| Born | Australia |
|---|---|
| Sport country |  Australia |
| Tournament wins | |
| Women's World Champion | 1980 |
Lesley McIlrath is an Australian former snooker player. She won the Women's World Open Championship in 1980. [1]
| Born | Australia |
|---|---|
| Sport country | Australia |
| Tournament wins | |
| Women's World Champion | 1980 |
Lesley McIlrath is an Australian former snooker player. She won the Women's World Open Championship in 1980. [1]
McIlrath was, with Fran Lovis, one of two of the dominant players in Australian snooker in the 1970s and 1980s. [2]
The 1980 Women's World Open, recognised as the world championship for women was sponsored by Guinness, and held at Hayling Island. [3] There were 45 entrants, and a record winner's prize for women's snooker, £700. In the last 16, McIlrath defeated Sue LeMaich 3–1; in the quarter-final she won 3–1 against Maryann McConnell 3–1; and she reached the final by defeating Ann Johnson 3–1 in the semi-final. [4] Her opponent in the final, Agnes Davies, was aged 60 at the time, and went on to have a playing career spanning a total of 64 years. McIrath won the match 4–2 to capture the title. [3] [4]
The victory, in only the second Women's World Open Championship (following the first held in 1976), made McIlrath the first non-UK player to win. Coincidentally, Cliff Thorburn became the first non-UK winner of the men's World Snooker Championship the same year. McIllrath remains one of only two non-UK World Women's Snooker Championship winners. Ng On-yee, who won her first title in 2015, is the other. [5]
At the 1981 world championships, McIrath lost in the quarter-finals to Sue Foster, and in 1983 she lost 5–6 in the semi-final, again to Foster.
Source: Hamlyn Encyclopedia of Snooker [2]
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The Women's Professional Snooker Championship was a snooker tournament organised by the Women's Billiards Association. Held ten times, the event was first played from 1934 to 1941, and again from 1947 to 1950. Across all ten editions, only four players reached the final. Ruth Harrison won eight of the events, with Agnes Morris and Thelma Carpenter winning the others.
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Sue LeMaich is a Canadian snooker player. She was runner-up in the 1986 World Women's Snooker Championship.
The 1980 Women's World Open was a women's snooker tournament that took place in May 1980 at Warners Sinah Warren Holiday Camp, Hayling Island, organised by the Women's Billiards Association and sponsored by Guinness. It is recognised as the 1980 edition of the World Women's Snooker Championship first held in 1976. Lesley McIlrath defeated Agnes Davies 4–2 in the final to win the title, receiving £700 prize money as champion. Davies received £350 as runner-up.
The 1981 Women's World Open was a women's snooker tournament that took place in May 1981 at Thorness Bay, organised by the Women's Billiards Association and sponsored by Guinness. It is recognised as the 1981 edition of the World Women's Snooker Championship first held in 1976. Vera Selby defeated Mandy Fisher 3–0 in the final to win the title, receiving £2,000 prize money as champion.
Jonathan Barron is a retired English snooker player. He won the 1970 World Amateur Snooker Championship and was the first player to win the English Amateur Championship in three consecutive years.
