Raymond Reardon is a Welsh retired professional snooker player. He turned professional in 1967 aged 35 and dominated the sport in the 1970s, winning the World Snooker Championship six times and more than a dozen other tournaments. Reardon was World Champion in 1970, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976 and 1978, and runner-up in 1982. He won the inaugural Pot Black tournament in 1969, the 1976 Masters and the 1982 Professional Players Tournament.
John Spencer was an English professional snooker player who won the World Snooker Championship title at his first attempt in 1969. He won the Championship title for the second time in 1971, and was the first player to win the championship at the Crucible Theatre when it moved there in 1977. Spencer was the inaugural winner of both the Masters and the Irish Masters tournaments, and was the first player to make a maximum break of 147 in competition, although this is not recognised as an official maximum because no check was carried out to establish whether the pockets on the table met the required specifications.
Clifford Charles Devlin Thorburn is a Canadian retired professional snooker player. Nicknamed "The Grinder" because of his slow, determined style of play, he won the World Snooker Championship in 1980, defeating Alex Higgins 18–16 in the final. He is generally recognised as the sport's first world champion from outside the United Kingdom—since Australian Horace Lindrum's 1952 title is usually disregarded—and he remains the only world champion from the Americas. He was runner-up in two other world championships, losing 21–25 to John Spencer in the 1977 final and 6–18 to Steve Davis in the 1983 final. At the 1983 tournament, Thorburn became the first player to make a maximum break in a World Championship match, achieving the feat in his second-round encounter with Terry Griffiths.
Doug Mountjoy was a Welsh snooker player from Tir-y-Berth, Gelligaer, Wales. He was a member of the professional snooker circuit from the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s, and remained within the top 16 of the world rankings for 11 consecutive years. He began his professional snooker career by taking the 1977 Masters, which he entered as a reserve player. He won both the 1978 UK Championship and the 1979 Irish Masters. Mountjoy reached the final of the 1981 World Snooker Championship where he was defeated by Steve Davis. He was also runner-up at the 1985 Masters losing to Cliff Thorburn, but by 1988 he had dropped out of the top 16.
The 1977 World Snooker Championship was a professional snooker tournament that took place from 18 to 30 April 1977 at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield. John Spencer won his third World Snooker Championship title by defeating Cliff Thorburn by 25 frames to 21 in the final. It was the first time that the championship was held at the Crucible, which has remained as the venue for the Championship since then. The tournament was sponsored by cigarette manufacturer Embassy.
The 1993 World Snooker Championship was a professional ranking snooker tournament that took place between 17 April and 3 May 1993 at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England.
The 1977 UK Championship was a professional non-ranking snooker tournament that took place at the Tower Circus in Blackpool between 26 November and 3 December 1977.
The 1988 UK Championship was a professional ranking snooker tournament that took place between 19 and 27 November 1988 at the Guild Hall in Preston, England. This was the last UK Championship to be sponsored by Tennent's, and for the following two years the championship would be sponsored by StormSeal. The highest break of the tournament was 139 made by David Roe.
The 1976 Masters was a professional non-ranking snooker tournament that took place from Monday 26 to Friday 30 January 1976 at the New London Theatre in London, England. 10 players were invited for the competition. Mostly the same players from the 1975 tournament mostly competed but with Dennis Taylor replacing Bill Werbeniuk.
The 1978 Masters was a professional non-ranking snooker tournament that took place from Monday 6 to Friday 10 February 1978 at the New London Theatre in London, England. It was the last time the Masters was held there, as the following year it moved to the Wembley Conference Centre. 10 players were invited for the tournament.
The 1979 Masters was a professional non-ranking snooker tournament that took place from Monday 22nd to Friday 26 January 1979 at the Wembley Conference Centre in London, England, which would host the tournament until the venue's demolition in 2006. 10 players were invited for the tournament.
The 1991 Masters was a professional non-ranking snooker tournament that took place between 3 and 10 February 1991 at the Wembley Conference Centre in London, England. The highest break of the tournament was a 135 compiled by Dennis Taylor, for which he earned £7,500.
The Triple Crown in professional snooker refers to winning the sport's three longest-running and most prestigious tournaments: the World Snooker Championship, the invitational Masters, and the UK Championship. Players who win all three tournaments over the course of their careers are said to have won the Triple Crown. In January 2020, these tournaments were formally named the Triple Crown Series, with any player who has won all three gaining the right to wear an embroidered crown on their waistcoat reflecting their achievement.
The 1985 Masters was a professional non-ranking snooker tournament that took place between 27 January and 3 February 1985 at the Wembley Conference Centre in London, England. The highest break of the tournament was 103 made by Cliff Thorburn, for which Thorburn earned £3,750.
The 1980 Irish Masters was the sixth edition of the professional invitational snooker tournament, which took place from 13 to 16 February 1980. The tournament was played at Goffs in Kill, County Kildare, and featured eight professional players.
The 1984 Jameson International Open was a professional ranking snooker tournament that took place between 24 September to 7 October 1984 at the Eldon Square Recreation Centre in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England.
The Golden Masters was a professional invitational snooker tournament held for two editions in Newtownards, Northern Ireland. Sponsored by McEwan's lager, both tournaments were won by Welsh players.
The 1990 Senator Windows Welsh Professional Championship was a professional non-ranking snooker tournament, which took place between 12 and 17 February 1990 at the Newport Centre in Newport, Wales.
The 1989 Dubai Duty Free Classic was a professional ranking snooker tournament that took place from 27 October to 3 November 1989 at the Al Nasr Stadium in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
The 1984 Camus Hong Kong Masters was a professional non-ranking snooker tournament held in Hong Kong in September 1984.
Doug Mountjoy (WAL) (88)
