76-679: The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association ( WPBSA ) is the governing body of professional snooker and English billiards . It is headquartered in Bristol , England. Founded as the Professional Billiard Players Association (PBPA) in 1946, with Joe Davis as chairman, it was revived in 1968 after some years of inactivity and renamed the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association in 1970. Its current chairman
152-528: A break of 104 in defeating Martin Smith 10–9. Veteran professional Bernard Bennett suffered the only whitewash of the first round, failing to win a frame against Billy Kelly . In the second round, there were 32 matches. The youngest player in the competition, Stephen Hendry , made a break of 108 during his 10–7 defeat of Mike Darrington . Eight-times champion Fred Davis lost 5–10 to Ken Owers . Another former champion, John Spencer , who had won
228-448: A deciding frame in round four was John Virgo 's 10–9 win over Tony Jones. Dene O'Kane scored five century breaks across his three matches, a new record, including a 132. He received £2,000 for this break, the highest during qualifying. The first round of the main tournament was held from 18 to 23 April with matches played as the best-of-19 frames over two sessions. Defending champion Joe Johnson played Eugene Hughes , with
304-729: A Member of the British Parliament , called for Williams to resign and any players using beta blockers to withdraw from competing. In November 1987, the WPBSA was suspended from using the Sports Council's drug-testing facilities until the use of beta blockers was banned from the sport. Moynihan wrote to Williams supporting the ban that had been proposed by the Sports Council's Drug Advisory Group. Williams resigned as WPBSA chairman in November 1987, having received criticism over
380-400: A 127 break, which remained the highest break of that year's tournament. Johnson responded winning three frames in a row followed by Davis taking two to level at 3-3. Johnson was 4–3 ahead at the end of the first session. Davis added three successive frames to lead 6–4 at the start of the second session, then Johnson won the 11th frame with a break of 101 before falling three behind as Davis won
456-409: A 26 per cent share of World Snooker Ltd, which organises the professional World Snooker Tour . It also supports World Women's Snooker , World Disability Billiards and Snooker, and English billiards through World Billiards . According to its financial statements for the year ending 30 June 2019, the principal activities of the WPBSA are "the governance of professional snooker and billiards through
532-491: A British MP, called for Williams to resign and any players using beta blockers to withdraw from competing. In 2001, in a legal case brought by Stephen Hendry , Mark Williams and their management company, the WPBSA was found to have taken advantage of its dominant position in the snooker market by forcing its members to seek permission to play in tournaments, which could allow the WPBSA to prevent rival organisations from competing with it. Former WPBSA chairman Geoff Foulds lost
608-405: A break of 114 in the 15th frame to go one ahead before Johnson won seven frames in a row to lead 14–8. After this, Foulds won frame 23, but Johnson won the next two frames to win the match 16–9 to reach his second final. Davis and White had been level at 4–4 after their first session, with Davis winning the first four of their second session to lead 8–4 and finishing that session 9–6 ahead. In
684-499: A break of 73 to make it 18–14, achieving his fourth World Championship title. After the match, Davis said: "Winning this is better than 1981 because I've experienced getting beat in the final and its horrible." During the tournament, there were reports that Foulds and WPBSA chairman Williams were taking beta blockers . These were banned under International Olympic Committee rules, but not prohibited in snooker. Colin Moynihan ,
760-571: A certain group, such as the Catholic or Jewish sports groups. General sports organizations and multi-sport events also exist for other groups such as the Invictus Games for military veterans. Professional sports leagues are usually the highest level of play in sport, specifically if they consist of the best players around the world in a certain sport. Because of this, they usually work with national or international federations, but there
836-550: A combination of the top players in the world snooker rankings and a pre-tournament qualification stage. The tournament was promoted by WPBSA Promotions, a subsidiary of professional snooker governing body the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA). Joe Davis won the first World Championship in 1927 , the final match being held in Camkin's Hall , Birmingham, England. Since 1977,
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#1732781046822912-499: A congress or general assembly of the international federation and is responsible for defining its sports policies. It consists of all of the national federations, each of which receives one vote. On the other hand, the executive branch, which is often referred to as the council or executive committee, consists of elected members by the legislative branch and is responsible for directing, managing, and representing their federation. Trusts are organizations or groups that have control over
988-540: A group of similar sport disciplines, such as aquatics or skiing ) and administers its sport at the highest level. These federations work to create a common set of rules, promote their sport, and organize international competitions. International sports federations represent their sport at the Olympic level where applicable. About 30 international sport federations are located in Switzerland , with about 20 or so in
1064-564: A libel case that he had brought against The Daily Mirror when it accused him of submitting falsified expense claims to the WPBSA. When World Snooker scheduled the 2008 Bahrain Championship on dates which clashed with Premier League Snooker matches scheduled five months earlier with World Snooker approval, this caused four leading players (including Higgins) to miss the Bahrain event and consequently lose ranking points—Higgins called
1140-491: A major growth area for the sport, and in other territories including Germany. The 2008 Bahrain Championship was the first ranking tournament to be staged in the Middle East , which cost the organisation around £500,000 in prize money and organisational costs. One session at the event did not attract any audience, and the largest attendance for any of the sessions was 150. In 2019, World Snooker announced that there would be
1216-446: A one-frame lead after the first session. In frame eight, Foulds made a break of 48 to win the frame, and won frame nine, despite requiring foul shots. Johnson made breaks of 47 in each of the next two frames to lead 6–5. Foulds took the next before Johnson, with his fourth break of 47 in four frames, took the lead again. Foulds won the last frame of the session with a break of 45 to leave them all square at 7–7 after two sessions, and made
1292-584: A particular sport, as evident in the example of the Northern Ireland Federation of Sub-Aqua Clubs . Multi-sport event organizers are responsible for the organization of an event that includes more than one sport. The best-known example is the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the organizer of the modern Olympic Games . General sports organizations are responsible for sports-related topics, usually for
1368-486: A place in the first round draw, whilst a pre-tournament qualification event for 104 professionals was held between 26 March and 4 April at the Preston Guild Hall for the remaining places. The tournament was sponsored by cigarette manufacturer Embassy and had a prize fund of £400,000 with the winner receiving £80,000. Since his 1986 victory , Joe Johnson had experienced a disappointing season leading up to
1444-477: A ranking event in Saudi Arabia in 2020, the first in a ten-year series. Amnesty International criticised the announcement due to concerns about human rights in the country. The WPBSA supports coaching in cue sports through an accredited programme, and in 2013 initiated the "Cue Zone into Schools" programme, which took scaled-down tables into schools and was intended to interest school children in taking up
1520-415: A red, which gave Davis an opportunity. Davis then made a break of 35, but left an easy green ball for Johnson, who cleared to the pink ball to win. In the next frame, Johnson made a break of 62, and then Davis attempted a clearance , but missed the yellow ball . Johnson potted the yellow from distance and cleared to the blue, with Davis then conceding the frame. Johnson led 50–0 in
1596-435: A row to take the match to a deciding frame at 12–12. In the final frame, after Hendry failed to pot a red ball , Johnson made a break of 46 to take the frame and match 13–12. Hallett compiled two century breaks in the first session of his match against Foulds, who also constructed a century break, with their first session ending at 4–4. Foulds then opened up a lead, leading 10–6 and 12–7 before winning at 13–9. Davis
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#17327810468221672-594: A team in the minor leagues . This enables them to shuffle players who are not doing well to the minor leagues, which will inspire them to contribute more to the team by playing better. A 2014 study by the Institute for Human Rights and Business (IHRB) criticized major international sports governing bodies including the International Olympic Committee and FIFA for not having sufficient provisions for human and labor rights. 1987 World Snooker Championship The 1987 World Snooker Championship (also referred to as
1748-531: A type of national federation, as they are responsible for a country's participation in the Olympic Games and in the Paralympic Games respectively. However, a national governing body (NGB) can be different from a national federation due to government recognition requirements. Also, national governing bodies can be a supraorganization representing a range of unrelated organizations operating in
1824-433: Is Jason Ferguson . The WPBSA devises and publishes the official rules of the two sports. It promotes their global development at the grassroots, amateur, and professional levels; enforces conduct regulations and disciplines players who breach them; and works to combat corruption, such as by investigating betting irregularities. Additionally, it is involved in coaching development and the training of referees. The WPBSA owns
1900-402: Is a sports organization that has a regulatory or sanctioning function. Sports governing bodies come in various forms and have a variety of regulatory functions, including disciplinary action for rule infractions and deciding on rule changes in the sport that they govern. Governing bodies have different scopes. They may cover a range of sport at an internationally acceptable level, such as
1976-494: Is usually a separation between the different federations. Most North American professional leagues usually do not have amateur divisions, as the amateur divisions are mostly run in separate leagues. Also, most professional leagues are related to other leagues, as players usually attempt to play in the league with the highest level of play. Because of this, promotion and relegation can occur; or, in league systems without promotion and relegation, clubs in professional leagues can have
2052-668: The 1987 Embassy World Snooker Championship for the purpose of sponsorship) was a professional snooker tournament that took place between 18 April and 4 May 1987 at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield , England. It was the sixth and final ranking event of the 1986–87 snooker season . The championship was the 1987 edition of the World Snooker Championship , first held in 1927 , and had 32 participants. The highest ranked 16 players were awarded
2128-564: The International Olympic Committee and the International Paralympic Committee , or only a single sport at a national level, such as the Rugby Football League . National bodies will largely have to be affiliated with international bodies for the same sport. The first international federations were formed at the end of the 19th century. Every sport has a different governing body that can define
2204-622: The Lausanne area, where the International Olympic Committee is located. International federations for sports that do not participate in the Olympic Games are managed by equivalent organizations to the International Olympic Committee , such as the SportAccord . International federations are typically organized with legislative and executive branches at the top. The legislative body is usually referred to as
2280-487: The Preston Guild Hall between 25 March and 4 April 1987. Results from the qualification event are shown below. Players shown in bold denote match winners. There were 18 century breaks at the championship. The highest was a 127 made by Steve Davis in the first frame of the final. This was the lowest world championship high break since the event moved to the Crucible Theatre in 1977. The highest break in 1977
2356-436: The 1987 Championship, and bookmakers considered it unlikely that he would retain the title. Johnson did reach the final, a rematch of the previous year's final against Steve Davis . Davis won his fourth championship by defeating Johnson 18 frames to 14. A total of 18 century breaks were made during the tournament, the highest of which was 127 made by Davis in first frame of the final. Stephen Hendry , aged 18, became
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2432-430: The 19th with a 103 break, before Hendry completed a 13–7 victory. Francisco and Hallett were at 8–8 after their second session before Hallett won three frames in a row, with breaks of 84, 47, 35 and 93. He also won the 20th frame, after requiring foul shots from Francisco, to lead 12–8, and clinched victory at 13–9 to reach his first World Championship quarter-final. Foulds led Taylor 5–3 after their first session, and won
2508-561: The BA & CC." The PBPA disaffiliated from the BA&;CC from 1 October 1970, and was renamed the WPBSA on 12 December 1970, soon taking control of the running of the professional game. The WPBSA was reorganised as a limited company on 13 January 1982, with the intention that it would negotiate contracts with television companies and sponsors, something that had previously been in the control of promoters like Mike Watterson , as well as organising
2584-530: The British Isles. However, in the modern era it has become increasingly popular worldwide, especially in East and Southeast Asian nations such as China, Hong Kong and Thailand. The 1987 championship featured 32 professional players competing in one-on-one snooker matches in a single elimination format, each played over several frames . The 32 competitors in the main tournament were selected using
2660-420: The Championship by practising diligently, and that the cyst on his back that previously troubled him had been removed. Johnson started the event as a bookmakers ' outsider, priced at 66–1 against winning the tournament. Leading up to the event, Neal Foulds had been the most successful player of the season, having gained the most ranking points during the season, ahead of Steve Davis . Twelve days before
2736-624: The PBPA was also dormant until being restarted in April 1968 with eight professional members. Mike Green was designated as the Secretary. Membership of the Association was by application, with playing achievements and disciplinary records the main factors taken into account. This means of becoming professional was later replaced by a series of "pro ticket" events. Prior to the formation of the WPBSA,
2812-420: The WPBSA chairman in 2010, having previously held the role from 2001 to 2003. Rex Williams was chairman for 13 years until 1987, when he was replaced by John Virgo . Previous presidents include Jeffrey Archer , who served from 1997 to 1999. A Professional Billiard Players Association (PBPA) was formed on 26 July 1946, with Joe Davis as chairman. The professional game was in decline in the 1950s and 1960s and
2888-467: The apparent involvement in the decision-making process of WPBSA officials. The decision to decline an application for a grant from Chris Small , a former player who retired due to Ankylosing spondylitis , was also criticised by several of the game's leading figures. A subsidiary promotions company, WPBSA Promotions Ltd, was founded in 1983. World Snooker has been successful in promoting the sport in China,
2964-480: The board. The body received criticism in the late 2000s. John Higgins had been particularly vocal in his opinion that World Snooker had not done enough to promote the game in new territories, particularly in Eastern Europe. The rival World Series of Snooker was launched by a consortium including Higgins in 2008. In 2008, the Association's benevolent fund was investigated for accounting irregularities and
3040-431: The chance of claiming his first world title," adding that White's father later said that losing the frame affected White badly during the following three. However, White later compiled a 119 break, the new highest in the competition, overtaking his earlier 114 in the second round, and ended the third session 9–13 behind. White took the first frame of the fourth session, but lost three of the following four frame as Davis won
3116-460: The clash "laughable". Premier League organiser Barry Hearn commented that "I am very disappointed and I can't understand why World Snooker hasn't discussed dates with us", while Higgins and his manager Pat Mooney threatened legal action over the ranking points situation. Supported by a number of senior players, Hearn became the chairman of the WPBSA in December 2009, with Mooney also joining him on
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3192-605: The drug testing issue as well as over his personal business connections with promoters Barry Hearn and Frank Warren . The WPBSA voted to ban the use of beta blockers, other than cardioselective types , in January 1988, with the ban to come into effect from the start of the 1988–89 snooker season . Shown below are the results for the tournament. The numbers in brackets denote players seedings, whilst players in bold are match winners. Highest break by Johnson: 101 Highest break by Davis: 127 The qualifying stages took place at
3268-405: The end of their first session. Reynolds won the first two frames of the second session both on respotted blacks , before White went on to win 10–8. From 7–8, White made breaks of 70, 75 and 59 to win the three frames he needed to progress. O'Kane, 39th in the rankings, won nine frames in a row against second-ranked player Cliff Thorburn to win 10–5. Thorburn's cue tip split during
3344-627: The event has been held in the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England. The championship was held from 18 April to 4 May 1987 at the Crucible, the 11th time that the tournament was held at the venue. It was the last ranking event of the 1986–87 snooker season on the World Snooker Tour . There were a total of 120 entrants from the tour, and the competition's main draw had 32 participants. A four-round knockout qualifying competition
3420-423: The event is shown below: The defending champion, Joe Johnson, had failed to reach as far as the quarter-finals of a major tournament in the 1986–87 snooker season after winning the 1986 World Championship . This record was described by The Sydney Morning Herald 's Les Wheeler as "disappointing" and by Clive Everton as a "poor" season. Sydney Friskin of The Times reported that Johnson prepared for
3496-565: The final in 1955 and 1956 , played at the Tower Circus , Blackpool. The next time it would happen was when Hendry and White met in three consecutive finals between 1992 and 1994 . This was also the first time that the final had been contested by the top two seeds of the tournament. The final was refereed by Len Ganley , the second time he had taken charge of the World Championship final. In frame one, Davis compiled
3572-441: The first frame of the second session, led 9–0. O'Kane then won five consecutive frames, before White took four of the following five frames to win 13–6. The semi-final matches were played as the best-of-31 frames, held over four sessions, from 30 April to 2 May. Johnson met Foulds in the first semi-final. The pair were tied at 3–3, but Foulds missed a pot on the black ball in frame seven allowing Johnson to take
3648-553: The first frame of the third session, White was on course to make a maximum break , having potted ten reds and nine blacks, but missed the tenth black. After this, Davis required White to make foul shots in order to gain the necessary penalty points from them for Davis to win the frame. Aided by a fluked black, and by a free ball following a foul by White, Davis eventually won the frame by one point. John Hennessey in Pot Black magazine wrote that "at that moment White lost
3724-407: The first round of the main draw were played as best-of-19-frames, meaning 10 frames were required to win the match. The number of frames needed to win a match increased to 13 in the second round and quarter-finals, and 16 in the semi-finals; the final match was played as best-of-35-frames. The event featured a prize fund of £400,000 with the winner receiving £80,000. The breakdown of prize money for
3800-543: The first session but Griffiths won four frames in a row and the match was tied at 8–8. Griffiths went on to defeat Higgins 13–10. Six-times winner of the event Reardon led 3–1 but lost 12 of the next 13 frames as he was eliminated 4–13 by Davis. After the tournament, Reardon dropped out of the top 16 in the end-of-season world rankings, moving down from 15 to 38. The quarter-final matches were played over three sessions, in best-of-25 frames, on 28 and 29 April. Johnson led Hendry 8–1 and 12–8, before Hendry won four frames in
3876-448: The first session, due to slow play, with Francisco leading 5–3 when they started the following session. Francisco won five consecutive frames at the start of the second session to complete a 10–3 win. Doug Mountjoy led David Taylor 6–3 after their first session, and won 10–6. The 1985 champion Dennis Taylor led Bennett 8–1 before winning 10–4. Neal Foulds led John Virgo 7–2 after their first session and won 10–4. The second round
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#17327810468223952-600: The game. In 2019, the WPBSA announced the creation of an all-party parliamentary group for snooker, chaired by Conor Burns , a Member of Parliament (MP) . In 2015, the Association submitted an unsuccessful bid for snooker to be played at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Another bid has been put forward for Paris 2024 through a branch of the association formed in 2017, the World Snooker Federation. Sport governing body A sports governing body
4028-412: The highest break of the first round, a 112. The win made MacLeod the first Scottish player to secure a victory at the Crucible Theatre. Stephen Hendry met veteran player Willie Thorne , led 5–4 at the end of their first session, and then took the first four frames in the second, before Thorne won three in a row. Hendry took the 17th frame to achieve a 10–7 win. At age 18 years and 97 days, Hendry became
4104-422: The last red ball when on a break of 52. Johnson then cleared up to the black, which Davis would have required to level the scores in the frame. However, Davis left the black in a position that it could be potted from, and Johnson won the frame. Davis won the next frame, to lead 14–9 at the end of the third session. Johnson made a break of 52 in the first frame of the fourth session, but failed on an attempt to pot
4180-557: The later rounds, and 104 entrants which took place at the Preston Guild Hall between 25 March and 4 April 1987. The 16 winners in the fourth round progressed to play the tournament's top 16 seeds at the Crucible. All qualifying matches were best-of-19 frames held over two sessions . There were 24 matches scheduled in the first qualifying round, but Frank Jonik , Eddie McLaughlin, Sakchai Sim Ngam and Omprakesh Agrawal all withdrew, meaning that their opponents received walkovers . The 11-time pool world champion, Jim Rempe , made
4256-412: The match 10–4. Gino Rigitano conceded the 11th frame of his match against Steve Newbury when there were still enough balls on the table for him to win, and when 4–9 down decided not to play the next frame, thereby losing 4–10. There were two 10–0 whitewashes: by Jon Wright over Mark Wildman and by Tony Jones over van Rensberg. The fourth round also featured 16 matches, with 16 players seeded into
4332-408: The match 13–10. O'Kane eliminated another top-16 player with a victory over Mountjoy. Mountjoy led 3–0, but O'Kane then won the next six frames, and won 13–5. White made a break of 114 in his match against Parrott, the highest in that year's championship to that point, and won 13–11. Five of the frames had been decided on the black, with White winning four of them. Higgins led Griffiths 6–3 after
4408-451: The match 16–11, concluding with a 74 break in the 27th frame. The final was played as a best-of-35 frames match held over four sessions between Davis and Johnson on 3 and 4 May 1987. It was the first time that the same two players had met in the final at the Crucible for the second year in a row. The last time that two players had met in consecutive finals at the World Championship was when Fred Davis and John Pulman had both reached
4484-496: The match going to a deciding frame and Johnson winning 10–9. Steve Davis was 7–1 ahead of Warren King at the end of their first session, but King then won six of the next seven frames to reduce Davis's lead to one frame at 8–7. Davis narrowly won frame 16 with a break of 63, then completed a 10–7 victory in frame 17, where he successfully gained enough foul points from King, despite requiring snookers . Murdo MacLeod defeated Rex Williams 10–5, despite Williams making
4560-452: The members of the WBPSA voted to separate the responsibilities of the Association between two entities: "WPBSA Governance and Development", and a new "WPBSA Players" organisation. WPBSA Governance and Development will be responsible for disciplinary matters, monitoring betting, and drug testing. WPBSA Players will be responsible for support and representation of players. Jason Ferguson became
4636-477: The money that will be used to help someone else, such as the Youth Sport Trust . National governing bodies have the same objectives as those of an international federation, but within the scope of one country, or even part of a country, as the name implies. They support local clubs and are often responsible for national teams . National Olympic Committees and National Paralympic Committees are both
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#17327810468224712-416: The next frame, and with both players making a number of errors Davis left him an easy brown that allowed Johnson in to win his fourth consecutive frame to move to one behind at 13–14. Davis had breaks of 64 and 40 to lead 15–13, a break of 73 to help make it 16–13, and 17–13 winning frame 30, decided on the final colours . Johnson won another frame, with a break of 67, before Davis clinched victory with
4788-442: The next two frames. Johnson was behind in the 14th frame but won it with a break of 73. The last two frames of the session were both won with the aid of fluked reds: the 15th frame by Davis, and the last of the day by Johnson, the day finishing with Davis leading 9–7. On the second day, Johnson won the first frame of the third session to reduce Davis's lead to one frame. Davis then took four consecutive frames to lead 13–8, but missed
4864-650: The regulation and application of the rules of the association, the development of snooker and billiards as a sport and the sanctioning of the Professional Snooker Tour". The governing body for the non-professional aspect of snooker and billiards is the International Billiards and Snooker Federation (IBSF). The WPBSA has a number of associated organisations, including World Snooker, World Billiards , World Women's Snooker and World Disability Billiards and Snooker. In November 2020,
4940-402: The round each meeting one of the third round winners. For the first time since turning professional, John Spencer failed to qualify for the event, as he was defeated 5–10 by Barry West . Bill Werbeniuk and Eddie Charlton also failed to qualify for the competition for the first time. Werbeniuk lost 8–10 to Mark Bennett and Charlton was defeated 4–10 by Warren King . The only match to go to
5016-423: The sixth frame and was not replaced until after the end of the first session. He was unable to win a frame after the tip was broken. Six-time champion Ray Reardon defeated debutant Barry West 10–5. Fourth seed Tony Knowles lost 6–10 to Mike Hallett , having led 6–5, and 11th seed Tony Meo lost 8–10 to John Parrott . Silvino Francisco and John Campbell played only eight of their scheduled nine frames in
5092-491: The start of the tournament, the two-times world champion Alex Higgins was fined £12,000 and given a six-month ban from tournaments by the WPBSA. The ban started on 5 May, the day after the final of the 1987 World Snooker Championship. The penalties resulted from a number of incidents, the most serious of which was headbutting Paul Hatherall, a WPBSA tournament director, at the 1986 UK Championship . There were four rounds of qualifying, with higher ranked players seeded into
5168-482: The title three times, eliminated Roger Bales 10–3. Trailing after the first session of his qualifying match 3–5, Jimmy van Rensberg was taken to hospital with a suspected heart attack. However, he was later discharged and went on to win 10–6. The third round consisted of 16 matches between winners from the second round. Hendry led 8–1 against Rempe at the end of their first session, with Rempe winning three consecutive frames in their second session before Hendry won
5244-455: The tournaments. In 1985, Green retired as Secretary and was succeeded by Martin Blake, at which point the Association moved its headquarters from Birmingham to Bristol. It was reported during the 1987 World Snooker Championship that WPBSA chairman Williams was taking beta blockers . These were banned under International Olympic Committee rules, but not prohibited in snooker. Colin Moynihan ,
5320-399: The way that the sport operates through its affiliated clubs and societies. This is because sports have different levels of difficulty and skill, so they can try to organize the people playing their sport by ability and by age. The different types of sport governing bodies are all shown below: International sports federations are non-governmental non-profit organizations for a given sport (or
5396-805: The world governing body of both snooker and English billiards was the Billiards Association and Control Council (BACC or BA&CC), later known as the Billiards and Snooker Control Council . The BACC announced in August 1968 that the world professional snooker championship would be run on a knockout basis, rather than the challenge system that had been in place from 1964, and in September 1969 that "The BA & CC and Professional Billiard Players Association have reached agreement regarding procedure for turning professional and other events governed by
5472-465: The youngest player to win a match in the tournament's history since it moved to the Crucible in 1977, whilst it was the last time that six-times champion Ray Reardon appeared. The World Snooker Championship is a professional tournament and the official world championship of the game of snooker . Founded in the late 19th century by British Army soldiers stationed in India, the sport was popular in
5548-461: The youngest-ever player to win a World Championship match at the Crucible. Steve Longworth led 5–4 after the first session of his match, and won five successive frames to defeat Kirk Stevens 10–5. Terry Griffiths also progressed from a 5–4 interval lead to a 10–4 win, against Jim Wych . Alex Higgins, due to start a six-month ban after the Championship, eliminated first-year professional Jon Wright 10–6. Jimmy White led Dean Reynolds 5–4 at
5624-423: Was 4–3 ahead of Griffiths after their first session, and 10–5 ahead by the end of the second. He wrapped up a 13–5 win and with breaks of 62, 86 and 51 in three frames in the final session. It was the fifth time that Davis had defeated Griffiths at the World Championship, and the largest winning margin of those encounters. White won all eight frames in the first session in his match against O'Kane, and after winning
5700-441: Was held at Preston Guild Hall from 26 March to 4 April which produced the 16 qualifying players who progressed into the main draw to play the top 16 seeds . The top 16 players in the latest world rankings automatically qualified for the main draw as seeded players. As defending champion, Joe Johnson was seeded first for the event; the remaining 15 seeds were allocated based on the players' world ranking positions. Matches in
5776-449: Was played from 23 to 27 April with matches as the best-of-25 frames held over three sessions. Johnson led MacLeod 6–2 and 10–6 after the first two sessions, winning 13–7. Hendry and Longworth were level at 4–4 after their first session, with Hendry then opening up a 7–4 lead with breaks of 96, 54 and 89, and finishing the second session 10–6 ahead after winning the 16th frame on a re-spotted black. Later trailing by six frames, Longworth won
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