A maximum break (also known as a maximum, a 147, or orally, a one-four-seven) is the highest possible break in snooker in normal circumstances [a] and is a special type of total clearance . A player compiles a maximum break by potting all 15 reds with 15 blacks for 120 points, followed by all six colours for a further 27 points. Compiling a maximum break is regarded as a highly significant achievement in the game of snooker, and may be compared to a nine-dart finish in darts or a 300 game in ten-pin bowling.
Joe Davis made the first officially recognised maximum break in a 1955 exhibition match in London. At the Classic in January 1982, Steve Davis achieved the first recognised maximum in professional competition, which was also the first in a televised match. The following year, Cliff Thorburn became the first player to make a maximum at the World Snooker Championship. As of October 2024, over 200 officially recognised maximum breaks have been made in professional tournament play. [1] Ronnie O'Sullivan holds the record for the most maximum breaks in professional competition, with 15, and also holds the Guinness World Record for the fastest competitive maximum break, which he made at the 1997 World Championship in a time of 5 minutes and 8 seconds. [2] [3]
Maximum breaks have become more frequent in professional snooker. Only eight recognised maximums were achieved in professional competition in the 1980s, but 26 occurred in the 1990s, 35 in the 2000s, and 86 in the 2010s. As of the 2024 International Championship, 52 officially recognised professional maximums have been made thus far in the 2020s. In the 1990s, some players received £147,000 for making a maximum break, but as the frequency of maximums increased, the reward was changed to a rolling prize pot that began at £5,000, leading to discontent among players. For the 2019–20 season, World Snooker Tour chairman Barry Hearn replaced the rolling prize with a conditional £1 million bonus, to be awarded if 20 or more maximum breaks were attained in the season. The 20 maximums were not achieved. Thereafter, players who made a maximum would win or share a tournament's highest break prize, although some events still offer a separate bonus for a 147. The 2022 World Snooker Championship offered a bonus of £40,000 for a maximum break made at the Crucible and £10,000 for a maximum made in the qualifying rounds, in addition to the £15,000 highest break prize. [4] In 2023, the World Snooker Tour introduced a £147,000 bonus for any player making two maximum breaks during the season's Triple Crown Series. The bonus could be awarded up to three times, for a total of £441,000, meaning that the same player could potentially win £441,000 by making six maximums in the events. [5]
Joe Davis compiled the first officially recognised maximum break on 22 January 1955, in a match against Willie Smith at Leicester Square Hall, London. [6] The Billiards Association and Control Council initially refused to accept the break since the match was not played under their rules. At the time, the professional game used a rule (now standard, see rules of snooker) whereby after a foul a player could compel the offender to play the next stroke. It was not until a meeting on 20 March 1957 that the break was officially recognised, and Davis was presented with a certificate to commemorate his achievement. [7] The match between Davis and Smith was played as part of a series of events marking the closure of Leicester Square Hall; known as Thurston's Hall until 1947, [8] the venue had hosted many important billiards and snooker matches since its opening in 1901, including twelve World Snooker Championship finals. [9] John Spencer compiled a maximum break in the 1979 Holsten Lager International, but it did not count as an official maximum, however, as the break was made on a non-templated table used during the event. [10] The first official maximum break in professional competition was compiled by Steve Davis in the 1982 Classic at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in Oldham, against John Spencer. [11] This was also the first televised maximum break. [12] [13] For his achievement, Davis won a Lada car provided by the event's sponsors. [14] The following year, Cliff Thorburn became the first player to make a maximum at the World Championship in the fourth frame of his second round match against Terry Griffiths. [14]
Before the 1994–95 season, the maximum break remained a rare feat, with only 15 official maximums compiled altogether. However, beginning in the 1994–95 season, at least one maximum break has been achieved every season thereafter; the 13 maximums scored in the 2016–17 season, 2022–23 season and the 2023–24 season is the highest number to date. Mark Selby made the 100th officially recognised maximum break in professional competition on 7 December 2013 in the seventh frame of his semi-final match against Ricky Walden at the UK Championship. [15] [16] As of 5 November 2024 [update] , [17] 207 official maximum breaks have been recorded in professional competition, [1] [18] with the 200th being made by Joe O'Connor at the 2024 Championship League. [19] Englishman Ronnie O'Sullivan has compiled 15 official competitive maximum breaks, the most achieved by any professional player. [20] Following him are John Higgins with 13, Stephen Hendry with 11, Stuart Bingham with nine, Judd Trump and Shaun Murphy with eight, and Ding Junhui with seven. O'Sullivan also holds the record for the fastest competitive maximum break at just over five minutes, which he set at the 1997 World Championship. [3]
On 30 April 2023, Selby made a maximum break in the 16th frame during the 2023 World Championship final against Luca Brecel, the first achieved in a World Championship final. [21] On 7 December 2023, Murphy made a maximum break in his first-round match against Bulcsú Révész in the 2023 Shoot Out, the first ever compiled at the Shoot Out, which is played under a variation of snooker rules, with a shot clock and fouls awarding ball in hand . [22] [23] On October 5 2024, in his winning run in event 3, Zhao Xintong made the first ever maximum break on the Q Tour, the secondary snooker tour that serves as a qualification route to the main professional tour, in his 4–1 win over Shaun Liu. [24] [25] [26]
At least seven players have missed the final black on a score of 140: Robin Hull, Ken Doherty, Barry Pinches, Mark Selby, [27] Michael White, [28] Thepchaiya Un-Nooh (twice in the 2015–16 season and once in the 2024–25 season), [32] and Liang Wenbo in a qualifying match at the 2018 World Championship, after he had already made a maximum earlier in the same match. [33] Breaks above 147 are possible when an opponent fouls and leaves a free ball with all 15 reds still remaining on the table. A break greater than 147 has happened only once in professional competition, when Jamie Burnett made a break of 148 at the qualifying stage of the 2004 UK Championship. [34] [35] Jamie Cope compiled a break of 155 points, the highest possible free-ball break, during practice in 2005. [36] Alex Higgins is said to have attained the same feat by some players. [37]
The first known maximum break in practice was made by Murt O'Donoghue at Griffith, Australian Capital Territory, Australia, on 26 September 1934. [10] [38] [39] Joe Davis compiled the first official 147 against Willie Smith in an exhibition match on 22 January 1955 at Leicester Square Hall, London. [12] [40] Rex Williams made the first maximum break in a competitive match against Manuel Francisco, Professionals v. Amateurs, on 23 December 1965 in Cape Town. [39] [41]
John Spencer made the first maximum compiled in professional competition on 13 January 1979 at the Holsten Lager Tournament against Cliff Thorburn, but it was not officially ratified due to oversized pockets. [10] The break was not caught on video as the television-crew were away on a tea-break. [39] [42] The first official maximum break in professional competition was made by Steve Davis in the 1982 Lada Classic against Spencer. [10] This was also the first televised 147. [12] Thorburn became the first player to make a maximum break at the World Snooker Championship, a feat that has since been repeated by Jimmy White, Stephen Hendry (three times), Ronnie O'Sullivan (three times), Mark Williams, Ali Carter, John Higgins, Neil Robertson, Kyren Wilson, and Mark Selby. [43] [44]
In March 1989, Thorburn also became the first player to make two competitive maximum breaks. In November 1995 Hendry became the first player to make two televised maximum breaks. [45] [46] Mink Nutcharut made a 147 in a March 2019 practice match, believed to be the only maximum break achieved by a woman in any match. [47]
More than one official maximum break has been compiled in the same event on more than twenty occasions. The first tournament with more than one maximum break was the 1992 Matchroom League, in which John Parrott and Stephen Hendry each made a 147 break. [48] [49] The first time that two maximum breaks were made in the same ranking tournament was at the 1999 British Open, where Jason Prince made one during qualifying and Graeme Dott at the main event. [50] This was repeated at the 2000 Scottish Open, with Stephen Maguire in qualifying and Ronnie O'Sullivan at the main event. [51] The 2008 World Snooker Championship was the first event where two maximum breaks (by O'Sullivan and Carter) were televised. [52] Two maximum breaks (by Neil Robertson and Noppon Saengkham) were also televised at the 2019 Welsh Open. [53] Three official maximums at the same WPBSA (World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association) event have been achieved three times. The first was at the 2012 UK Championship, when Andy Hicks and Jack Lisowski both compiled one each in qualifying and John Higgins compiled one in the televised stages. [54] The second time was at the 2017 German Masters, where Ali Carter and Ross Muir both compiled one each during qualifying and Tom Ford during the televised stages. [55] The third time was at the 2024 Championship League by Kyren Wilson in Group 3, [56] by John Higgins in Group 5, [57] and by Joe O'Connor in Group 7. [19]
Mark Davis became the only player to make two official maximum breaks in professional competition at the same event when he compiled two 147s at the 2017 Championship League. [58] The 2012 FFB Snooker Open, 2017 German Masters and 2018 Paul Hunter Classic are the only WPBSA events where two maximums were made on the same day. [59] [60] Three maximum breaks were compiled on 8 February 1998 during the Buckley's Bitter Challenge, an unofficial event, by Matthew Stevens, Ryan Day and Tony Chappel. [61] There have been at least five non-tournament matches where more than one maximum was compiled. Peter Ebdon compiled two maximum breaks during an 11-frame exhibition match at Eastbourne Police Club on 15 April 1996. In 2003 he also compiled two consecutive maximum breaks against Steve Davis in an exhibition match. [10] [39] In 2009 Jimmy White and Ronnie O'Sullivan compiled consecutive maximum breaks at an exhibition match in Ireland. [62]
The only player known to compile more than two maximum breaks on a single occasion is Adrian Gunnell, who compiled three maximums in four frames at a club in Telford in 2003 while practising against Ian Duffy. [63] [64] John Higgins and Ronnie O'Sullivan are the only players to record maximum breaks in consecutive ranking events. Higgins made one during his defeat by Mark Williams in the LG Cup final, and then one in his second round match at the 2003 British Open. [65] [66] O'Sullivan made one at the Northern Ireland Trophy and another at the UK Championship in 2007. [67] [68]
Hendry, Mark Williams, O'Sullivan (on six occasions), Barry Hawkins, Matthew Stevens, Ding Junhui, Andy Hicks, Shaun Murphy, Ryan Day, John Higgins, Mark Davis (on two occasions), Martin Gould, Luca Brecel, Tom Ford (on two occasions), and Marco Fu have all made maximums to win matches. Only seven of these have come in final-frame deciders, however: Hendry's at the 1997 Charity Challenge, O'Sullivan's at the 2007 UK Championship, both of Davis' at the 2017 Championship League, Gould's at the 2018 Championship League, Ford's at the 2019 English Open and Fu's at the 2022 Hong Kong Masters.
Hendry, John Higgins, Stuart Bingham, Ronnie O'Sullivan, Shaun Murphy, Neil Robertson, Judd Trump, Mark Selby, and Zhang Anda have made maximums in finals of tournaments. Hendry has made three: the first at the 1997 Charity Challenge, [69] the second at the 1999 British Open [70] and the third at the 2001 Malta Grand Prix. [71] Higgins has made two, at the 2003 LG Cup, [65] and the second at the 2012 Shanghai Masters. [72] Bingham at the 2012 Wuxi Classic, [73] O'Sullivan in the final frame of the 2014 Welsh Open, [74] Murphy at the 2014 Ruhr Open, [75] Robertson at the 2015 UK Championship, [76] Trump at the 2022 Turkish Masters [77] and the 2022 Champion of Champions [78] and Zhang at the 2023 International Championship. [79] Selby made a maximum in the 2023 World Snooker Championship final, becoming the first player to do so at that stage of the tournament. [80] Selby's and Robertson's maximums are the only ones compiled in the finals of Triple Crown events.
O'Sullivan's 147 break in the first-round match against Mick Price at the 1997 World Championship set the record for the fastest maximum in the history of the game. For many years Guinness World Records recorded the time of the break at 5 minutes and 20 seconds. [81] However an investigation undertaken by Deadspin in 2017 revealed that the time recorded by Guinness was incorrect because the timer was started too early on the BBC footage. [3] [82] Breaks are not officially timed in snooker and the official rules of snooker do not specify how they should be timed, instead leaving the timing to the discretion of the broadcaster. The only timing methodology World Snooker sanctions in its events is the one employed in shot clock events where timing for a player's shot begins when the balls have come to rest from his opponent's previous shot. Under this convention the break would have been timed at 5 minutes and 15 seconds. World Snooker has since suggested that a break starts when the player strikes the cueball for the first time in a break which would result in a time of 5 minutes and 8 seconds, and this is the time that both World Snooker and Guinness World Records now officially acknowledge. [83] [2]
The youngest player to have made an officially recognised maximum break in professional competition is Thanawat Thirapongpaiboon, who compiled a 147 at the 2010 Rhein–Main Masters aged 16 years and 312 days. [84] Sean Maddocks is recognised by Guinness World Records as the youngest player to make a maximum break in any recognised competition. Maddocks was 15 years and 90 days old when he achieved the feat at the LiteTask Pro-Am series in Leeds on 9 July 2017. [85] [86] Judd Trump is known to have made a 147 at the Potters Under-16 Tournament in 2004 at the age of 14 years and 206 days; however, this break is not recognised by Guinness World Records. [84] The youngest player to have made a televised maximum is Ding Junhui, who was aged 19 years and 288 days when he achieved a 147 at the 2007 Masters. [87] [88]
The oldest player to have made a maximum in professional competition is John Higgins, who did so in the 2024 Championship League, aged 48 years and 268 days. [57] Former professional Darren Morgan made a maximum break in an amateur Seniors event in 2023 at the age of 56 years and 261 days; this possibly makes him the oldest player to achieve a maximum break in competition. [89]
In professional tournaments there was usually a substantial prize awarded to any player achieving a 147 break. For example, Ronnie O'Sullivan's maximum at the 1997 World Championship earned him £165,000. Of this, £147,000 was for making the 147 break and £18,000 was for achieving the highest break of the tournament. [90]
In the 2011–12 season World Snooker introduced a roll-over system for the maximum break prize money, the "rolling 147 prize". [91] A maximum break is worth £5,000 in the televised stages and £500 in qualifying stages of major ranking events. There is a £500 prize in the Players Tour Championship events from the last 128 onwards. [92] If a maximum is not made then the prize rolls over to the next event until somebody wins it. [91] [ needs update ]
At the 2016 Welsh Open, Ronnie O'Sullivan defeated Barry Pinches 4–1 in the first round. In the fifth frame of the match, O'Sullivan declined the opportunity to make a maximum break, potting the pink off the penultimate red and completing a break of 146. He stated afterwards that the prize money of £10,000 was not worthy of a 147. World Snooker chairman Barry Hearn called the decision "unacceptable" and "disrespectful". [93] Individual prizes for a maximum break were phased out at the beginning of the 2019–20 season, with a £1 million bonus on offer for the season if 20 or more were made during the season. [94] The prize would be split among all players who had made at least one qualifying break, with each player receiving an equal share for every break made. [94]
For the 2023–24 season the WST has offered a £147,000 bonus to any player making two maximum breaks during the season's Triple Crown events. [95]
A break higher than 147 can be achieved when an opponent fouls before any reds are potted, and leaves the incoming player snookered on all 15 reds. The player can nominate one of the other colours as a red, known as a free ball , which carries the same value as a red for just that shot. If the free ball is potted, the referee places this coloured ball back on its original location, de facto creating a setup as if there were 16 reds in total, thus creating a potential maximum break of 155 if a player starts from a free ball position. [15]
In October 2004, during qualifying for the UK Championship, Jamie Burnett became the only player to record a break of more than 147 in tournament play, when he scored 148 against Leo Fernandez. He took the brown as the free ball, then potted the brown again followed by the 15 reds with 12 blacks, two pinks and a blue, then the six colours. [10] [34] [35]
Some breaks exceeding 147 have been reported in non-tournament settings:
No. | Date | Season | Player | Age | Opponent | Event |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
[13] | 111 January 1982 | 81–82 | Steve Davis | 24 years, 142 days | John Spencer | Classic |
[102] | 223 April 1983 | 82–83 | Cliff Thorburn | 35 years, 97 days | Terry Griffiths | World Championship |
[45] | 328 January 1984 | 83–84 | Kirk Stevens | 25 years, 164 days | Jimmy White | Masters (L) |
[103] | 417 November 1987 | 87–88 | Willie Thorne | 33 years, 258 days | Tommy Murphy | UK Championship |
[104] | 520 February 1988 | 87–88 (2) | Tony Meo | 28 years, 139 days | Stephen Hendry | Matchroom League (L) |
[105] | 624 September 1988 | 88–89 | Alain Robidoux | 28 years, 61 days | Jim Meadowcroft | European Open (Q) |
[106] | 718 February 1989 | 88–89 (2) | John Rea | 37 years, 75 days | Ian Black | Scottish Pro. Championship |
[104] | 88 March 1989 | 88–89 (3) | Cliff Thorburn (2nd) | 41 years, 51 days | Jimmy White | Matchroom League |
[107] | 916 January 1991 | 90–91 | James Wattana | 20 years, 364 days | Paul Dawkins | World Masters |
[108] | 105 June 1991 | 91–92 | Peter Ebdon | 20 years, 282 days | Wayne Martin | Strachan Open (Q) |
[109] | 1125 February 1992 | 91–92 (2) | James Wattana (2nd) | 22 years, 39 days | Tony Drago | British Open |
[110] | 1222 April 1992 | 91–92 (3) | Jimmy White | 29 years, 356 days | Tony Drago | World Championship |
[48] | 139 May 1992 | 91–92 (4) | John Parrott | 27 years, 364 days | Tony Meo | Matchroom League |
[48] | 1424 May 1992 | 91–92 (5) | Stephen Hendry | 23 years, 132 days | Willie Thorne | Matchroom League |
[45] | 1514 November 1992 | 92–93 | Peter Ebdon (2nd) | 22 years, 79 days | Ken Doherty | UK Championship (L) |
[109] | 167 September 1994 | 94–95 | David McDonnell | 22 years, 331 days | Nic Barrow | British Open (Q) |
[111] | 1727 April 1995 | 94–95 (2) | Stephen Hendry (2nd) | 26 years, 104 days | Jimmy White | World Championship |
[112] | 1825 November 1995 | 95–96 | Stephen Hendry (3rd) | 26 years, 316 days | Gary Wilkinson | UK Championship |
[69] | 195 January 1997 | 96–97 | Stephen Hendry (4th) | 27 years, 358 days | Ronnie O'Sullivan | Charity Challenge (F) |
[83] | 2021 April 1997 | 96–97 (2) | Ronnie O'Sullivan | 21 years, 137 days | Mick Price | World Championship |
[45] | 2118 September 1997 | 97–98 | James Wattana (3rd) | 27 years, 244 days | Pang Weiguo | China International |
[113] | 2223 May 1998 | 97–98 (2) | Stephen Hendry (5th) | 29 years, 130 days | Ken Doherty | Premier League (L) |
[114] | 2310 August 1998 | 98–99 | Adrian Gunnell | 25 years, 351 days | Mario Wehrmann | Thailand Masters (Q) |
[45] | 2413 August 1998 | 98–99 (2) | Mehmet Husnu | 26 years, 19 days | Eddie Barker | China International (Q) |
[50] | 2513 January 1999 | 98–99 (3) | Jason Prince | 28 years, 210 days | Ian Brumby | British Open (Q)(L) |
[115] | 2629 January 1999 | 98–99 (4) | Ronnie O'Sullivan (2nd) | 23 years, 55 days | James Wattana | Welsh Open |
[45] | 274 February 1999 | 98–99 (5) | Stuart Bingham | 22 years, 259 days | Barry Hawkins | UK Tour – Event 3 |
[45] | 2822 March 1999 | 98–99 (6) | Nick Dyson | 29 years, 93 days | Adrian Gunnell | UK Tour – Event 4 |
[50] | 296 April 1999 | 98–99 (7) | Graeme Dott | 21 years, 329 days | David Roe | British Open |
[70] | 3019 September 1999 | 99–00 | Stephen Hendry (6th) | 30 years, 249 days | Peter Ebdon | British Open (F) |
[116] | 3121 September 1999 | 99–00 (2) | Barry Pinches | 29 years, 70 days | Joe Johnson | Welsh Open (Q)(L) |
[117] | 3218 October 1999 | 99–00 (3) | Ronnie O'Sullivan (3rd) | 23 years, 317 days | Graeme Dott | Grand Prix |
[45] | 334 November 1999 | 99–00 (4) | Karl Burrows | 31 years, 322 days | Adrian Rosa | Masters (Q)(L) |
[118] | 3422 November 1999 | 99–00 (5) | Stephen Hendry (7th) | 30 years, 313 days | Paul Wykes | UK Championship |
[45] | 3521 January 2000 | 99–00 (6) | John Higgins | 24 years, 248 days | Dennis Taylor | Nations Cup |
[45] | 3624 March 2000 | 99–00 (7) | John Higgins (2nd) | 24 years, 311 days | Jimmy White | Irish Masters |
[51] | 3728 March 2000 | 99–00 (8) | Stephen Maguire | 19 years, 15 days | Phaitoon Phonbun | Scottish Open (Q)(L) |
[51] | 385 April 2000 | 99–00 (9) | Ronnie O'Sullivan (4th) | 24 years, 122 days | Quinten Hann | Scottish Open |
[119] | 3925 October 2000 | 00–01 | Marco Fu | 22 years, 291 days | Ken Doherty | Scottish Masters (L) |
[120] | 407 November 2000 | 00–01 (2) | David McLellan | 30 years, 302 days | Steve Meakin | Masters (Q) |
[121] | 4119 November 2000 | 00–01 (3) | Nick Dyson (2nd) | 30 years, 336 days | Robert Milkins | UK Championship (Q) |
[71] | 4225 February 2001 | 00–01 (4) | Stephen Hendry (8th) | 32 years, 43 days | Mark Williams | Malta Grand Prix (F) |
[122] | 4317 October 2001 | 01–02 | Ronnie O'Sullivan (5th) | 25 years, 316 days | Drew Henry | LG Cup |
[123] | 4412 November 2001 | 01–02 (2) | Shaun Murphy | 19 years, 94 days | Adrian Rosa | Masters (Q) |
[45] | 4528 October 2002 | 02–03 | Tony Drago | 37 years, 36 days | Stuart Bingham | Masters (Q)(L) |
[124] | 4622 April 2003 | 02–03 (2) | Ronnie O'Sullivan (6th) | 27 years, 138 days | Marco Fu | World Championship (L) |
[65] | 4712 October 2003 | 03–04 | John Higgins (3rd) | 28 years, 147 days | Mark Williams | LG Cup (F)(L) |
[66] | 4812 November 2003 | 03–04 (2) | John Higgins (4th) | 28 years, 178 days | Michael Judge | British Open |
[125] | 494 October 2004 | 04–05 | John Higgins (5th) | 29 years, 139 days | Ricky Walden | Grand Prix (L) |
[126] | 5017 November 2004 | 04–05 (2) | David Gray | 25 years, 282 days | Mark Selby | UK Championship |
[127] | 5120 April 2005 | 04–05 (3) | Mark Williams | 30 years, 30 days | Robert Milkins | World Championship |
[128] | 5222 November 2005 | 05–06 | Stuart Bingham (2nd) | 29 years, 185 days | Marcus Campbell | Masters (Q) |
[129] | 5314 March 2006 | 05–06 (2) | Robert Milkins | 30 years, 8 days | Mark Selby | World Championship (Q)(L) |
[130] | 5423 October 2006 | 06–07 | Jamie Cope | 21 years, 41 days | Michael Holt | Grand Prix |
[87] | 5514 January 2007 | 06–07 (2) | Ding Junhui | 19 years, 288 days | Anthony Hamilton | Masters |
[131] | 5616 February 2007 | 06–07 (3) | Andrew Higginson | 29 years, 65 days | Ali Carter | Welsh Open |
[45] | 5719 September 2007 | 07–08 | Jamie Burnett | 32 years, 3 days | Liu Song | Grand Prix (Q) |
[132] | 5814 October 2007 | 07–08 (2) | Tom Ford | 24 years, 58 days | Steve Davis | Grand Prix |
[67] | 598 November 2007 | 07–08 (3) | Ronnie O'Sullivan (7th) | 31 years, 338 days | Ali Carter | Northern Ireland Trophy |
[68] | 6015 December 2007 | 07–08 (4) | Ronnie O'Sullivan (8th) | 32 years, 10 days | Mark Selby | UK Championship |
[133] | 6129 March 2008 | 07–08 (5) | Stephen Maguire (2nd) | 27 years, 16 days | Ryan Day | China Open |
[134] | 6228 April 2008 | 07–08 (6) | Ronnie O'Sullivan (9th) | 32 years, 145 days | Mark Williams | World Championship |
[135] | 6329 April 2008 | 07–08 (7) | Ali Carter | 28 years, 279 days | Peter Ebdon | World Championship |
[45] | 642 October 2008 | 08–09 | Jamie Cope (2nd) | 23 years, 20 days | Mark Williams | Shanghai Masters (L) |
[45] | 6529 October 2008 | 08–09 (2) | Liang Wenbo | 21 years, 238 days | Martin Gould | Bahrain Championship (Q) |
[45] | 668 November 2008 | 08–09 (3) | Marcus Campbell | 36 years, 47 days | Ahmed Basheer Al-Khusaibi | Bahrain Championship |
[136] | 6716 December 2008 | 08–09 (4) | Ding Junhui (2nd) | 21 years, 259 days | John Higgins | UK Championship (L) |
[11] | 6828 April 2009 | 08–09 (5) | Stephen Hendry (9th) | 40 years, 105 days | Shaun Murphy | World Championship (L) |
[45] | 695 June 2009 | 09–10 | Mark Selby | 25 years, 351 days | Joe Perry | Jiangsu Classic (L) |
[137] | 701 April 2010 | 09–10 (2) | Neil Robertson | 28 years, 49 days | Peter Ebdon | China Open (L) |
[138] | 7125 June 2010 | 10–11 | Kurt Maflin | 26 years, 321 days | Michal Zielinski | PTC – Event 1 |
[139] | 726 August 2010 | 10–11 (2) | Barry Hawkins | 31 years, 105 days | James McGouran | PTC – Event 3 |
[140] | 7320 September 2010 | 10–11 (3) | Ronnie O'Sullivan (10th) | 34 years, 289 days | Mark King | World Open (Q) |
[141] | 7422 October 2010 | 10–11 (4) | Thanawat Thirapongpaiboon | 16 years, 312 days | Barry Hawkins | Rhein–Main Masters (L) |
[141] | 7523 October 2010 | 10–11 (5) | Mark Williams (2nd) | 35 years, 216 days | Diana Schuler | Rhein–Main Masters |
[142] | 7619 November 2010 | 10–11 (6) | Rory McLeod | 39 years, 238 days | Issara Kachaiwong | Prague Classic (L) |
[143] | 7717 February 2011 | 10–11 (7) | Stephen Hendry (10th) | 42 years, 35 days | Stephen Maguire | Welsh Open (L) |
[144] | 7826 August 2011 | 11–12 | Ronnie O'Sullivan (11th) | 35 years, 264 days | Adam Duffy | Paul Hunter Classic |
[145] | 7922 November 2011 | 11–12 (2) | Mike Dunn | 40 years, 2 days | Kurt Maflin | German Masters (Q) |
[146] | 8027 November 2011 | 11–12 (3) | David Gray (2nd) | 32 years, 291 days | Robbie Williams | PTC – Event 10 (Q) |
[147] | 8129 November 2011 | 11–12 (4) | Ricky Walden | 29 years, 18 days | Gareth Allen | PTC – Event 10 |
[59] | 8215 December 2011 | 11–12 (5) | Matthew Stevens | 32 years, 95 days | Michael Wasley | FFB Snooker Open |
[59] | 8315 December 2011 | 11–12 (6) | Ding Junhui (3rd) | 24 years, 258 days | Brandon Winstone | FFB Snooker Open |
[148] | 8417 December 2011 | 11–12 (7) | Ding Junhui (4th) | 24 years, 260 days | James Cahill | PTC – Event 11 |
[149] | 8518 December 2011 | 11–12 (8) | Jamie Cope (3rd) | 26 years, 97 days | Kurt Maflin | PTC – Event 11 |
[150] | 8614 January 2012 | 11–12 (9) | Marco Fu (2nd) | 34 years, 6 days | Matthew Selt | World Open (Q) |
[151] | 8711 April 2012 | 11–12 (10) | Robert Milkins (2nd) | 36 years, 36 days | Xiao Guodong | World Championship (Q) |
[43] | 8821 April 2012 | 11–12 (11) | Stephen Hendry (11th) | 43 years, 99 days | Stuart Bingham | World Championship |
[73] | 891 July 2012 | 12–13 | Stuart Bingham (3rd) | 36 years, 41 days | Ricky Walden | Wuxi Classic (F)(L) |
[152] | 9024 August 2012 | 12–13 (2) | Ken Doherty | 42 years, 342 days | Julian Treiber | Paul Hunter Classic |
[72] | 9123 September 2012 | 12–13 (3) | John Higgins (6th) | 37 years, 128 days | Judd Trump | Shanghai Masters (F) |
[153] | 9216 November 2012 | 12–13 (4) | Tom Ford (2nd) | 29 years, 91 days | Matthew Stevens | Bulgarian Open |
[154] | 9321 November 2012 | 12–13 (5) | Andy Hicks | 39 years, 103 days | Daniel Wells | UK Championship (Q) |
[155] | 9422 November 2012 | 12–13 (6) | Jack Lisowski | 21 years, 150 days | Chen Zhe | UK Championship (Q) |
[156] | 955 December 2012 | 12–13 (7) | John Higgins (7th) | 37 years, 201 days | Mark Davis | UK Championship (L) |
[157] | 9614 December 2012 | 12–13 (8) | Kurt Maflin (2nd) | 29 years, 128 days | Stuart Carrington | Scottish Open |
[158] | 9716 March 2013 | 12–13 (9) | Ding Junhui (5th) | 25 years, 349 days | Mark Allen | PTC – Grand Final |
[159] | 9828 May 2013 | 12–13 (10) | Neil Robertson (2nd) | 31 years, 106 days | Mohamed Khairy | Wuxi Classic (Q) |
[160] | 9915 November 2013 | 13–14 | Judd Trump | 24 years, 87 days | Mark Selby | Antwerp Open (L) |
100 [15] | 7 December 2013 | 13–14 (2) | Mark Selby (2nd) | 30 years, 171 days | Ricky Walden | UK Championship |
101 [161] | 11 December 2013 | 13–14 (3) | Dechawat Poomjaeng | 35 years, 153 days | Zak Surety | German Masters (Q) |
102 [162] | 12 December 2013 | 13–14 (4) | Gary Wilson | 28 years, 123 days | Ricky Walden | German Masters (Q) |
103 [163] | 8 January 2014 | 13–14 (5) | Shaun Murphy (2nd) | 31 years, 151 days | Mark Davis | Championship League |
104 [164] | 9 February 2014 | 13–14 (6) | Shaun Murphy (3rd) | 31 years, 183 days | Jamie Jones | Gdynia Open |
105 [74] | 2 March 2014 | 13–14 (7) | Ronnie O'Sullivan (12th) | 38 years, 87 days | Ding Junhui | Welsh Open (F) |
106 [165] | 22 August 2014 | 14–15 | Aditya Mehta | 28 years, 295 days | Stephen Maguire | Paul Hunter Classic (L) |
107 [166] | 23 October 2014 | 14–15 (2) | Ryan Day | 34 years, 214 days | Cao Yupeng | Haining Open |
108 [75] | 23 November 2014 | 14–15 (3) | Shaun Murphy (4th) | 32 years, 105 days | Robert Milkins | Ruhr Open (F) |
109 [167] | 4 December 2014 | 14–15 (4) | Ronnie O'Sullivan (13th) | 38 years, 364 days | Matthew Selt | UK Championship |
110 [168] | 12 December 2014 | 14–15 (5) | Ben Woollaston | 27 years, 212 days | Joe Steele | Lisbon Open |
111 [169] | 5 January 2015 | 14–15 (6) | Barry Hawkins (2nd) | 35 years, 257 days | Stephen Maguire | Championship League |
112 [170] | 11 January 2015 | 14–15 (7) | Marco Fu (3rd) | 37 years, 3 days | Stuart Bingham | Masters |
113 [171] | 6 February 2015 | 14–15 (8) | Judd Trump (2nd) | 25 years, 170 days | Mark Selby | German Masters (L) |
114 [172] | 10 February 2015 | 14–15 (9) | David Gilbert | 33 years, 243 days | Xiao Guodong | Championship League (L) |
115 [76] | 6 December 2015 | 15–16 | Neil Robertson (3rd) | 33 years, 298 days | Liang Wenbo | UK Championship (F) |
116 [173] | 11 December 2015 | 15–16 (2) | Marco Fu (4th) | 37 years, 337 days | Sam Baird | Gibraltar Open |
117 [174] | 19 February 2016 | 15–16 (3) | Ding Junhui (6th) | 28 years, 324 days | Neil Robertson | Welsh Open (L) |
118 [175] | 25 February 2016 | 15–16 (4) | Fergal O'Brien | 43 years, 354 days | Mark Davis | Championship League (L) |
119 [176] | 27 August 2016 | 16–17 | Thepchaiya Un-Nooh | 31 years, 131 days | Kurt Maflin | Paul Hunter Classic |
120 [177] | 20 September 2016 | 16–17 (2) | Stephen Maguire (3rd) | 35 years, 191 days | Xu Yichen | Shanghai Masters |
121 [178] | 28 September 2016 | 16–17 (3) | Shaun Murphy (5th) | 34 years, 49 days | Allan Taylor | European Masters (Q) |
122 [179] | 11 October 2016 | 16–17 (4) | Alfie Burden | 39 years, 302 days | Daniel Wells | English Open (L) |
123 [180] | 16 November 2016 | 16–17 (5) | John Higgins (8th) | 41 years, 182 days | Sam Craigie | Northern Ireland Open |
124 [181] | 27 November 2016 | 16–17 (6) | Mark Allen | 30 years, 279 days | Rod Lawler | UK Championship |
125 [60] | 8 December 2016 | 16–17 (7) | Ali Carter (2nd) | 37 years, 136 days | Wang Yuchen | German Masters (Q) |
126 [60] | 8 December 2016 | 16–17 (8) | Ross Muir | 21 years, 63 days | Itaro Santos | German Masters (Q) |
127 [182] | 10 January 2017 | 16–17 (9) | Mark Davis | 44 years, 151 days | Neil Robertson | Championship League |
128 [55] | 1 February 2017 | 16–17 (10) | Tom Ford (3rd) | 33 years, 168 days | Peter Ebdon | German Masters |
129 [183] | 2 March 2017 | 16–17 (11) | Mark Davis (2nd) | 44 years, 202 days | John Higgins | Championship League |
130 [184] | 30 March 2017 | 16–17 (12) | Judd Trump (3rd) | 27 years, 222 days | Tian Pengfei | China Open |
131 [185] | 6 April 2017 | 16–17 (13) | Gary Wilson (2nd) | 31 years, 238 days | Josh Boileau | World Championship (Q) |
132 [186] | 18 October 2017 | 17–18 | Liang Wenbo (2nd) | 30 years, 227 days | Tom Ford | English Open |
133 [187] | 31 October 2017 | 17–18 (2) | Kyren Wilson | 25 years, 312 days | Martin Gould | International Championship (L) |
134 [188] | 12 December 2017 | 17–18 (3) | Cao Yupeng | 27 years, 46 days | Andrew Higginson | Scottish Open |
135 [189] | 26 January 2018 | 17–18 (4) | Martin Gould | 36 years, 134 days | Li Hang | Championship League |
136 [190] | 26 March 2018 | 17–18 (5) | Luca Brecel | 23 years, 18 days | John Higgins | Championship League |
137 [191] | 3 April 2018 | 17–18 (6) | Ronnie O'Sullivan (14th) | 42 years, 119 days | Elliot Slessor | China Open (L) |
138 [192] | 4 April 2018 | 17–18 (7) | Stuart Bingham (4th) | 41 years, 318 days | Ricky Walden | China Open |
139 [193] | 12 April 2018 | 17–18 (8) | Liang Wenbo (3rd) | 31 years, 38 days | Rod Lawler | World Championship (Q) |
140 [194] | 24 August 2018 | 18–19 | Michael Georgiou | 30 years, 218 days | Umut Dikme | Paul Hunter Classic |
141 [195] | 24 August 2018 | 18–19 (2) | Jamie Jones | 30 years, 191 days | Lee Walker | Paul Hunter Classic (L) |
142 [196] | 16 October 2018 | 18–19 (3) | Thepchaiya Un-Nooh (2nd) | 33 years, 181 days | Soheil Vahedi | English Open |
143 [197] | 17 October 2018 | 18–19 (4) | Ronnie O'Sullivan (15th) | 42 years, 316 days | Allan Taylor | English Open |
144 [198] | 8 November 2018 | 18–19 (5) | Mark Selby (3rd) | 35 years, 120 days | Neil Robertson | Champion of Champions (L) |
145 [199] | 12 December 2018 | 18–19 (6) | John Higgins (9th) | 43 years, 208 days | Gerard Greene | Scottish Open |
146 [200] | 21 December 2018 | 18–19 (7) | Judd Trump (4th) | 29 years, 123 days | Lukas Kleckers | German Masters (Q) |
147 [201] | 22 January 2019 | 18–19 (8) | David Gilbert (2nd) | 37 years, 224 days | Stephen Maguire | Championship League (L) |
148 [202] | 12 February 2019 | 18–19 (9) | Neil Robertson (4th) | 37 years, 1 day | Jordan Brown | Welsh Open |
149 [203] | 14 February 2019 | 18–19 (10) | Noppon Saengkham | 26 years, 214 days | Mark Selby | Welsh Open (L) |
150 [204] | 28 February 2019 | 18–19 (11) | Zhou Yuelong | 21 years, 35 days | Lyu Haotian | Indian Open (L) |
151 [205] | 3 April 2019 | 18–19 (12) | Stuart Bingham (5th) | 42 years, 317 days | Peter Ebdon | China Open |
152 [206] | 17 June 2019 | 19–20 | Tom Ford (4th) | 35 years, 304 days | Fraser Patrick | International Championship (Q) |
153 [207] | 17 October 2019 | 19–20 (2) | Tom Ford (5th) | 36 years, 61 days | Shaun Murphy | English Open |
154 [208] | 12 November 2019 | 19–20 (3) | Stuart Bingham (6th) | 43 years, 175 days | Lu Ning | Northern Ireland Open |
155 [209] | 27 November 2019 | 19–20 (4) | Barry Hawkins (3rd) | 40 years, 218 days | Gerard Greene | UK Championship |
156 [210] | 11 February 2020 | 19–20 (5) | Kyren Wilson (2nd) | 28 years, 50 days | Jackson Page | Welsh Open |
157 [211] | 6 August 2020 | 19–20 (6) | John Higgins (10th) | 45 years, 80 days | Kurt Maflin | World Championship (L) |
158 [212] | 13 September 2020 | 20–21 | Ryan Day (2nd) | 40 years, 175 days | Rod Lawler | Championship League |
159 [213] | 30 October 2020 | 20–21 (2) | John Higgins (11th) | 45 years, 165 days | Kyren Wilson | Championship League |
160 [214] | 10 November 2020 | 20–21 (3) | Shaun Murphy (6th) | 38 years, 92 days | Chen Zifan | German Masters (Q) |
161 [215] | 18 November 2020 | 20–21 (4) | Judd Trump (5th) | 31 years, 90 days | Gao Yang | Northern Ireland Open |
162 [216] | 24 November 2020 | 20–21 (5) | Kyren Wilson (3rd) | 28 years, 337 days | Ashley Hugill | UK Championship |
163 [217] | 25 November 2020 | 20–21 (6) | Stuart Bingham (7th) | 44 years, 188 days | Zak Surety | UK Championship |
164 [218] | 7 December 2020 | 20–21 (7) | Zhou Yuelong (2nd) | 22 years, 318 days | Peter Lines | Scottish Open |
165 [219] | 4 January 2021 | 20–21 (8) | Stuart Bingham (8th) | 44 years, 228 days | Thepchaiya Un-Nooh | Championship League |
166 [220] | 20 January 2021 | 20–21 (9) | Gary Wilson (3rd) | 35 years, 162 days | Liam Highfield | WST Pro Series (L) |
167 [221] | 16 August 2021 | 21–22 | John Higgins (12th) | 46 years, 90 days | Alexander Ursenbacher | British Open |
168 [222] | 20 August 2021 | 21–22 (2) | Ali Carter (3rd) | 42 years, 26 days | Elliot Slessor | British Open (L) |
169 [223] | 24 September 2021 | 21–22 (3) | Xiao Guodong | 32 years, 226 days | Fraser Patrick | Scottish Open (Q) |
170 [224] | 10 October 2021 | 21–22 (4) | Mark Allen (2nd) | 35 years, 230 days | Si Jiahui | Northern Ireland Open |
171 [225] | 22 October 2021 | 21–22 (5) | Thepchaiya Un-Nooh (3rd) | 36 years, 187 days | Fan Zhengyi | German Masters (Q)(L) |
172 [226] | 24 November 2021 | 21–22 (6) | Gary Wilson (4th) | 36 years, 105 days | Ian Burns | UK Championship |
173 [77] | 13 March 2022 | 21–22 (7) | Judd Trump (6th) | 32 years, 205 days | Matthew Selt | Turkish Masters (F) |
174 [227] | 25 March 2022 | 21–22 (8) | Stuart Bingham (9th) | 45 years, 308 days | Gerard Greene | Gibraltar Open |
175 [228] | 11 April 2022 | 21–22 (9) | Graeme Dott (2nd) | 44 years, 334 days | Pang Junxu | World Championship (Q) |
176 [229] | 25 April 2022 | 21–22 (10) | Neil Robertson (5th) | 40 years, 73 days | Jack Lisowski | World Championship (L) |
177 [230] | 16 July 2022 | 22–23 | Zhang Anda | 30 years, 203 days | Anton Kazakov | European Masters (Q) |
178 [231] | 17 July 2022 | 22–23 (2) | Hossein Vafaei | 27 years, 275 days | Ng On-yee | European Masters (Q) |
179 [232] | 29 September 2022 | 22–23 (3) | Mark Selby (4th) | 39 years, 102 days | Jack Lisowski | British Open |
180 [233] | 8 October 2022 | 22–23 (4) | Marco Fu (5th) | 44 years, 273 days | John Higgins | Hong Kong Masters |
181 [78] | 6 November 2022 | 22–23 (5) | Judd Trump (7th) | 33 years, 78 days | Ronnie O'Sullivan | Champion of Champions (F)(L) |
182 [234] | 29 November 2022 | 22–23 (6) | Judd Trump (8th) | 33 years, 101 days | Mitchell Mann | Scottish Open |
183 [235] | 16 December 2022 | 22–23 (7) | Mark Williams (3rd) | 47 years, 270 days | Neil Robertson | English Open (L) |
184 [236] | 3 February 2023 | 22–23 (8) | Robert Milkins (3rd) | 46 years, 334 days | Chris Wakelin | German Masters |
185 [237] | 16 February 2023 | 22–23 (9) | Shaun Murphy (7th) | 40 years, 190 days | Daniel Wells | Welsh Open |
186 [238] | 20 March 2023 | 22–23 (10) | Thepchaiya Un-Nooh (4th) | 37 years, 336 days | Xu Si | WST Classic (L) |
187 [239] | 30 March 2023 | 22–23 (11) | Ryan Day (3rd) | 43 years, 7 days | Mark Selby | Tour Championship (L) |
188 [240] | 19 April 2023 | 22–23 (12) | Kyren Wilson (4th) | 31 years, 117 days | Ryan Day | World Championship |
189 [80] | 30 April 2023 | 22–23 (13) | Mark Selby (5th) | 39 years, 315 days | Luca Brecel | World Championship (F)(L) |
190 [241] | 28 July 2023 | 23–24 | Sean O'Sullivan | 29 years, 90 days | Barry Hawkins | European Masters (Q)(L) |
191 [242] | 18 September 2023 | 23–24 (2) | Ryan Day (4th) | 43 years, 179 days | Mink Nutcharut | International Championship (Q) |
192 [79] | 12 November 2023 | 23–24 (3) | Zhang Anda (2nd) | 31 years, 322 days | Tom Ford | International Championship (F) |
193 [243] | 19 November 2023 | 23–24 (4) | Xu Si | 25 years, 299 days | Ma Hailong | UK Championship (Q) |
194 [23] | 7 December 2023 | 23–24 (5) | Shaun Murphy (8th) | 41 years, 119 days | Bulcsú Révész | Snooker Shoot Out |
195 [244] | 8 January 2024 | 23–24 (6) | Ding Junhui (7th) | 36 years, 282 days | Ronnie O'Sullivan | Masters (L) |
196 [245] | 12 January 2024 | 23–24 (7) | Mark Allen (3rd) | 37 years, 324 days | Mark Selby | Masters |
197 [56] | 6 February 2024 | 23–24 (8) | Kyren Wilson (5th) | 32 years, 45 days | Tom Ford | Championship League |
198 [57] | 10 February 2024 | 23–24 (9) | John Higgins (13th) | 48 years, 268 days | Fan Zhengyi | Championship League |
199 [246] | 17 February 2024 | 23–24 (10) | Gary Wilson (5th) | 38 years, 190 days | John Higgins | Welsh Open |
200 [19] | 29 February 2024 | 23–24 (11) | Joe O'Connor | 28 years, 113 days | Elliot Slessor | Championship League |
201 [247] | 18 March 2024 | 23–24 (12) | Zak Surety | 32 years, 166 days | Ding Junhui | World Open (L) |
202 [248] | 15 April 2024 | 23–24 (13) | Noppon Saengkham (2nd) | 31 years, 275 days | Andy Hicks | World Championship (Q) |
203 [249] | 1 September 2024 | 24–25 | Noppon Saengkham (3rd) | 32 years, 48 days | Amir Sarkhosh | Saudi Arabia Masters |
204 [250] | 13 September 2024 | 24–25 (2) | Fan Zhengyi | 23 years, 230 days | Liam Pullen | English Open (Q) |
205 [251] | 26 September 2024 | 24–25 (3) | Mark Allen (4th) | 38 years, 217 days | Ben Mertens | British Open |
206 [252] | 11 October 2024 | 24–25 (4) | Si Jiahui | 22 years, 92 days | Judd Trump | Wuhan Open |
207 [17] | 5 November 2024 | 24–25 (5) | Xu Si (2nd) | 26 years, 286 days | Ryan Day | International Championship |
Note: (Q) indicates maximums made during qualifying stages of events. (F) indicates maximums made in tournament finals. (L) indicates that the match was lost by the player who made the maximum.
Below is a list of players that have made at least 2 maximums, as of 26 September 2024 [update] . [1] [18] [45] [46]
No. | Player | Number | Most recent | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Ronnie O'Sullivan | 15 | 2018 | [197] |
2 | John Higgins | 13 | 2024 | [57] |
3 | Stephen Hendry | 11 | 2012 | [43] |
4 | Stuart Bingham | 9 | 2022 | [227] |
5 | Judd Trump | 8 | 2022 | [234] |
Shaun Murphy | 8 | 2023 | [23] | |
7 | Ding Junhui | 7 | 2024 | [244] |
8 | Tom Ford | 5 | 2019 | [207] |
Neil Robertson | 5 | 2022 | [229] | |
Marco Fu | 5 | 2022 | [233] | |
Mark Selby | 5 | 2023 | [80] | |
Kyren Wilson | 5 | 2024 | [56] | |
Gary Wilson | 5 | 2024 | [246] | |
14 | Thepchaiya Un-Nooh | 4 | 2023 | [238] |
Ryan Day | 4 | 2023 | [242] | |
Mark Allen | 4 | 2024 | [251] | |
17 | James Wattana | 3 | 1997 | [45] |
Jamie Cope | 3 | 2011 | [149] | |
Stephen Maguire | 3 | 2016 | [177] | |
Liang Wenbo | 3 | 2018 | [193] | |
Barry Hawkins | 3 | 2019 | [209] | |
Ali Carter | 3 | 2021 | [222] | |
Mark Williams | 3 | 2022 | [235] | |
Robert Milkins | 3 | 2023 | [236] | |
Noppon Saengkham | 3 | 2024 | [249] | |
26 | Cliff Thorburn | 2 | 1989 | [104] |
Peter Ebdon | 2 | 1992 | [45] | |
Nick Dyson | 2 | 2000 | [121] | |
David Gray | 2 | 2011 | [146] | |
Kurt Maflin | 2 | 2012 | [157] | |
Mark Davis | 2 | 2017 | [183] | |
David Gilbert | 2 | 2019 | [201] | |
Zhou Yuelong | 2 | 2020 | [218] | |
Graeme Dott | 2 | 2022 | [228] | |
Zhang Anda | 2 | 2023 | [79] | |
Xu Si | 2 | 2024 | [17] | |
Tournament games are won when one of the players manages to win more than half of the scheduled frames. For example, if a match is scheduled to have a maximum of seven frames, a player wins the game when winning a fourth frame, regardless of how many frames the other player has. The following are maximum breaks played in frames that won the match.
Note: (Q) denotes maximums made during qualifying stages of events, and (D) denotes those made in deciding frames .
The World Snooker Championship is the longest-running and most prestigious tournament in professional snooker. It is also the richest, with total prize money of £2,395,000 in 2023, including £500,000 for the winner. First held in 1927, it is now one of the three tournaments that make up snooker's Triple Crown Series. The reigning world champion is Kyren Wilson.
Ding Junhui is a Chinese professional snooker player. He is the most successful Asian player in the history of the sport and widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time. Throughout his career, he has won 15 major ranking titles, including three UK Championships. He has twice reached the final of the Masters, winning once in 2011. In 2016, he became the first Asian player to reach the final of the World Championship.
Ronald Antonio O'Sullivan is an English professional snooker player. Widely recognised as one of the most talented and accomplished players in snooker history, he has won the World Snooker Championship seven times, a modern-era record he holds jointly with Stephen Hendry. He has also won a record eight Masters titles and a record eight UK Championship titles for a total of 23 Triple Crown titles, the most achieved by any player. He holds the record for the most ranking titles, with 41, and has held the top ranking position multiple times.
John Higgins is a Scottish professional snooker player from Wishaw in North Lanarkshire. Since turning professional in 1992, he has won 31 ranking titles, placing him in third position on the all-time list of ranking event winners, behind Ronnie O'Sullivan (41) and Stephen Hendry (36). He has won four World Championships, three UK Championships and two Masters titles, for a total of nine Triple Crown titles, putting him level with Mark Selby and behind only O'Sullivan (23), Hendry (18) and Steve Davis (15). He first entered the top 16 in the 1995–96 world rankings and remained there continuously for over 29 years until September 2024, setting a record for the longest uninterrupted tenure as a top-16 player. He reached the world number one position four times.
The UK Championship is a professional ranking snooker tournament. It is one of snooker's prestigious Triple Crown events, along with the World Championship and the Masters. It is usually held at the Barbican, York. Ronnie O'Sullivan has won the tournament a record eight times, followed by Steve Davis with six titles and Stephen Hendry with five. O'Sullivan is the reigning champion, winning his eighth title in 2023.
The Welsh Open is a professional ranking snooker tournament that has been held annually since 1992. It replaced the Welsh Professional Championship, which ran annually from 1980 to 1991 and was open only to Welsh players. The Welsh Open is now the longest running ranking event after the World Championship and the UK Championship. Since the 2016–17 season, it has been one of four tournaments in the Home Nations Series, alongside the Northern Ireland Open, the Scottish Open, and the English Open. Since 2017, the winner of the event has received the Ray Reardon Trophy, named after the Welsh six-time world champion. Reardon himself presented the newly named trophy to 2017 winner Stuart Bingham.
The Scottish Open is a ranking professional snooker tournament held in the United Kingdom. The tournament had many name changes in its history, as the tournament was formerly called International Open, Matchroom Trophy and Players Championship. Apart from a hiatus in the 1990/1991 and 1991/1992 seasons, the tournament remained a ranking event until 2003/2004. In the 2012/2013 season the tournament was added back to the calendar as part of the Players Tour Championship minor-ranking series.
Neil Robertson is an Australian professional snooker player, who is a former world champion and former world number one. To date, he is the most successful player from outside the United Kingdom, and the only non-UK born to have completed snooker's Triple Crown, having won the World Championship in 2010, the Masters in 2012 and 2022, and the UK Championship in 2013, 2015 and 2020. He has claimed a career total of 24 ranking titles, having won at least one professional tournament every year between 2006 and 2022.
Mark Anthony Selby is an English professional snooker player. Ranked world number one on multiple occasions, he has won a total of 23 ranking titles, placing him eighth on the all-time list of ranking tournament winners. He is a four-time World Snooker Champion, and has won the Masters three times and the UK Championship twice for a total of nine Triple Crown titles, putting him on a par with John Higgins, and behind only Ronnie O’Sullivan (23), Stephen Hendry (18) and Steve Davis (15).
Judd Trump is an English professional snooker player who is a former world champion and the current world number one. Widely regarded as one of the sport's most talented players, he is currently in fourth place on the list of all-time ranking event winners, having won 29 ranking titles. He has also won four Triple Crown titles.
In snooker, a century break is a break of 100 points or more, compiled in one visit to the table. A century break requires potting at least 25 consecutive balls, and the ability to score centuries is regarded as a mark of the highest skill in snooker. Ronnie O'Sullivan has described a player's first century break as the "ultimate milestone for any snooker player". Joe Davis made the first televised century break in 1962.
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. In January 2020, the three tournaments were formally named the Triple Crown Series.
Kyren James Wilson is an English professional snooker player from Kettering. He has won eight ranking titles and is the reigning world champion.
Championship League is a professional snooker tournament, devised by Matchroom Sport. The tournament was originally held at the Crondon Park Golf Club in Stock, Essex, from its debut in 2008 until 2016. From 2017 it has been held in Coventry, Barnsley, Milton Keynes and Leicester.
Gary Wilson is an English professional snooker player from Wallsend in North Tyneside, Tyne and Wear.
Ronnie O'Sullivan started his professional snooker career in 1992 and is widely considered one of the greatest players in the history of the sport. His play and accomplishments are described by some peers and pundits as being the greatest in the modern era of snooker. O'Sullivan is a seven-time world champion, and holds many records, including the fastest maximum break in professional competition; the highest number of century breaks; the highest number of maximum breaks, and the most Triple Crown event titles (23).
Ronnie O'Sullivan holds the record for the highest numbers of competitive centuries and maximum breaks, as well as the fastest maximum break of all time, in the professional sport of snooker.
Judd Trump has made eight maximum breaks and more than 1,000 century breaks in the professional sport of snooker.
The Class of '92 is a group of three professional snooker players: Ronnie O'Sullivan from England, John Higgins from Scotland, and Mark Williams from Wales. All three were born in 1975, Williams on 21 March, Higgins on 18 May, and O'Sullivan on 5 December. They all turned professional during the 1992–93 snooker season and have become known for their collective dominance of the sport—which includes a combined 98 ranking titles, 39 Triple Crown titles, and 14 world titles—as well as their longevity as top‑ranked players. O'Sullivan has compared the Class of '92 to the Big Three of Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Rafael Nadal in men's singles tennis.
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