Stephen Lee
Encyclopedia
Stephen Lee is a professional snooker
-player from Trowbridge
, Wiltshire
, England
, whose smooth cue action is regarded by some pundits as the most natural in the game. He has won four ranking titles, and spent 10 seasons in the Top 16 of the world rankings (including 6 in the top 8) before dropping out for the snooker season 2008/2009. Since his return, he has made a come-back to the top 16 for the 2010/11 season. Lee has compiled over 100 competitive century break
s during his career.
in 1992. During his first season as a professional he had a run of 33 successive frames won during qualifying matches, an all-time professional record. He reached the Top 16 of the rankings five years later, despite never having reached the semi-finals of a ranking event at this point. He entered the Top 8 after winning his first ranking title during the 1998/1999
season.
, in 1998 defeating Dave Harold
6–4 in a hard-fought semi-final that saw Lee come from 3–0 and 4–1 down, before beating newcomer Marco Fu
convincingly in the final, 9–2) and 2001. In the World Championship
his best run has been to the semi-finals (in the 2003 event
). His first ranking title and first two ranking semi-finals were all achieved without beating a top-16 player. After a failed drugs test in 2000 briefly upset his momentum, he scored more ranking points than any other player in the 2001/2002
season (winning the Scottish Open
as well as the Grand Prix), thus briefly making him the provisional world #1 early in the following season. Lee was favourite to win the 2001 Masters, but lost 5–6 in the first round to John Parrott
. He was part of the England team which won the 2001 Nations Cup.
Due to a dip in form, at the 2006 Welsh Open
he came to the competition outside the provisional Top 16 after failing to win a ranking tournament for four years. He went on to win the tournament, beating the World Champion, Shaun Murphy
9–4 in the final.
For 2007/2008
he slipped to #13 in the rankings after reaching just one semi-final, partly due to missing the China Open for personal reasons,. He nevertheless reached the final of the 2008 Masters, losing 10–3 to Mark Selby
. Following a heavy defeat by Joe Swail
in the first round of the 2008 World Championship, confirming his drop out of the top 16 of the rankings, Lee considered retiring from the game.
However, he did compete in the first ranking event of the 2008/2009 season, the 2008 Northern Ireland Trophy, and after convincing wins over Judd Trump
and Stephen Hendry
, he reached the last 16, where despite making three century breaks he lost 4–5 to eventual runner-up Dave Harold
. He then failed to qualify for the Shanghai Masters, losing 4–5 to Tom Ford
. He reached the 2009 World Championship by defeating Judd Trump
in qualifying, but was beaten 10–4 in the first round by Ryan Day
.
On 11 February 2010 Lee was arrested by West Midlands Police
on suspicion of cheating, in relation to an investigation by the Gambling Commission over suspicious betting patterns.
During the 2010/2011
season Lee managed to regain some form including a win in Event 4
of the EPTC events. However he drew John Higgins at both the UK Championship losing on both occasions with Higgins going on to win both events. At the China Open
he drew Mark Williams
and despite Williams making four centuries he won 5–4, making a 61 clearance to the black in the decider. He went on to the quarter-finals where he lost to Ding Junhui
5–2.
. He has four children – a daughter called Shana, son Connor and twin sons Ronnie and Alfie. He is noted for his unusually high weight for a professional sportsman, although he has attempted to reduce this by not binge-drinking or eating late at night.
| valign=top width=40% align=left |
{| class="wikitable"
|- bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|Legend
|- bgcolor="#e5d1cb"
| World Championship (0–0)
|- bgcolor="dfe2e9"
| UK Championship (0–0)
|- bgcolor=
| Other (4–2)
|}
{| class="sortable wikitable"
|-
|width="80"|Outcome
|width="20"|No.
|width="50"|Year
|width="250"|Championship
|width="200"|Opponent in the final
|width="100"|Score
|-
| style="background:#98FB98"|Winner
| 1.
| 1998
| Grand Prix
|
| 9–2
|-
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Runner-up
| 1.
| 2000
| Welsh Open
|
| 8–9
|-
| style="background:#98FB98"|Winner
| 2.
| 2001
| LG Cup
|
| 9–4
|-
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Runner-up
| 2.
| 2002
| Thailand Masters
|
| 4–9
|-
| style="background:#98FB98"|Winner
| 3.
| 2002
| Scottish Open
|
| 9–2
|-
| style="background:#98FB98"|Winner
| 4.
| 2006
| Welsh Open
|
| 9–4
|}
|-
|width="80"|Outcome
|width="20"|No.
|width="50"|Year
|width="250"|Championship
|width="200"|Opponent in the final
|width="100"|Score
|-
| style="background:#98FB98"|Winner
| 1.
| 2010
| MIUS Cup
|
| 4–2
|}
Snooker
Snooker is a cue sport that is played on a green baize-covered table with pockets in each of the four corners and in the middle of each of the long side cushions. A regular table is . It is played using a cue and snooker balls: one white , 15 worth one point each, and six balls of different :...
-player from Trowbridge
Trowbridge
Trowbridge is the county town of Wiltshire, England, situated on the River Biss in the west of the county, approximately 12 miles southeast of Bath, Somerset....
, Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, whose smooth cue action is regarded by some pundits as the most natural in the game. He has won four ranking titles, and spent 10 seasons in the Top 16 of the world rankings (including 6 in the top 8) before dropping out for the snooker season 2008/2009. Since his return, he has made a come-back to the top 16 for the 2010/11 season. Lee has compiled over 100 competitive century break
Century break
In snooker a century break refers to scoring 100 points or more within one at the table, without missing a shot. The player does this by potting and alternately. Scoring 100 points over the course of a whole frame is not a century, as it must be done during one turn at the table...
s during his career.
Early career
Lee turned professional after winning the English Amateur ChampionshipEnglish Amateur Championship
The English Amateur Championship is a snooker competition that has been played since 1916.The first two tournaments were won by Charles Nathaniel Jaques, who was subsequently shot through the wrist in World War I and unable to defend his title again....
in 1992. During his first season as a professional he had a run of 33 successive frames won during qualifying matches, an all-time professional record. He reached the Top 16 of the rankings five years later, despite never having reached the semi-finals of a ranking event at this point. He entered the Top 8 after winning his first ranking title during the 1998/1999
Snooker season 1998/1999
The snooker season 1998/1999 was a series of snooker tournaments played during the years 1998 and 1999. The following table outlines the results for ranking events and the invitational events.-Calendar:...
season.
1998–present
His first ranking victory came at the Grand PrixGrand Prix (snooker)
The World Open is a professional ranking snooker tournament. It has previously been known as the Professional Players Tournament, the LG Cup and the Grand Prix. During 2006 and 2007, it was played in a unique round-robin format, more similar to association football and rugby tournaments than the...
, in 1998 defeating Dave Harold
Dave Harold
David 'Dave' Harold is an English professional snooker player from Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. He is known by the nicknames of "the Hard Man" and "the Stoke Potter"...
6–4 in a hard-fought semi-final that saw Lee come from 3–0 and 4–1 down, before beating newcomer Marco Fu
Marco Fu
Marco Fu Ka-chun , commonly known as Marco Fu, is a professional snooker player from Hong Kong. He currently resides in Happy Valley. He is best known for winning the 2007 Grand Prix, beating Ronnie O'Sullivan in the final, and for being runner-up in the 2008 UK Championship...
convincingly in the final, 9–2) and 2001. In the World Championship
World Snooker Championship
The World Snooker Championship is the leading professional snooker tournament in terms of both prize money and ranking points. The first championship was held in 1927; since 1977, it has been played at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield, England...
his best run has been to the semi-finals (in the 2003 event
World Snooker Championship 2003
The 2003 Embassy World Snooker Championship professional ranking snooker tournament took place between 19 April and 5 May 2003 at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield....
). His first ranking title and first two ranking semi-finals were all achieved without beating a top-16 player. After a failed drugs test in 2000 briefly upset his momentum, he scored more ranking points than any other player in the 2001/2002
Snooker season 2001/2002
The snooker season 2001/2002 was a series of snooker tournaments played during the years 2001 and 2002. The following table outlines the results for ranking events and the invitational events.-Calendar:- Official rankings :...
season (winning the Scottish Open
Players Championship (snooker)
The Players Championship was a professional snooker tournament. It is the most recent name of the ranking tournament held in Scotland every year. The tournament has had a bewildering number of name changes in its history. Until recently it was commonly known as the Scottish Open, and prior to that...
as well as the Grand Prix), thus briefly making him the provisional world #1 early in the following season. Lee was favourite to win the 2001 Masters, but lost 5–6 in the first round to John Parrott
John Parrott
John Parrott MBE is an English professional snooker player and TV personality.He won the World Snooker Championship in 1991, defeating Jimmy White in the final. Two years earlier he had lost 3–18 to Steve Davis, the heaviest final defeat in modern times...
. He was part of the England team which won the 2001 Nations Cup.
Due to a dip in form, at the 2006 Welsh Open
Welsh Open (snooker)
The Welsh Open is a professional ranking snooker tournament. It replaced the Welsh Professional Championship, which started in 1980 and was only open to Welsh players.- History :...
he came to the competition outside the provisional Top 16 after failing to win a ranking tournament for four years. He went on to win the tournament, beating the World Champion, Shaun Murphy
Shaun Murphy (snooker player)
Shaun Murphy is an English professional snooker player, who won the 2005 World Championship. Nicknamed "The Magician", Murphy is noted for his straight cue action and his long potting. He is known for his dedication and for being a devout Christian.Born in Harlow, England, Murphy turned...
9–4 in the final.
For 2007/2008
Snooker season 2007/2008
The Snooker Season 2007/2008 was a series of snooker tournaments played during 2007 and 2008. The following table outlines the results and dates for all the ranking and major invitational events...
he slipped to #13 in the rankings after reaching just one semi-final, partly due to missing the China Open for personal reasons,. He nevertheless reached the final of the 2008 Masters, losing 10–3 to Mark Selby
Mark Selby
Mark Anthony Selby is an English professional snooker and pool player. Runner up in the World Snooker Championship 2007, he was the 2006 WEPF World Eight-ball Champion. Selby has won the Masters on two occasions, the Welsh Open and the Shanghai Masters...
. Following a heavy defeat by Joe Swail
Joe Swail
-External links:*...
in the first round of the 2008 World Championship, confirming his drop out of the top 16 of the rankings, Lee considered retiring from the game.
However, he did compete in the first ranking event of the 2008/2009 season, the 2008 Northern Ireland Trophy, and after convincing wins over Judd Trump
Judd Trump
Judd Trump is an English professional snooker player from Bristol. He enjoyed considerable success in youth tournaments before turning professional in 2005. On 3 April 2011, Trump won his first ranking title, beating Mark Selby 10–8 in the final of the China Open...
and Stephen Hendry
Stephen Hendry
Stephen Gordon Hendry, MBE is a Scottish professional snooker player. In 1990, he was the youngest-ever snooker World Champion, at the age of 21. He has won the World Championship a record seven times and was snooker's world number one for eight consecutive years between 1990 and 1998, and again...
, he reached the last 16, where despite making three century breaks he lost 4–5 to eventual runner-up Dave Harold
Dave Harold
David 'Dave' Harold is an English professional snooker player from Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. He is known by the nicknames of "the Hard Man" and "the Stoke Potter"...
. He then failed to qualify for the Shanghai Masters, losing 4–5 to Tom Ford
Tom Ford (snooker player)
-External links:*...
. He reached the 2009 World Championship by defeating Judd Trump
Judd Trump
Judd Trump is an English professional snooker player from Bristol. He enjoyed considerable success in youth tournaments before turning professional in 2005. On 3 April 2011, Trump won his first ranking title, beating Mark Selby 10–8 in the final of the China Open...
in qualifying, but was beaten 10–4 in the first round by Ryan Day
Ryan Day
-External links:* * *...
.
On 11 February 2010 Lee was arrested by West Midlands Police
West Midlands Police
West Midlands Police is the territorial police force responsible for policing the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England.Covering an area with nearly 2.6 million inhabitants, which includes the cities of Birmingham, Coventry, Wolverhampton and also the Black Country; the force is made up...
on suspicion of cheating, in relation to an investigation by the Gambling Commission over suspicious betting patterns.
During the 2010/2011
Snooker season 2010/2011
The 2010/11 snooker season is a series of snooker tournaments played during 2010 and 2011. The following table outlines the results and dates for all the ranking and major invitational events.- Calendar :-New professional players:...
season Lee managed to regain some form including a win in Event 4
Euro Players Tour Championship 2010/2011 – Event 4
- Section 2 :- Section 3 :- Section 4 :- Section 5 :- Section 6 :- Section 7 :- Section 8 :- Finals :-Plate draw:-Century breaks:* 136, 133, 103, 100 Stephen Maguire* 133 Sam Baird* 132, 129, 119 Graeme Dott* 132 Mark Selby...
of the EPTC events. However he drew John Higgins at both the UK Championship losing on both occasions with Higgins going on to win both events. At the China Open
2011 China Open (snooker)
The 2011 Bank of Beijing China Open professional ranking snooker tournament took place between 28 March and 3 April 2011 at the Beijing University Students Gymnasium, Beijing, China....
he drew Mark Williams
Mark Williams (snooker player)
Mark James Williams, MBE is a Welsh professional snooker player who has been World Champion twice, in 2000 and 2003. Often noted for his single-ball potting, he has earned the nickname, The Welsh Potting Machine...
and despite Williams making four centuries he won 5–4, making a 61 clearance to the black in the decider. He went on to the quarter-finals where he lost to Ding Junhui
Ding Junhui
Ding Junhui is a Chinese professional snooker player. Ding Junhui is China's most successful player ever, having become only the second teenager, after John Higgins, to win three ranking titles...
5–2.
Personal life
He married long-term partner Laura in the summer of 2005 in FloridaFlorida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. He has four children – a daughter called Shana, son Connor and twin sons Ronnie and Alfie. He is noted for his unusually high weight for a professional sportsman, although he has attempted to reduce this by not binge-drinking or eating late at night.
Ranking event finals: 6 (4 titles, 2 runner-ups)
{|| valign=top width=40% align=left |
{| class="wikitable"
|- bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|Legend
|- bgcolor="#e5d1cb"
| World Championship (0–0)
|- bgcolor="dfe2e9"
| UK Championship (0–0)
|- bgcolor=
| Other (4–2)
|}
{| class="sortable wikitable"
|-
|width="80"|Outcome
|width="20"|No.
|width="50"|Year
|width="250"|Championship
|width="200"|Opponent in the final
|width="100"|Score
|-
| style="background:#98FB98"|Winner
| 1.
| 1998
| Grand Prix
|
| 9–2
|-
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Runner-up
| 1.
| 2000
| Welsh Open
Welsh Open (snooker)
The Welsh Open is a professional ranking snooker tournament. It replaced the Welsh Professional Championship, which started in 1980 and was only open to Welsh players.- History :...
|
| 8–9
|-
| style="background:#98FB98"|Winner
| 2.
| 2001
| LG Cup
|
| 9–4
|-
| style="background:#ffa07a;"|Runner-up
| 2.
| 2002
| Thailand Masters
|
| 4–9
|-
| style="background:#98FB98"|Winner
| 3.
| 2002
| Scottish Open
Players Championship (snooker)
The Players Championship was a professional snooker tournament. It is the most recent name of the ranking tournament held in Scotland every year. The tournament has had a bewildering number of name changes in its history. Until recently it was commonly known as the Scottish Open, and prior to that...
|
| 9–2
|-
| style="background:#98FB98"|Winner
| 4.
| 2006
| Welsh Open
Welsh Open (snooker)
The Welsh Open is a professional ranking snooker tournament. It replaced the Welsh Professional Championship, which started in 1980 and was only open to Welsh players.- History :...
|
| 9–4
|}
Minor-ranking wins
{| class="sortable wikitable"|-
|width="80"|Outcome
|width="20"|No.
|width="50"|Year
|width="250"|Championship
|width="200"|Opponent in the final
|width="100"|Score
|-
| style="background:#98FB98"|Winner
| 1.
| 2010
| MIUS Cup
Euro Players Tour Championship 2010/2011 – Event 4
- Section 2 :- Section 3 :- Section 4 :- Section 5 :- Section 6 :- Section 7 :- Section 8 :- Finals :-Plate draw:-Century breaks:* 136, 133, 103, 100 Stephen Maguire* 133 Sam Baird* 132, 129, 119 Graeme Dott* 132 Mark Selby...
|
| 4–2
|}
Non-ranking tournaments
- Millenium Cup – 1999
- General Cup International – 20112011 General Cup InternationalThe 2011 General Cup International was an invitational professional snooker tournament. It took place between 4–7 July 2011 at the General Snooker Club in Hong Kong...