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John Higgins, MBE (Scotland)

See also Higgins' profile in the Score Centre




© Eric Whitehead

Contents

Basic facts
Personal data, achievements, etc.
Results in ranking events
Performance in ranking events since the start of the 1994/95 season
Links
Related webpages




Basic Facts

Born May 18, 1975
Lives Wishaw, Lanakshire, Scotland
Nickname "The Kid", "The Wizard of Wishaw"
Turned pro 1992
Highest pro break 147 (13 times: 2000 Nations Cup, 2000 Benson & Hedges Irish Masters, 2003 LG Cup, 2003 British Open, 2004 totesport Grand Prix, 2012 Bank of Communication Shanghai Masters, 2012 williamhill.com UK Championship, 2016 Northern Ireland Open, 2018 Scottish Open, 2020 World Championship, the 2020 Championship League (autumn)), the 2021 British Open and the 2024 Championship League
Highest ranked 1 (1998-1999, 2007, 2010)
Current ranking (end of 2021/2022) 5
World Championship best Winner four times (1998, 2007, 2009 and 2011)
Best ranking event performance Winner of 31 tournaments: Grand Prix 1994, 1999, 2005, 2008; International Open 1995, 1996; British Open 1995, 1998, 2001, 2004; German Open 1995, 1997; European Open 1997; World Championship 1998, 2007, 2009, 2011; UK Championship 1998, 2000, 2010; China International 1999 (March); Welsh Open 2000, 2010, 2011, 2015, 2018; Shanghai Masters 2012; Australian Open 2015; International Championship 2015; Indian Open 2017; Players Championship 2021
Minor ranking event wins 2010 Euro Players Tour Championship Event Five, 2012 UK Players Tour Championship Event Four, 2013 Euro Tour Event One
Major invitation tournament victories: Liverpool Victoria Charity Challenge 1998, 1999; The Masters 1999, 2006 ; Irish Masters 2000, 2002; Champions Cup 2001; Regal Masters 2001; China Championship 2016; Champion of Champions 2016; Championship League 2017
Speciality Break-building, "Formidable Technique"
Achievements

John Higgins burst onto the snooker scene in the 1994/95 season, becoming the first teenager to win three ranking events in one season. For this he earned an amazing £283,970. 12 times more than he earned the previous season.

In the 1997/98 season he won the 1998 Embassy World Championship. At the end of the season he received WPBSA's Player of the Year award.

The following season he captured the 1998 Liverpool Victoria UK Championship, the 1999 Benson & Hedges Masters, 1999 Charity Challenge, 1999 China International and the 1999 Premier Snooker League.

John's career record is 49 wins.

He reached the top of the rankings after winning the 1998 Embassy World Championship.

In the same tournament he also became the first to make three consecutive century breaks in a World Championship match, and the first to make 14 centuries in a professional tournament.

He became the first player to compile four consecutive century breaks in a major tournament: 103, 104, 138 and 128, in Preston, England on Sun 16th October 2005. He achieved the feat in the final of the 2005 Grand Prix, against Ronnie O'Sullivan.

With 12 maximums he is second on the all-time list. Ronnie O'Sullivan leads with 15.

In 2007 he won the 888.Com World Championship for a second time and also regained the number one spot in the rankings. He added another world trophy in 2009.

Higgins is one of only five players to win both the World Championship and the UK Championship in the same year. Steve Davis, Stephen Hendry, John Parrott and Ronnie O'Sullivan are the others.

Together with Steve Davis and Stephen Hendry he is also the only one to hold the World, UK and Masters titles at the same time.

He was a member of Scottish teams that won the 1996 Castrol-Honda World Cup and the 2001 Coalite Nations Cup.

In the 2004 British Open he made three (or four?) breaks over 140; one 141 and two 144s.

In September 2010, Higgins was cleared of match-fixing allegations made against him by UK newspaper News of the World. He admitted to bringing the game into disrepute though, by not reporting an approach to throw games. Because of this he was banned for six months, backdated to May 2010 when he was originally suspended. In addition he was fined £75,000.

In his very first competition after the suspension he won the 2010 Euro PTC 5. He also won the first major event he entered, the 2010 12BET.com UK Championship and then the 2011 Betfred.com World Championship.

Miscellaneous

John had never made a 147 until he finally got one while practicing for the 1998 Liverpool Victoria UK Championship!

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Results in Ranking Events (94/95 - 01/02)

See Higgins' profile in the Score Centre for results from 2010/2011 and onwards.



Color guide:
won the event lost his opening match
1994/95

Dubai   2R   1-5   Ronnie O'Sullivan
Grand Prix   W   9-6   Dave Harold
UK   Qual   2-5   Chris Small
European   1R   3-5   Tony Drago
Welsh   RU   3-9   Steve Davis
International   W   9-5   Steve Davis
Thailand   1R   2-5   Peter Ebdon
British   W   9-6   Ronnie O'Sullivan
World   1R   3-10   Alan McManus

1995/96

Thailand Classic   QF   3-5   John Parrott
Grand Prix   RU   5-9   Stephen Hendry
UK   SF   1-9   Stephen Hendry
German   W   9-3   Ken Doherty
Welsh   3R   4-5   Graeme Dott
International   W   9-3   Rod Lawler
European   1R   0-5   Joe Johnson
Thailand Open   QF   0-5   Peter Ebdon
British   RU   8-9   Nigel Bond
World   QF   12-13   Ronnie O'Sullivan

1996/97

Asian Classic   1R   0-5   Karl Burrows
Grand Prix   1R   4-5   Fergal O'Brien
UK   RU   9-10   Stephen Hendry
German   SF   4-6   Alain Robidoux
Welsh   QF   1-5   John Parrott
International   SF   5-6   Tony Drago
European   W   9-5   John Parrott
Thailand   1R   3-5   Quinten Hann
British   1R   4-5   Antony Bolsover
World   QF   9-13   Ken Doherty

1997/98

Grand Prix   RU   6-9   Dominic Dale
UK   2R   4-9   Gary Ponting
German   W   9-4   John Parrott
Welsh   RU   5-9   Paul Hunter
Scottish   RU   5-9   Ronnie O'Sullivan
Thailand   1R   3-5   Fergal O'Brien
British   W   9-8   Stephen Hendry
World   W   18-12   Ken Doherty

1998/99

Grand Prix   1R   1-5   Quentin Hann
UK   W   10-6   Matthew Stevens
Irish   2R   3-5   Stephen Lee
Welsh   3R   4-5   Stuart Bingham
Scottish   SF   5-6   Stephen Hendry
Thailand   QF   4-5   Alan McManus
China   W   9-3   Billy Snaddon
British   SF   5-6   Fergal O'Brien
World   SF   10-17   Mark J Williams

1999/2000

British   QF   1-5   Ronnie O'Sullivan
Grand Prix   W   9-8   Mark J Williams
UK   SF   7-9   Matthew Stevens
China   Qual   1-5   Peter Lines
Welsh   W   8-9   Stephen Lee
Malta   QF   3-5   Marco Fu
Thailand   Qual   3-5   Billy Snaddon
Scottish   QF   3-5   Marco Fu
World   SF   15-17   Mark J Williams

2000/2001

British   3R   4-5   Paul Hunter
GP   QF   l/w   Graeme Dott
UK   W   10-4   Mark J Williams
China   1R   2-5   Bradley Jones
Welsh   QF   1-5   Stephen Lee
Thailand   SF   1-5   Stephen Hendry
Scottish   3R   4-5   Drew Henry
World   RU   14-18   Ronnie O'Sullivan

2001/2002

British   W   9-6   Graeme Dott
LG Cup   QF   2-5   Stephen Lee
European   2R   1-5   Jimmy White
UK   QF   2-9   Stephen Lee
Welsh   QF   2-5   Stephen Hendry
China   SF   2-6   Mark J Williams
Thailand   QF   3-5   Matthew Stevens
Scottish   2R   4-5   David Gray
World   QF   7-13   Matthew Stevens

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Links

Sporting Chance: Elite Players
Confederacao Brasileira de Bilhar e Sinuca: A Sinuca no Mundo
BILLAR & SNOOKER: Los mas grandes del Snooker