Barry Pinches (born 13 July 1970 in Catton, Norwich) is an English former professional snooker player, recognisable for his bright and flamboyant waistcoats, which usually feature the yellow and green colours of Norwich City F.C. He is a former top 32 player and ranking-event quarter-finalist. He has compiled over 100 century breaks in his career.[2] He has also made one maximum break.[3]
Pinches was born on 13 July 1970.[4] He won the English Amateur Championship in 1988, enabling him to turn professional in 1989.[5] He was runner-up to James Wattana at the 1988 World Amateur Championship.[5]
After a largely unsuccessful start to his career, he hit good form for a while in the 2000s.[4] He defeated Jimmy White 10–8 in the 2004 World Championship, in a match which overran and had to be completed after other matches,[6] then led Stephen Hendry 11–9 before losing 12–13 and has lost in the first round twice more – the 13-year gap between his first two Crucible appearances (1991–2004) is an all-time record. In his first appearance at the Crucible, in 1991 he lost 3–10 to Terry Griffiths. His best ranking tournament run to date, was in the 2003 UK Championship, where he reached the quarter-finals with victories over Marco Fu, Graeme Dott and Stephen Lee, before Stephen Hendry ended his run.
At one point he was established in the world's top 32, and provisionally 14 at one point – advancing 82–56–36–21 in the rankings over a strong sequence of seasons up to 2003–04. However, he dropped out of the top 32 two years later, and then won only one knock-out match in 2006–07, dropping to number #56. He attributed this loss of form to attempting to change his cue action.[7] However, he won an invitational event that featured many top players, the 2007 Paul Hunter Classic that August, beating Neil Robertson and Ken Doherty en route.[8] He also showed a return to form in the 2008 China Open by reaching the last 16, beating the defending champion, Graeme Dott 5–1 in the process, before going down by the same scoreline to Nigel Bond, who also beat him 7–10 in the final qualifying round of the 2008 World Championship.[9] The 2008/2009 season was less successful for him however.
In the 2011–12 season Pinches narrowly missed out on a maximum 147 break at Event 2 of the Players Tour Championship in Gloucester, making it to the final black.[10][11] He would later finish the season ranked world number 64, grabbing the final spot on offer through the world rankings to play in the 2012–13 season. He fell 23 places in the rankings during the season – the most of anyone on the snooker tour.[12]
Pinches won two matches but then lost in the final round in qualifying for the first three ranking events of the season.[13] He made it to the main draw at the next event, the 2012 International Championship, thanks to wins over Daniel Wells, Xiao Guodong and Joe Perry.[13] He had to play in a wildcard round once at the venue in Chengdu, China, and lost 5–6 to Lu Ning.[14] This was the furthest Pinches got in a ranking event this season, with it coming to an end when he was defeated 9–10 by Liam Highfield in the second round of World Championship Qualifying.[15] He finished the year ranked world number 62.[16]
Pinches qualified for the 2013 Indian Open, the fourth ranking event of the 2013–14 season with a 4–1 victory over Chris Wakelin. He almost pulled off a huge shock in the first round as he led Ding Junhui 3–2, but was beaten 4–3.[17] Pinches also reached the main draw of the World Open and China Open but lost in the first round both times.[18] Due to all 128 players on the tour earning a place in the first round of the Welsh Open, Pinches did not need to qualify and beat Nigel Bond 4–1, to set up a second round meeting with Ronnie O'Sullivan. Pinches stated before the match that he would stick to his percentage game with a defensive approach as he has always played the same no matter who the opponent is and he was defeated 4–1.[19] Pinches had a consistent season in the European Tour events with his deepest runs being last 16 defeats at the Kay Suzanne Memorial Cup and Gdynia Open which saw him finish 49th on the Order of Merit.[20] He dropped out of the top 64 in the rankings during the season as he ended it at number 76, but his European Tour results earned him a place on the tour for the 2014–15 and 2015–16 seasons as the sixth highest non-qualified player.[21]
Pinches had a very poor 2015–16 season as he only won two matches all year, both of these coming at the Haining Open. He was involved in two frames of note during the season. At the Ruhr Open, Pinches and Alan McManus set the record for the longest official snooker frame at 100 minutes and 24 seconds.[24] The record stood until April 2017. In the final frame of his 4–1 defeat of Pinches in the first round of the Welsh Open, Ronnie O'Sullivan learned that the prize for making a 147 was £10,000 and decided after potting the 14th red to pot a pink and make a 146 instead as the prize money was not enough.[25] Pinches dropped off the tour at the end of the season and he failed to regain his place on the main tour through the 2016 Q School.[26] He qualified for the 2016 Paul Hunter Classic, but lost 4–3 to Cao Yupeng in the first round.[27]
2016 Paul Hunter Classic
In the 2017 Gibraltar Open, Pinches lost in the second qualifying round; however, during the 2017–18 season, having again lost in Q-School in his attempt to re-qualify for the main tour, he qualified for that season's Paul Hunter Classic. He recovered from 1–3 behind in the first round to beat Matthew Bolton 4–3, but lost in the last 64 to fellow amateur George Pragnall by the same scoreline.[28] On 14 October 2017 Barry entered the World Seniors Championship 1st Qualifying in Newbury for the Snooker Legends Tour. He lost 1–3 in the semi-finals to fellow amateur Matt Ford. In the frame that he won in the semi-finals he made a total clearance of 133 and won a pair of Oakley sunglasses for the highest break of the event. He entered the 2018 Q School in May in the hope of winning back his place on the main snooker tour. In the second round he was drawn against his son Luke. It was the first time a father played his son in a world snooker event since Neal Foulds played his father Geoff Foulds in 1986.[29] Barry beat son Luke 4–1.[30] In the following round he defeated fellow former pro Fang Xiongman.[31]
In June 2021, Pinches came through event 2 of the 2021 Q School by winning five matches to earn a two-year card on the World Snooker Tour for the 2021–2022 and 2022–2023 seasons.
↑ Players qualified through European Tour Order of Merit started the season without prize money ranking points
1 2 Players qualified through Q School started the season without ranking points
↑ The event was called the European Open (1989/1990-1996/1997, 2001/2002-2003/2004), the Irish Open (1998/1999) and the Malta Cup (2004/2005–2007/2008)
↑ The event was called the International Open (1989/1990, 1992/1993-1996/1997) and the Players Championship (2003/2004)
↑ The event was called the German Open (1995/1996–1997/1998)
↑ The event was called the Players Tour Championship Grand Finals (2010/2011–2012/2013) and the Players Championship Grand Final (2013/2014–2015/2016)
↑ The event was called the Dubai Masters (1988/1989), the Thailand Classic (1995/1996) and the Asian Classic (1996/1997)
↑ The event was called the Asian Open (1989/1990–1992/1993) and Thailand Open (1993/1994–1996/1997)
↑ The event was called the Jiangsu Classic (2008/2009–2009/2010)
↑ The event was called the Hong Kong Open (1989/1990), the Australian Open (1994/1995–1995/1996) and the Australian Masters (1995/1996)
↑ The event was called the Grand Prix Fürth (2004/2005) and the Fürth German Open (2005/2006–2006/2007)
↑ The event was called the China International (1997/1998–1998/1999)
↑ The event was called the Riga Open (2014/2015–2015/2016)
↑ The event was called the Grand Prix (1989/1990–2000/2001, 2004/2005–2009/2010), the LG Cup (2001/2002–2003/2004) and the Haikou World Open (2011/2012–2013/2014)
Alan McManus is a Scottish retired professional snooker player and current commentator and pundit for ITV and Eurosport on snooker coverage. A mainstay of the world's top sixteen during the 1990s and 2000s, he has won two ranking events, the 1994 Dubai Classic and the 1996 Thailand Open, and competed in the World Championship semi-finals in 1992, 1993 and 2016. He also won the 1994 Masters, ending Stephen Hendry's five-year, 23-match unbeaten streak at the tournament with a 9–8 victory in the final. McManus announced his retirement on 9 April 2021 after losing 6–3 to Bai Langning in the second qualifying round of the 2021 World Snooker Championship.
Fergal O'Brien is an Irish retired professional snooker player who competed on the World Snooker Tour from 1991 to 2024. He won one ranking title during his career, defeating Anthony Hamilton 9–7 in the final of the 1999 British Open. He was runner-up at the 2001 Masters, where he lost the final 9–10 to Paul Hunter. His best performance at the World Snooker Championship was reaching the quarter-finals of the 2000 event, where he lost 5–13 to eventual champion Mark Williams. He reached his highest world ranking of ninth in the 2000–01 season, but spent only three seasons of his 33-year career ranked inside the top 16. He retired from professional competition at the end of the 2023–24 season, intending to remain active in the sport as a coach and a commentator for Eurosport.
Robin Hull is a Finnish former professional snooker player.
Michael Holt is an English professional snooker player from Nottingham. A former world Top 20 player, he won one ranking event – the 2020 Snooker Shoot Out – and two minor-ranking tournaments. He was runner-up at two ranking events – the 2016 Riga Masters and the 2019 Snooker Shoot Out. Holt also reached the semi-finals of the 2013 Shanghai Masters as well as five other quarter-finals.
Gerard Eamonn Greene is a Northern Irish former professional snooker player. He represents Northern Ireland in international events, as his parents are from Belfast.
Robert Milkins is an English professional snooker player known for quick play. Milkins has been a member of snooker's main tour since regaining a tour card in 1998.
Jamie Cope is an English former professional snooker player.
Rory McLeod is a British-Jamaican professional snooker player. He has reached the last 16 in ten ranking tournaments, and his most notable achievement came in 2015, when he won the minor ranking Ruhr Open, beating Tian Pengfei in the final. His highest ranking is 32, which he last reached in 2012.
Craig Steadman is an English former professional snooker player.
Tom Ford is an English professional snooker player from Leicester. Ford has reached three ranking finals - the 2016 Paul Hunter Classic the 2023 German Masters and the 2023 International Championship - plus seven further ranking semi-finals.
Michael White is a Welsh professional snooker player from Neath, Glamorgan. Nicknamed ‘Lightning’ due to his fast playing style, White is a former top 16 player and two-time ranking event winner.
Tian Pengfei is a Chinese professional snooker player. He began his career by playing the Challenge Tour in 2004, at the time the second-level professional tour. Tian played on the Main Tour in 2006 and competed on the World Snooker Tour for two seasons until he dropped off in 2008. He won the Beijing International Challenge, and returned to the Main Tour the following year.
Daniel Wells is a Welsh professional snooker player from Neath. He has twice come through Qualifying School to play on the professional snooker tour, and turned professional again at the beginning of the 2023–24 season after placing top of the 2022–23 One Year Ranking List for players outside the top 64, despite competing as an amateur for the entire season.
Simon Bedford is an English former professional snooker player.
David Grace is an English professional snooker player and painter. After being a successful junior and amateur player, notably winning the English Amateur Championship in 2005 and 2008, he became a professional in 2008, gaining his place by winning the 2008 European Snooker Championships, where he beat Craig Steadman in the final.
Liam Highfield is an English professional snooker player. He turned professional in 2010 after finishing second in the 2009/2010 PIOS rankings. He plays left-handed.
Adam Duffy is an English professional snooker player.
Martin O'Donnell is an English professional snooker player. He gained a two-year place on the main snooker tour by coming through the 2012 Q School. He finished with the most points during the Q Tour of the 2022–23 season and gained a two-year tour card as a result. He is known as "The Minister of Defence" because his initials spell out "MoD" as reference to the UK government body responsible for the Armed Forces.
Sean O'Sullivan is an English professional snooker player.
Alexander Ursenbacher is a Swiss professional snooker player from Rheinfelden. He is the first snooker player from Switzerland to have competed professionally.
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