. In 1982/3, Reardon's career went through an Indian summer. In late 1982 Reardon won the Players Professional Tournament, beating Jimmy White 10–5 in the final.

He reached the final of the Benson & Hedges Masters , losing 7–9 to Cliff Thorburn , and went on to win the Yamaha Organs International Masters , where he beat Steve Davis 2–1 in the semi-final group stages, before defeating Jimmy White 9–6 in the final, having trailed 5–3. Reardon also regained the Welsh Professional Title, hammering Terry Griffiths 9–4 and Doug Mountjoy 9–1 in the semi final and final respectively. This led him to be fancied in some quarters for that year's World Championship, but he was beaten 13–12 in a high-quality second round match by Tony Knowles . Reardon reached the semi-finals of the World Championships once more, in 1985 (losing 16-5 to Davis). He last played at the Crucible in 1987 , losing to Steve Davis again in the second round. World Number One Edit When the snooker world rankings were introduced in 1976, Reardon was the first number one, retaining that position until 1981/1982 .

His win in the 1982 Professional Players Tournament at the age of 50 led to his recapturing the world number one position in the first set of rankings to be calculated on tournaments other than the World Championship. Reardon remains the oldest player, at 50, ever to win a ranking tournament. He has also won the State Express World Team Classic for Wales during the first two years of the tournament in 1979 and 1980 with Mountjoy and Terry Griffiths . He also won the Welsh Professional Championship in 1981 and 1983. His last final was the 1985 World Doubles when he partnered Tony Jones and lost to Steve Davis and Tony Meo 5–12. He was awarded the MBE in the same year. Retirement and later years Edit Reardon began to struggle in 1982 when his father died. He also developed poor sight and started wearing ' Dennis Taylor -style' glasses later on in his career. He went out of the top 16 in 1987 but surprisingly whitewashed Steve Davis 5–0 in the third round of the 1988 British Open .

The victory was achieved with Reardon using his old cue with which he had won his world titles, having been encouraged to rebuild it, by Steve Davis. However, in the next round, played under TV lighting, Reardon suffered a drying of contact lenses and lost 5–2 to David Roe , having led 2–1. Reardon played his last competitive ranking match in the 1991 World Championship qualifying second round. He lost 10–5 to Jason Prince (losing three frames on the black). Upon this loss, Reardon announced that 'there was no bitterness on his part' but he would not be returning. Having slipped to 127th in the provisional ranking and now aged 58, Reardon called a halt to his formal playing career. Reardon's last formal appearance in an event came in the 2000 Senior's event where he lost his opening 'match' (actually a single frame) 69–46 to Graham Miles. Reardon maintains an active interest in the game. He also advised Ronnie O'Sullivan on his way to his 2004 World Championship victory, giving him psychological and technical help. Reardon now resides in Brixham, Devon.

He is currently the president of the golf club in Churston, Devon. Reardon made a playing appearance at a Snooker Legends evening in Plymouth in July 2010. Performance timeline Welcome to fcsnooker - Snooker Coaching with Frank Callan - 'Snooker World Champions - The Embassy Years' fcsnooker - Top Quality Snooker Coaching and Instruction in association with Mr Frank Callan - General Interest - "Snooker World Champions - The Embassy Years" The 'Embassy' World Championships - Year by Year 1976 - Winner Ray Reardon In 1976 the final of the first embassy world championships was played in Manchester at the Wythenshaw arena. Ray Reardon was up against self-professed, "peoples champion" Alex "Hurricane" Higgins. Reardon won easily after Higgins conceded the match in the penultimate session after missing an easy pink. With Higgins conceding the frame and match early, the last session was not played. 1977 - Winner John Spencer In this year the tournament moved to Sheffield and was to be played at the Crucible Theatre for the very first time.

The final was contested between John Spencer and Canadian Cliff Thorburn, with Spencer winning 25 -21. 1978 - Winner Ray Reardon After dominating the game of snooker in the 1970's Ray Reardon won his sixth and last world title against left handed Perry Manns in 1978. This followed earlier wins in 1970, 73, 74, 75 and 1976. 1979 - Winner Terry Griffiths After a hard fought victory over Eddie Charlton in the semi-finals, Griffith's made the now famous quote "I'm in the final now". Facing him was Irishman Dennis Taylor, but after another close game Griffith's emerged triumphant to collect the ï¿½10,000 first prize. 1980 - Winner Cliff Thorburn Fondly remembered as the year of the grinder, this final was a classic mix of styles. Featuring Cliff Thorburn against Alex Higgins, the match combined Thorburn's tactical ability and safety play, with Higgin's natural potting and bravado. An excellent final, saw Thorburn keep his nerve to win 18 - 16.

Many wondered if Higgins would ever be world champion again. 1981 - Winner Steve Davis The 1980's began an era of domination by Steve Davis. Over the course of the next 9 years, Davis would feature in eight finals, winning six. The Davis era began here, when Davis convincingly beat Doug Mountjoy, 18 -12. 1982 - Winner Alex Higgins In 1982 the final was contested between two of the most famous names in snooker history, and also two men playing in their last Embassy final, Ray Reardon and Alex Higgins. Higgins proved too strong for Reardon and a 135 clearance in the final frame meant he was champion again, a full ten years after his first win. This prompted the memorable scenes of Higgins calling for his wife and daughter in an emotional aftermath to victory. 1983 - Winner Steve Davis After his shock exit in 1982 to Tony Knowles, Steve Davis was determined to regain his place at the forefront of the game. In the final however, he was up against 1980 champion Cliff Thorburn still celebrating a 147 total clearance in an earlier round against Terry Griffiths.

The first televised 147 in Crucible history. The final was somewhat of an anti-climax with Davis winning comfortably against a strangely subdued Thorburn. 1984 - Winner Steve Davis In 1984, Steve Davis went on to win his third title in four years against the magic of Jimmy "Whirlwind" White. Davis totally dominated the first session and the match looked as good as over. Jimmy, with a combination of skill and courage managed to bring himself back into the game, enjoying an excellent second day of the final. The lead proved too great, the match finished 18 - 16 and Steve Davis was again a worthy Champion. 1985 - Winner Dennis Taylor Perhaps the most famous match in snooker history. Played between reigning World Champion Steve Davis and 1979 loser Dennis Taylor the match had everything. As in the previous year Steve raced into a commanding lead in the first session, only for Dennis to counter attack brilliantly to close the gap. The race continued with both players neck and neck at 17 frames each. The last frame was a little scrappy, which was hardly surprising with all the tension and pressure.

After a compelling battle on the final black in the final frame, 18.5 million viewers, a record for a televised sporting event, saw Dennis Taylor triumph 62 -66, after Davis missed a thin cut back, on the black. Taylor was a very popular winner, breaking Davis's stranglehold on the World Crown. 1986 - Winner Joe Johnson Joe's Year. Playing with the freedom of a man with nothing to lose, 150 - 1 shot Joe Johnson stunned the snooker world when he defeated Steve Davis18 - 12 in 1986. Ever the sportsman, Davis conceded that Johnson had played the best snooker and thoroughly deserved his win. 1987 - Winner Steve Davis This final was a repeat of the previous year when Davis met Johnson. There was to be no repeat result however, with Davis playing excellently to win his fourth world crown 18 - 14. 1988 - Winner Steve Davis The 1988 final had Davis playing 1979 champion Griffiths. Davis was seeking his fifth world title and never looked in danger during this match.

A full nine years after winning the world title against Dennis Taylor, this would be Terry Griffith's last appearance in a crucible final. Although only victorious once at the Crucible, Griffith's overall record stands comparison with most others in the world championships. 1989 - Winner Steve Davis This final saw Steve Davis run out an easy 18 - 3 victor against John Parrot. Parrot struggled to find his best form and seemed to be completely in awe of both Davis and the occasion. Davis meanwhile was at his imperious best, equalling Ray Reardon's record of six world titles. 1990 - Winner Stephen Hendry The start of an era of dominance by the brilliant Stephen Hendry and the beginning of years of despair for Jimmy White, now known as the best player never to win the world title. After predicting in season 86/87 that he would win the title within five years, Hendry defeated White 18 - 12 to become the youngest ever player to win the world championship title.

This was the first of five consecutive appearances in the final for Jimmy White 1991 - Winner John Parrot This final was contested between 1989 runner-up John Parrot and 1990 runner-up Jimmy White. After dominating the the first session 7 - 0, Parrot never looked back winning the match and World Championship title, 18 - 11. 1992 - Winner Stephen Hendry A repeat of the 1990 final saw Stephen Hendry again playing Jimmy White. The match appeared to be going White's way as he progressed into a 14 - 9 lead. At this stage however, Hendry demonstrated all the attributes that have made him arguably the greatest player ever. A ten frame winning run saw him take the title 18 - 14. 1993 - Winner Stephen Hendry Capturing his third title in four years Stephen Hendry completely dominated this final against Jimmy White.

An opening frame break of 136 by Hendry set the tone for the rest of the match, with the final score finishing 18 - 5 1994 - Winner Stephen Hendry Perhaps Jimmy's best chance of winning the title came and went in the final frame of this tremendous match. With the match and title staring him in the face, Jimmy missed a relatively easy black off the spot, allowing Hendry the opportunity to get back to the table. Displaying his customary nerve Hendry completed a 58 clearance to win the title 18 - 17. For Jimmy's legion of fans this was perhaps the most upsetting of his defeats in the Embassy World Championship final. 1995 - Winner Stephen Hendry After three consecutive White v Hendry finals, this championship witnessed a White - Hendry semi-final. The outcome remained the same however, with Stephen Hendry victorious, a maximum clearance to go 8 - 4 up adding to his enjoyment during the match. This resulted in the 1995 title being fought out between Nigel Bond and a Stephen Hendry seeking his fourth consecutive victory and his fifth title in six seasons.

With a century to finish the match in the final frame, Hendry waltzed home a convincing 18 - 9 victor. This was no disgrace to Bond who had enjoyed an excellent tournament. 1996 - Winner Stephen Hendry "C'mon. C'mon". This phrase had reverberated around the Crucible as Peter Ebdon fought his way into the final stages of the tournament and ultimately the final against, who else, but Stephen Hendry. For all his passion however, Ebdon was no match for ice cool Hendry. A wonderful display of consistent snooker would see Hendry comfortably see off the dogged Ebdon 18 - 12, equalling the record of both Ray Reardon and Steve Davis as six times World Champion. 1997 - Winner Ken Doherty Trying to win his sixth consecutive world title Stephen Hendry was this time drawn to play the brilliant Irishman, Ken Doherty, in the final of the world championship.

Alas for Hendry it was not to be, with Doherty winning the match 18 - 12 1998 - Winner John Higgins 1998 saw a newcomer to the world final with John Higgins fighting his way through. Higgins had been earmarked for world title glory many years before as an outstanding junior and was now really beginning to make his talent show on the world stage. Facing him was Ken Doherty playing in his second consecutive world final. Doherty however, was unable to reproduce the form of the previous year enabling Higgins to push home his superiority for an 18 - 12 victory. 1999 - Winner Stephen Hendry Record breaking Scotsman Stephen Hendry did it again. A seventh world title made him the most successful player in world championship history. Up against first time finalist Mark Williams Hendry was rarely in danger, winning 18 - 11. Williams looked somewhat drained from his encounters in earlier rounds, but one thing was sure this talented Welshman would be back again 2000 - Winner Mark Williams The first all Welsh world championship final in snooker history, between beaten finalist from 1999, Mark Williams and the newcomer Matthew Stevens.

Williams won 8- 9 to win his first world title in a match that failed to live up to expectations. 2001 - Winner Ronnie O'Sullivan Ronnie O'Sullivan celebrates with the trophy after the match - Snooker - Embassy World Championship - Crucible Theatre, Sheffield Tuesday May 8. A shell shocked John Higgins,the match finished 18 - 14 and O'Sullivan was a worthy Champion. 2002 - Winner Peter Ebdon New world champion Peter Ebdon admitted he felt he was on a "different planet" as he won a thrilling final at The Crucible. Ebdon held on in a tense deciding frame to beat Stephen Hendry and win a match that finished at past midnight. 2003 - Winner Mark Williams Mark Williams seals a dramatic 18-16 victory over Ken Doherty to clinch the World Snooker Championship. 2004 - Winner Ronnie Osullivan The 2004 Embassy World Snooker Championship took place between 17 April and 3 May 2004 at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield between Osullivan and Graeme Dott.

Tthe final winner was Ronnie O'Sullivan, beating Graeme Dott by 18 frames to 8 (the fourth biggest margin in a final, equalled by O'Sullivan against Ali Carter in 2008) in the final, despite Dott having led 5–0. 2005 - Winner Shaun Murphy The 2005 Embassy World Snooker Championship professional ranking snooker tournament took place between 16 April and 2 May 2005 at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield, England. Ronnie O'Sullivan looked to defend his world title which he won in 2004, but the final winner was the relatively fresh faced Shaun Murphy, beating Matthew Stevens by 18 frames to 16 in the final. 2006 - Winner Graeme Dott The final was contested between Ebdon and Graeme Dott, and the victor was Dott by 18 frames to 14, earning him his first professional title in his 12-year career, and a £200,000 cheque.

2007 - Winner John Higgins The 2007 888.com World Snooker Championship professional ranking snooker tournament began on 21 April and ran until 7 May 2007 (with the final continuing into the early hours of 8 May) at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield. It was won by John Higgins, who defeated Mark Selby 18–13 in the final. 2008 - Winner Ronnie Osullivan The 2008 888.com World Snooker Championship professional ranking snooker tournament took place between 19 April and 5 May 2008 at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield. Ronnie O'Sullivan became the champion for the third time after beating Ali Carter 18–8. 2009 - Winner John Higgins The 2009 World Snooker Championship (also known as the 2009 Betfred.com World Snooker Championship for sponsorship purposes) professional ranking snooker tournament took place between 18 April and 4 May at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield. This was the first time that the World Snooker Championship had been sponsored by Betfred.

John Higgins beat Shaun Murphy by 18–9, winning the third world title of his career 2010 - Winner Neil Robertson The 2010 Betfred.com World Snooker Championship snooker tournament took place between 17 April and 4 May 2010 at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England. John Higgins, who entered the tournament as the defending champion, lost in the second round 11–13 against Steve Davis. In the semi-finals, Neil Robertson defeated Ali Carter 17–12 and Graeme Dott beat Mark Selby 17–14. Robertson won the final 18–13, becoming the first Australian in the modern era to win the title. 2011 - Winner John Higgins The 2011 Betfred.com World Snooker Championship professional ranking snooker tournament took place between 16 April and 2 May 2011 at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England. It was the 74th edition of the event and was the last ranking event of the 2010/2011 snooker season.

Neil Robertson was the defending champion, but lost 8–10 against Judd Trump in the first round. Trump and John Higgins reached the final by defeating Ding Junhui 17–15 and Mark Williams 17–14 respectively. John Higgins won his fourth World Championship title defeating Judd Trump by 18–15 in the final. 2012 - Winner Ronnie Osullivan The 2012 Betfred.com World Snooker Championship professional ranking snooker tournament took place between 21st April and 7 May 2012 at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield. Ronnie O'Sullivan became the champion for the forth time after beating Ali Carter 18–11. Frank Callan Suite - 282 Ribbleton Lane, Ribbleton, Preston, Lancashire, England - PR1 5EB - tel.

+ 44 (0) 1772 702211 - info@fcsnooker.co.uk Visit the links below for further information>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> History of Snooker - World Snooker History of Snooker Fu on FIRE as he sets up O'Sullivan Semi Final History of Snooker The History of Snooker It is 140 years since a young officer in the British Army, experimenting on a billiard table, came up with the game we now know as snooker. At the 2015 World Championship the best players on the planet were competing for a top prize of £300,000, watched by nearly half a billion people around the globe. Two of snooker’s leading journalists, Hector Nunns and David Hendon, plot snooker’s course from small beginnings to a major international sport… INDIA, BIRTHPLACE OF SNOOKER The first ever Indian Open ranking tournament was staged in New Delhi in 2013, an occasion celebrated with gusto throughout the snooker world.

This was partly due to the emergence of two fine professional players from that country, eventual finalist Aditya Mehta and former billiards champion Pankaj Advani, with the prospect of plenty more to follow. However it also provided the perfect opportunity to reflect upon the very origins of the sport 138 years earlier, with the game having been invented in 1875 by the British Army in the Indian town of Jubbulpore (or Jabalpur, as it is now known) situated around 450 miles south-east of the capital. According to author and essayist Compton MacKenzie in his account in ‘The Billiard Player’ magazine of 1939, young lieutenant Neville Chamberlain (not the former British Prime Minister) was experimenting on the officers’ mess table with the existing game of ‘Black Pool’ featuring 15 red balls and a black. Having thrown on additional coloured balls and heard that rookie cadets at the Royal Military Academy at Woolwich were called ‘snookers’, Chamberlain observed that all those present were snookers at this tweaked version of the game, and the name instantly stuck.

His Devonshire regiment, which later became the Devonshire and Dorset and are now known as the Rifles, remain fiercely proud to this day of their role in the invention of snooker. Neville Chamberlain Soon after, Chamberlain was based in the Tamil Nadu hill station of Ootacamund – or ‘Snooty Ooty’, as the exclusive mountain retreat was often known. And such was the young officer’s enthusiasm for his new game there that he even named his horse ‘Snooker’. The further development of the sport took place in the colonial-style Ooty Club, very much a part of snooker folklore and somewhere that current World Snooker chairman Barry Hearn insists remains on his ‘bucket list’ to visit. The club features an original snooker table from the period in use today and walls still thick with tiger, leopard and deer hunting trophies – and it was from here that word and rules of the new game circulated throughout India and the former British Empire. Membership of the club at that time was restricted to “officers of the armed forces, and gentlemen moving in general society”, though luckily for most, those rules have since been eased.

Rumours of this new phenomenon had reached Great Britain and aside from the birth of a certain Joe Davis in 1901 – more of whom later – the years that followed saw snooker slowly grow in the United Kingdom, cue manufacturer and billiards player John Roberts Jr helping to spread the gospel after a trip to India. Around 1910, century breaks were attributed to Scot Tom Aiken, a billiards champion, Cecil Harverson, Phil Morris of Tottenham and Lucania Hall manager George Hargest. The first amateur snooker championship was staged during the Great War, with the result at that time decided by points aggregate after seven frames – a very early precursor to the shorter format of the modern-day European and Asian Tour series. Snooker’s rules, which had featured inconsistencies, were finally dragged together in 1919, also the year that the re-spotted black was introduced to ensure each frame had a winner. How much drama that innovation has produced over the years, and still does to this day. With a number of established amateurs, it took a man who would become snooker’s first superstar to usher in the age of professionalism.

JOE DAVIS AND PROFESSIONALISM Snooker’s next era belonged to one man only – the incomparable and all-conquering Joe Davis. The others involved as professionalism took a hold were more often than not bit-parts in the Joe show and they knew it, with varying levels of resentment. However the years from the mid-1920s unquestionably also marked an exciting phase in the game’s emergence and saw it challenge and overtake the more established game of billiards in the UK, with matches drawing crowds in the thousands. Joe, along with younger brother Fred, was born in Whitwell, Derbyshire just past the turn of the century – sons of a miner who turned publican at the Queens Hotel, Whittington Moor which crucially housed a full-size billiards table. And Joe would go on to become a strong contender for the tag of greatest player of all time with his incredible longevity at the top and unmatched exploits on the table. He won 15 world titles in succession, the last coming after World War Two. He was also the driving force behind the first professional World Championship in 1927, the forerunner of today’s tournament that will be watched by hundreds of millions around the globe.

The famous silver trophy that will be held aloft by this year’s champion on May 5 has not changed – bar a few extra names engraved in the intervening years. Though weaned on billiards and like many others initially looking down on the new sport Joe, a financial pragmatist, immediately saw snooker’s greater earning potential. When he claimed victory from a field of 10 entrants in that 1927 final at Camkin’s Hall, Birmingham, 20-11 against Tom Dennis, the man unable to focus with his right eye and variously called the ‘Sultan of Snooker’ and the ‘Emperor of Pot’ pocketed a princely £6 10s. Sidney Smith, another son of the Derbyshire snooker hotbed of the time, became the first man to make a total clearance (136) at the Daily Mail Gold Cup in 1939.

And the first post-WWII World Championship final between Joe and Australian Horace Lindrum, won 78-67 by the Englishman at the Royal Horticultural Hall to sell-out crowds of 1,200 twice a day for a fortnight, represented a peak leading to almost inevitable decline in interest and commercial sway. Fred won the first of his eight world titles in 1948, and the BBC, who are again providing the pictures from this year’s Crucible action, made their debut outside broadcast coverage of snooker from Leicester Square Hall in 1950. In 1952 a boycott by most of the top players left only two entrants. Lindrum beat New Zealander Clark McConachy 94-49 at Houldsworth Hall in Manchester in a ‘world final’ contest recognised by virtually nobody, though Lindrum’s family were still protesting he was the first Australian to win it when Neil Robertson lifted the trophy in 2010.

And on January 22 1955 Joe, also referred to as the ‘Grandfather of Snooker’, became the first man to have a 147 maximum break officially recognised in an exhibition against Willie Smith that effectively also brought the curtain down on Leicester Square Hall, formerly Thurston’s (a table manufacturer) and an iconic playing venue for half a century. Joe, having already produced at least two coaching manuals, brought out in 1956 the definitive ‘How I Play Snooker’, a sacred text of technical know-how that has since been described as “the bible” for all players by six-time world champion and namesake Steve Davis, handed the book by his father Bill. One of the 56-year-old’s only unfulfilled career ambitions remains to bring out a tome to rival it. However, Joe’s decision to retire from the World Championship in 1946 but continue to play in tournaments and exhibitions seriously devalued the game’s premier event as everyone knew the best player wasn’t in it. It led to a decade of decline before the sport was rescued by a medium which would herald a new dawn.

THE AGE OF COLOUR In July 1969, man first walked on the moon and, that same month, snooker took its own giant leap, which would lay the groundwork for the professional circuit as we know it today. Pot Black was a weekly series designed to showcase the BBC’s new colour service. The controller of BBC2 was David Attenborough, who would become a broadcasting legend through his ground-breaking natural history programmes. He wanted content which could emphasise colour. Snooker, which also had the advantage of being easy to cover, fitted the bill perfectly. Ted Lowe, a former manager of Leicester Square Hall in London, who had lent whispering commentaries to snooker shown by the BBC in black and white, devised the format and eight professionals were invited to play. The series was a huge hit and players quickly became well known, which in turn boosted their capacity to earn money from exhibitions. Joe Davis, John Spencer, Ray Reardon and John Pulman All this had seemed unlikely in 1957 when snooker’s very future appeared doomed when the World Championship was discontinued through lack of interest.

It had been revived by Rex Williams in 1964 and played as a series of challenge matches, all seven of which were won by John Pulman. In 1968, the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association was established and the following year the championship reverted back to a knockout format. John Spencer won it in 1969 but Ray Reardon, a former miner and policeman, would dominate the 1970s, winning six world titles. Reardon was the period’s leading player but its star was a young Northern Irishman whose lightning fast skills had been honed in the Jampot club in Belfast. Alex Higgins was a firebrand whose very being seemed destined to challenge the establishment on and off the table. He won the world title at his first attempt in 1972, pocketing a first prize of £480, and spectators packed into exhibitions to watch him play. It was ‘Hurricane’ Higgins, despite his bad behaviour, or maybe because of it, who gained snooker popularity and publicity in this time where Pot Black was still the sport’s main TV outlet.

Sponsors, particularly from the tobacco industry, started to take notice and the BBC increased its coverage with highlights from the World Championship and a new invitation event, the Masters. As Reardon, Spencer and Higgins led the way on the table, things were moving forward behind the scenes under the astute stewardship of Mike Watterson, an independent promoter who was savvy enough to realise the sport’s potential as television exposure created increased sponsorship opportunities. The World Championship had been played in various outposts, including Australia, before Watterson looked for a new home for the 1977 tournament, ideally an intimate set-up which could become a permanent venue for the sport’s Blue Riband event. One night his wife, Carol, returned from seeing a play at a theatre in Sheffield which she thought may fit the bill. And so the stage was set for snooker’s transformation from relative obscurity to front page news as the game hit the heights like never before. DAVIS AT THE HEAD OF THE SNOOKER BOOM The Crucible stands in the middle of Sheffield city centre.

For 50 weeks of the year this theatre-in-the-round stages great dramatic works, but for 17 days annually it becomes a sporting hub where careers are defined and dreams are made or shattered. John Spencer triumphed at the 1977 championship there before Ray Reardon won his sixth world title the following year. 1978 had seen the BBC considerably increase its coverage of the tournament and they were rewarded with stellar viewing figures. In a decade, only Alex Higgins had successfully challenged the Reardon/Spencer grip on the World Championship but the old order was to be irrevocably broken in 1979. Terry Griffiths’s triumph as a qualifier in his first season as a professional acted as a catalyst for many amateurs to take a chance on the pro ranks. One ginger-haired Londoner had already made the leap. Steve Davis of Plumstead was a shy but dedicated player tutored by his father, Bill, and managed by an extrovert businessman called Barry Hearn, who ran a chain of Lucania snooker clubs. Steve Davis As the 1980s dawned, Davis and Hearn set about cleaning up on and off the table.

Davis’s first major success came at the 1980 UK Championship and he ended the season by winning the world title, Hearn barrelling across the Crucible stage and nearly knocking him over in jubilant celebration. With the world champion under his wing, Hearn began to see the possibilities of snooker outside of mere results. With a natural touch for the popular he began to build his Matchroom empire by signing more players and promoting independent tournaments. These were golden years. All over the UK, snooker clubs were opening and a vibrant amateur scene began breeding the stars of the future. ITV had enviously viewed the BBC’s audience figures and began televising its own events. Thus, a professional circuit built up and prize money rocketed. Sponsors were lining up to invest in a sport which the British public watched like a soap opera, with its distinct cast of characters, many of whom found their private lives the subject of unwanted attention from a tabloid press also riding the boom. Higgins was inevitably the subject of many of these stories.

The volatile bad boy of the baize won an emotional second world title in 1982, tearfully beckoning his wife and baby daughter on to the Crucible stage in the moments following his 18-15 victory over Reardon. Cliff Thorburn had become the first non-British world champion in 1980 and made the Crucible’s first 147 break in 1983, a year before another Canadian, Kirk Stevens, made one at the Masters. Jimmy White, who had won the world amateur title at the age of 18, missed out on a world final place in 1982 when Higgins made a miraculous clearance of 69 while trailing 15-14 in their semi-final before winning the decider. White fought back from 12-4 down to Davis in the 1984 final but was beaten 18-16. Davis was indeed the man to beat. He made the first televised maximum break at the 1982 Lada Classic, captured six UK Championship crowns and spent seven years as world number one.

However, he was on the wrong end of the most famous snooker match of the boom years. In 1985, he built an 8-0 lead over Dennis Taylor in the world final and was apparently coasting to a third straight title. Taylor, a Northern Irishman who wore large ‘upside down’ spectacles, fought back and at 11pm they were level at 17-17 with one more frame to play. It lasted over an hour and came down to the final black. Davis had a chance to pot it but missed, leaving Taylor to sink it. 18.5 million viewers were still watching BBC2, a record audience to this day for the channel and for any UK programme broadcast after midnight. Despite this reverse, and one to 150-1 pre-tournament hopeful Joe Johnson in 1986, Davis, like snooker itself, remained imperious throughout the 1980s. In 1989, he crushed John Parrott 18-3 to win a sixth world title. He seemed unstoppable, but a young man from Scotland had other ideas.

THE HENDRY YEARS Every so often in sport there comes along an individual who not only dominates rivals in competition, but introduces a whole new dimension and changes the way a game is played – and Scotland’s Stephen Hendry was to prove just such a figure in snooker. Born in South Queensferry, Hendry was bought a small table by his parents as an afterthought at the age of 12. On such twists of fate are legends formed. He swiftly served notice of a growing force with wins at the Scottish Under-16 and Scottish amateur level, turning professional at the tender age of just 16 years and three months. By the time Hendry retired in 2012, he had set records that may never be broken, and built up a glittering and trophy-laden CV, not least with his achievements on the greatest stage of all, the World Championship at the Crucible Theatre. Hendry’s legacy will therefore not only be title triumphs and memories, but the certainty that many of those now at the top of the game were hugely influenced by what they saw him doing on the table in his pomp, the shots he played and the attacking approach to break-building and single-visit snooker he espoused.

Stephen Hendry With the world waiting for someone to inherit the Steve Davis mantle, Hendry – with manager Ian Doyle guiding his career – unhesitatingly leapt up to the plate. The early milestones came and went. There was a first Crucible appearance at 17, famously being applauded off by Willie Thorne after losing 10-8. And a first ranking title in 1987, as Hendry beat Dennis Taylor 10-7 at the Grand Prix. The dominance truly began in the 1989-90 season, culminating in a first world title – and Hendry, now 45, remains at the time of writing the youngest player to win it at 21 years 106 days. Six further times Hendry lifted the trophy at the Crucible, and inevitably his series of finals against People’s Champion Jimmy White are the best remembered, with the Scot often unfairly cast in the role of the hunter who killed Bambi’s mother.

Four times he snatched the prize away from the Whirlwind, including the remarkable ten frames in a row to win 18-14 in 1992, and the ice-cool 58 clearance to win 18-17 in 1994 with a broken bone in his arm after White had missed a black off the spot in the decider. In these and other successes Hendry was fearless, aggressive, ruthless, focused and determined – and executed tough shots under the most intense pressure time and time again. And he never forgot the trailblazing he was doing for Scottish snooker, walked in by a piper with Alan McManus for their all-Tartan 1993 Crucible semi-final. Not all of Hendry’s finest moments came in Sheffield, though. In 1994 he made seven century breaks in the UK Championship final, beating Ken Doherty 10-5 in Preston. And in 1997 he recovered from losing six frames in a row in the final of the Liverpool Victoria Charity Challenge to come out at 8-8 and win the match against Ronnie O’Sullivan with a 147 maximum break.

While it is possible O’Sullivan could get to Hendry’s mark of seven world titles and 775 career centuries, the 36 ranking titles record looks secure for all time as does the 27 consecutive appearances in the final stages of the blue-riband tournament in Sheffield. Victories over Hendry in big matches at or near his peak were rare, hard-earned and for that reason all the more special. Just ask Ken Doherty what beating him in the Crucible final meant in 1997, or Peter Ebdon with his ‘revenge’ showpiece victory in 2002 after losing in the 1996 final. John Parrott and John Higgins also claimed world titles in the 1990s. Hendry also remains the last snooker player to seriously figure in the annual BBC Sports Personality of the Year poll, coming second only to Paul Gascoigne in 1990. For many, Hendry gets the nod as the greatest player of all time – but like all reigns his was to end, with a group of players he inspired seizing the initiative.

THE GOLDEN CROP BEAR FRUIT While Stephen Hendry was taking snooker to another level in the early 1990s, a trio of teenagers were taking their first steps on the professional circuit, the start of a journey which would propel all three to the top of the sport. The circuit had gradually grown from a handful of professionals to 128 players, but in 1991 the WPBSA decided to throw the pro ranks open to anyone willing to pay the entry fees. Suddenly there were 700 professionals, a revolution which swept away many of the now ageing characters who were such an important part of the 1980s boom. Ronnie O’Sullivan’s name was known long before he turned professional. His father, Ronnie senior, instilled in him a disciplined practice routine from boyhood and brought leading amateurs to the family home to play his son on their full sized table. O’Sullivan cut a swathe through the amateur ranks and won 74 of his 76 qualifying matches in his debut season, 1992/93.

Snooker had decamped to the Norbreck Castle Hotel in Blackpool for a long summer of preliminary rounds and O’Sullivan emerged as the undoubted star. Remarkably, a year later he beat Hendry 10-6 in the UK Championship final the week before he turned 18, becoming the youngest ever ranking event winner. His performances were often dazzling. At the 1997 World Championship he made a 147 break in a record time of just five minutes, 20 seconds. Ronnie O’Sullivan O’Sullivan had the world at his feet. But away from the table, he struggled from depression, triggered by his father’s life conviction for murder. O’Sullivan’s magisterial performances on the baize were therefore coupled with erratic behaviour, disciplinary action and constant threats to retire. He did not win his first world title until he was 25, in 2001. A second followed in 2004 and third in 2008. After his fourth in 2012 he finally went through with his threat to walk away, taking a year off, apart from one minor event.

However, the time away proved to O’Sullivan that snooker was still in his blood. He returned to win a fifth world title in 2013. With four UK and five Masters titles, plus a record 12 maximum breaks, his claim to be the greatest ever was strengthened in his late 30s, when most players decline. He could have won more but for his two contemporaries, John Higgins and Mark Williams, the other celebrated members of the class of 1992. Higgins, an all-round player in the Steve Davis mould, was the first of the three to win the world title. His 1998 triumph saw him end fellow Scot Hendry’s eight-year reign as world number one. Higgins, who had won three ranking titles while still a teenager, was a regular tournament winner but it took him nine years to capture a second world title. He quickly won two more, in 2009 and 2011, as well as three UK titles and the Masters twice. Williams became the third Welshman and first left-hander to win the World Championship in 2000.

In 2003, he won a thrilling contest with Ken Doherty 18-16 to complete a clean sweep of that season’s three major titles, having already captured a second UK Championship and second Masters, a feat only previously accomplished by Davis and Hendry. Laid back off the table, Williams was ruthless on it, his mettle having been proven by edging Hendry 10-9 on a re-spotted black in the 1998 Masters final. O’Sullivan, Higgins and Williams were products of the 1980s UK snooker boom. They were inspired by the blanket TV coverage, played in the sundry junior and amateur events and climbed their way up from the bottom rung of the qualifying ladder to the very top. From 1998 to 2013 they won 11 of the 16 World Championships between them. They were the leading lights as snooker entered a new millennium, which would see the sport exploring new global opportunities. SNOOKER GOES GLOBAL Despite its British roots, professional snooker made several forays to foreign climes before travelling became the norm for top players.

South Africa staged challenge matches in the 1960s, the 1975 World Championship was played in Australia, there were regular tournaments in Canada in the 1970s and in the 1980s Barry Hearn’s Matchroom led the way in spreading the gospel to countries such as China, Hong Kong, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates. The first ranking event staged outside the UK was the 1988 Canadian Masters. There were European Opens in France, the Netherlands and Belgium and an Asian Open in China in 1990. Thailand became a regular and popular stopping off point for the circuit in the 1990s after the emergence of James Wattana, who won three ranking titles, including his home event on two occasions. It was not until the new millennium however that snooker’s global reach was truly explored thanks to a Chinese teenager and a pan European broadcaster. Ding Junhui had been touted as a star of the future from a very young age but found the UK-based qualifying set-up tough. He was withdrawn from the 2005 China Open in Beijing and then re-entered as a wildcard.

Sensationally, just days after turning 18, he won the tournament, beating Stephen Hendry 9-5 in the final. 110 million viewers watched on Chinese television and it sparked a boom similar to the one the UK had enjoyed two decades earlier. Meanwhile, Eurosport, which had showed snooker sporadically for years, signed a deal to broadcast every major event, bringing the sport to viewers in 61 countries, many of them completely new to the game. Like British audiences, they had a cast of characters to which to warm. O’Sullivan, Higgins and Williams remained the holy trinity but there were world titles too for Peter Ebdon (2002), Shaun Murphy as a qualifier (2005) and Graeme Dott (2006). Ding won two UK titles and Neil Robertson of Australia emerged as a top player, eventually triumphing at the Crucible in 2010. At the Masters, Paul Hunter won three dramatic finals, all in deciding frame finishes having been behind each time. Hunter’s easy going manner, good looks and genuine humility made him a popular new star and his performances helped keep snooker in the spotlight.

Everyone in the sport was devastated when he died from a rare form of cancer in 2006 at the age of only 27. Off table things were less rosy. The UK government had prohibited tobacco companies from sponsoring sport, which helped create a huge hole in snooker’s finances and, despite the increasing global interest, the circuit began to shrink. There was nothing wrong with snooker on the table but its administration needed a serious overhaul to maximise its popularity. The task fell to a man synonymous with the game’s boom years of the 1980s. THE HEARN REVOLUTION Today in 2014 snooker stands as a truly global sport, its tentacles forever reaching into new territories. It is played in 90 countries by over 120 million people, and watched by 450 million worldwide. One of the fastest-growing sports on the planet is also knocking on the door for future inclusion in the Olympic Games. But just a few short years ago the game stood at a major crossroads, having seen the number of full ranking tournaments drop to six, and with leading professionals voicing concerns that their lack of earning opportunities were rendering them little more than ‘part-timers’.

Ronnie O’Sullivan, speaking in 2009 as the situation came to a head, called for a ‘Simon Cowell’ figure to step in and save snooker. As it turned out, that man was Barry Hearn. Former WPBSA and World Snooker chairman Sir Rodney Walker effectively held a vote of confidence in his own regime in December of 2009, and the membership voted 32-24 against his re-election, paving the way for Hearn to assume control. And having been voted on as WPBSA chairman Hearn, determined to succeed in a sport that had kick-started his own career, asked for a mandate from the players to take the commercial rights and move it forward. Barry Hearn Owner of Leyton Orient Football Club, a successful darts and boxing promoter and manager of Steve Davis and formerly a large stable of snooker stars at Matchroom in the 1980s, Hearn pledged in a series of frank exchanges with the players, many of them highly sceptical, to put on more events and increase prize money and earning opportunities.

In a crucial vote in the summer of 2010, Hearn squeaked home by 35 votes to 29. The revolution might easily not have happened, with the new World Snooker supremo insisting he would have walked away had he lost. And he has delivered what was promised in a way that has seen even previously outspoken opponents among the players admit they were wrong, making the regular Players Tour Championship series in Europe and Asia an important part of the calendar. From six full ranking tournaments and a total prize fund for the season of £3.5million in 2009-10, in 2014/15 there were 11 – in addition to the Masters, 9 more European and Asian Tour events, the Champion of Champions, the World Grand Prix, the World Seniors, and the quick-fire, single-frame Shootout in Blackpool. Total prize money now tops £8million. There have been new tournaments put on in Germany, China, Thailand, Australia, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Poland, Bulgaria, the Netherlands, Portugal, Latvia and India.

The years have not been without controversy, with some leading players resistant to the removal of protection previously afforded to the top 16, not least coming in at the 128-man stage rather than the last-32 round – but Hearn and WPBSA Chairman Jason Ferguson have never wavered in their view that this is how a democratic and properly run sport should operate, along the golf and tennis models. Many within the sport expect India to be the ‘new China’, but if one thing is certain it is that India – where snooker was born in the 19th Century, coming full circle this season – will not be the last new stop on the global route planner as a game which began so humbly continues to fascinate hundreds of millions around the world. Latest News Masters 2018 Tickets On Sale Monday Stay Connected best snooker world championship finals Ten Great Crucible Finals Friday 15 Apr 2016 07:02PM With the world’s greatest players descending on Sheffield for the Betfred World Snooker Championship, we take a look back at ten of the all-time great Crucible finals!

1977 saw the World Championship held at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield for the very first time – a venue which would go on to establish itself at the very heart of snooker for the next 39 years. John Spencer became the first ever player to lift the trophy in the legendary arena after beating Cliff Thorburn 25-21 in the final, claiming his third world title and the £6,000 winner’s cheque. 1977 was the World Championship since the world ranking system was introduced Spencer became the first player to win a world title with a two-piece cue John Virgo, Willie Thorne Patsy Fagan and Doug Mountjoy made their World Championship debut that year Steve Davis won his first of six world titles in 1981, taking home the silverware in Sheffield on his third attempt. Having already claimed the scalps of Jimmy White, Alex Higgins, Terry Griffiths and defending champion Cliff Thorburn in the earlier rounds, Davis went on to beat Doug Mountjoy 18-12 in the final to become champion of the world.

There were 13 century breaks in the tournament, equalling the all-time record set at in 1979 Mountjoy made a 145 break to set a new World Championship high break record, beating the 142 of Rex Williams in 1965 and Bill Werbeniuk in 1979. Making their world championship debuts were Jimmy White, Tony Knowles and Dave Martin Ten years on from his first World Championship title, Alex Higgins made an emotional return to the top after beating Ray Reardon 18-15 in a spectacular 1982 final. At 15-15 in the final session, Higgins went on to win the next three frames, sealing the victory with a 135 break to claim his second world title. A tearful Higgins then summoned his wife and baby daughter from the crowd after the victory. The previous three world champions – also the top three seeds – were all defeated in the opening round: defending champion Steve Davis, 1979 champion Terry Griffiths and 1980 champion Cliff Thorburn Jim Donnelly became the first Scottish player to play at the Crucible We couldn’t possibly leave this out, could we?

Finals don’t come better than this – Dennis Taylor won his only World Championship in 1985 after beating Steve Davis 18-17 on the last black in a final that would become one of the most famous sporting moments in history. Davis led 62–44 in the decider, with only the last four colours on the table… We’ll let the video tell the rest! The final attracted 18.5 million viewers on the BBC, finishing at 12:25am The 35th and final frame lasted 68 minutes Stephen Hendry became the youngest player ever to win a World Championship in 1990, winning the first of seven titles at at the Crucible at just 21 years and 106 days. Hendry beat Jimmy White in the final, with the Scotsman holding just a two frame lead after the first day’s play at 9-7 up. Hendry then pulled away into a 13-7 lead, with White closing the gap to within four frames during the final session.

At 16-12 up, Hendry then sunk 81 and a final 71 to seal his maiden world title and make his mark in the history books. Another notable World Championship triumph for Stephen Hendry came in 1994 when he won his fourth world title, beating Jimmy White 18-17 in the deciding frame. This was White’s fifth consecutive world championship final – his fourth against Hendry – and he had first chance in the decider only to miss the black off the spot. Hendry then cleared to take home his fourth world title in five years. Losing 14–16 to Jimmy White in the semis, Steve Davis Davis failed to reach the final for the first time since 1982 After losing in the opening round, Alex Higgins punched an official in the stomach at the post-match press conference. This, along with a threat to have Dennis Taylor shot at the 1980 World Cup, led to Higgins being banned for the 90/91 season.

It was John Higgins’ time to shine in 1998 as he won his first of four World Championship titles, beating the then-defending champion Ken Doherty in the final 18-12. In doing so, Stephen Hendry’s eight-year reign as world number one was ended, Higgins rising to the top after a first round exit for his fellow Scotsman. 1998 saw Hendry lose in the first round for the first time since his Crucible debut in 1986 Ken Doherty came closer than any other player bar Joe Johnson to breaking the ‘Crucible Curse’ 2001 was the year that Ronnie O’Sullivan won the first of five world titles in Sheffield, overcoming John Higgins 18-14 in a spectacular final to take home the £250,000 top prize. Having already won the UK Championship twice and the Masters, O’Sullivan completed the Triple Crown.

Both Steve Davis and Jimmy White failed to qualify for World Championship for the first time in their careers since 1979 and 1981 respectively Widely regarded as one of the greatest World Championship finals in recent history, 2013 saw Ronnie O’Sullivan beat Barry Hawkins 18-12 in the final to clinch his fifth world title. Despite having only played a single competitive match all season, O’Sullivan did not lose a session throughout the World Championship. The victory also meant O’Sullivan joined Steve Davis and Stephen Hendry as the only players to successfully defend their titles at the Crucible. O’Sullivan became the first player to make six centuries in a World Championship final O’Sullivan’s 103 break in frame 15 was his 128th century at the Crucible, breaking Stephen Hendry’s record of 127 Last year’s Betfred World Championship undoubtedly goes down as one of the most exciting in recent years.

Stuart Bingham – a 50-1 outsider at the start of the tournament – rattled through a tough field including Graeme Dott, Ronnie O’Sullivan, Judd Trump and eventually Shaun Murphy to win his first world title in his 20-year career as a professional. The tournament itself set a new record for the most century breaks at the Crucible – 86 beating the record set in 2009 of 83. The final was a strong reflection of this high standard, with six century breaks and 24 more over 50 in 33 frames. In the opening session Murphy led 3-0, only for Bingham to fight back at 4-4. In the second, Murphy pulled away to move 8-4 up, but again Bingham came back to win four of the next five frames and reduce his lead to 9-8 overnight. In the third session, Bingham led by 14-11 only for Murphy to level at 15-15 into the concluding session.

Bingham eventually added three frames to seal the victory, making him the oldest player to win the world title since Ray Reardon in 1978, and take him to a career-high second in the world rankings. Related News Metrics Leap For World Snooker Social Media 30 Dec 2016

Question: Ray Reardon won his last World Snooker Championship in what year?
Answer: 1978