Rankings revisit - a trip through history

Mark Johnston-Allen's ghost lives on in Slessor/Ursenbacher. (Slessenbacher? Ursenbachssor?)

1995 Grand Prix - Crowtree Centre, Sunderland
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1995_Grand_Prix_(snooker)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunderland,_Tyne_and_Wear

The Grand Prix was played in Sunderland rather than Derby this year.

It was a very good event for Steve James, who had been tumbling down the rankings for a few years. He made it to the semi-finals, beating Steve Davis, an in-form Dene O'Kane, peak Dave Finbow (don't laugh, he was good), and an up-and-coming Quinten Hann.

Stephen Hendry won the event though, asserting his dominance. Following this event, he is way, way ahead of everyone else in the rankings.
He beat John Higgins in the final, who now moves above Ronnie O'Sullivan in the rankings for the first time. John goes second after Ronnie lost to Michael Duffy at the last 64 stage.

QFs:
John Higgins (4) 5-2 Jimmy White (9)
Alan McManus (10) 5-3 Joe Swail (15)
Steve James (61) 5-3 Steve Davis (5)
Stephen Hendry (1) 5-3 Fergal O'Brien (27)

SFs:
Higgins (4) 9-7 McManus (10)
Hendry (1) 9-5 James (61)

Final:
Hendry (1) 9-5 Higgins (4)

Following the event...

Top 8
1. Stephen Hendry 26638
2. John Higgins 16572
3. Ronnie O'Sullivan 16283
4. John Parrott 15488
5. Steve Davis 14174
6. Jimmy White 14160
7. Nigel Bond 13755
8. Peter Ebdon 13300

Top 16
In: Fergal O'Brien
Out: Gary Wilkinson

Top 32
In: Dene O'Kane
Out: Drew Henry

Top 64
In: Matthew Stevens
Out: Doug Mountjoy

Top 128
In: Sam Chong
Out: Nick Pearce

1995 UK Championship - Guild Hall, Preston
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1995_UK_Championship

This event was a masterclass of Stephen Hendry's brilliance. He lost only 15 frames on his way to the title, giving him an aggregate frame score of 55-15. His highest breaks in the competition were 147 and 146, the 146 coming in the last frame of the final, sealing a comprehensive 10-3 victory over Peter Ebdon.

Mark Williams has been a little slower to reach the top than Ronnie O'Sullivan and John Higgins, but he breaks into the top 16 for the first time following this event. He reached the quarter-finals after defeating Joe Swail, Tony Drago and John Parrott.

L16
Stephen Hendry (1) 9-2 Gary Wilkinson (18)
Ken Doherty (12) 9-1 Dennis Taylor (48)
Mark Williams (28) 9-6 John Parrott (4)
John Higgins (2) 9-6 Jimmy White (6)
Peter Ebdon (8) 9-7 Stephen Lee (34)
Nigel Bond (7) 9-2 Wayne Jones (56)
Andy Hicks (13) 9-8 James Wattana (9)
Ronnie O'Sullivan (3) 9-2 Chris Small (22)

QFs
Hendry (1) 9-3 Doherty (12)
Higgins (2) 9-6 Williams (28)
Ebdon (8) 9-7 Bond (7)
Hicks (13) 9-7 O'Sullivan (3)

SFs
Hendry (1) 9-1 Higgins (2)
Ebdon (8) 9-1 Hicks (13)

Final
Hendry (1) 10-3 Ebdon (8)

Following the event...

Top 8
1. Stephen Hendry 25604
2. John Higgins 18988
3. Ronnie O'Sullivan 15717
4. Peter Ebdon 14330
5. John Parrott 13848
6. Nigel Bond 13315
7. Jimmy White 12553
8. James Wattana 12354

Top 16
In: Mark Williams
Out: Fergal O'Brien

Top 32
In: Stephen Lee; Paul Davies
Out: Rod Lawler; Mark Davis

Top 64
In: Doug Mountjoy; Tony Meo
Out: Mike Hallett; Tony Jones

Top 128
In: Paul Hunter; Dylan Leary
Out: Peter Daubney; Colin Morton

SFs
Hendry (1) 9-1 Higgins (2)
Ebdon (8) 9-1 Hicks (13)

Hopefully todays semis will be more competitive than that.

chengdufan could you put the top16 after each event.thanks

csprince wrote:chengdufan could you put the top16 after each event.thanks

No problem

KrazeeEyezKilla wrote:

chengdufan wrote:1994-95 End of Season rankings:
126 +41 Pat Kenny 1072

https://youtu.be/A3xFxaVucmE

Our Pat Kenny (https://cuetracker.net/players/pat-kenn ... statistics) did get a 147 in competition in 1994, one of only 6 century breaks in his career. He achieved this in the first round of the 1994 Strachan Challenge Event 1.
https://cuetracker.net/tournaments/stra ... 1/1994/455

This break is not included on the list of maximums on Wiki:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maximum_break

I don't know why not, do you?

1995 German Open - Messe Frankfurt, Frankfurt
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1995_German_Open_(snooker)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frankfurt

John Higgins claimed his 4th title, winning the first ever ranking event in Germany.
He comfortably beat Ken Doherty in the final, after Ken had knocked out Stephen Hendry in the semis.

Ronnie O'Sullivan continued his poor start to the season, this time losing to Mark King in the last 32.

QFs:
Stephen Hendry (1) 5-3 Rod Lawler (33)
Ken Doherty (12) 5-2 Mark Bennett (39)
John Higgins (2) 5-4 Darren Morgan (13)
Alan McManus (11) 5-3 David Roe (45)

SFs:
Doherty (12) 6-3 Hendry (1)
Higgins (2) 6-5 McManus (11)

Final:
Higgins (2) 9-3 Doherty (12)

Following the 1995 German Open...

Top 16
1 = Stephen Hendry 27080
2 = John Higgins 21824
3 = Ronnie O'Sullivan 15885
4 = Peter Ebdon 14906
5 = John Parrott 14424
6 = Nigel Bond 13675
7 +1 James Wattana 12786
8 -1 Jimmy White 12721
9 = Steve Davis 12691
10 +1 Alan McManus 12358
11 +1 Ken Doherty 11239
12 -2 Andy Hicks 10864
13 = Darren Morgan 9379
14 = Joe Swail 8237
15 = Dave Harold 7973
16 = Mark Williams 7906

Top 16 - no change

Top 32
In: Rod Lawler
Out: Paul Davies

Top 64 - no change
Top 128 - no change

1996 Welsh Open - Newport Centre
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1996_Welsh_Open_(snooker)

The first ranking event of 1996 was a great one for exciting new talent.

Mark Williams, who has recently broken into the top 16 in these rankings, won his first ever ranking title, comprehensively beating John Parrott in the final.

And it was a coming of age event for Paul Hunter and Graeme Dott.
Hunter won eleven matches on his way to the semi-finals, including a 5-1 win over Nigel Bond.
Meanwhile, Dott reached the quarters with excellent wins over fellow Scots Alan McManus and John Higgins.

Stephen Hendry lost to Dave Harold in the last 16, while Ronnie O'Sullivan fell at the last 32 stage again, beaten this time by Billy Snaddon.

QFs:
Mark Williams (16) 5-3 Peter Ebdon (4)
Dave Harold (15) 5-2 Darren Morgan (13)
John Parrott (5) 5-2 Graeme Dott (112)
Paul Hunter (111) 5-4 Drew Henry (39)

SFs:
Williams (16) 6-1 Harold (15)
Parrott (5) 6-1 Hunter (111)

Final:
Williams (16) 9-3 Parrott (5)

Qualifying matches for the remaining 6 events of the season were played before the Welsh Open, so there have been quite a few changes up and down the rankings.

Following the 1996 Welsh Open...

Top 16
1 = Stephen Hendry 26136
2 = John Higgins 20877
3 +2 John Parrott 15860
4 = Peter Ebdon 15393
5 -2 Ronnie O'Sullivan 14334
6 = Nigel Bond 13272
7 +1 Jimmy White 12619
8 -1 James Wattana 12568
9 +1 Alan McManus 12370
10 -1 Steve Davis 12289
11 +5 Mark Williams 11647
12 -1 Ken Doherty 11267
13 -1 Andy Hicks 10464
14 -1 Darren Morgan 10071
15 = Dave Harold 8725
16 +1 Chris Small 8681

In: Chris Small
Out: Joe Swail

Top 32
In: Drew Henry; Terry Murphy; Paul Davies; Mark Bennett
Out: Anthony Hamilton; Willie Thorne; Dene O'Kane; Terry Griffiths

Top 64
In: Graeme Dott; Paul Hunter; Jimmy Michie; Mike Hallett; Karl Broughton; Gerard Greene; Jason Prince; Ian Brumby
Out: Cliff Thorburn; Tony Meo; Tony Knowles; Nigel Gilbert; Matthew Couch; Doug Mountjoy; Brian Morgan; Peter Francisco

Top 128
In: Oliver King; Craig MacGillivray; (activates copy and paste) Martin Dziewialtowski; Joe Grech; Graham Horne; Karl Burrows
Out: Pat Kenny; Jason Weston; Sean Lanigan; Dylan Leary; Sam Chong; Eddie Charlton

chengdufan wrote:

csprince wrote:chengdufan could you put the top16 after each event.thanks

No problem

thanks chengdufan.

1996 International Open - Link Centre, Swindon
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1996_International_Open
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swindon

The 1996 International Open was held in the exciting environs of Swindon, Wiltshire.

No fewer than 10 of the top 16 were knocked out in the last 64, the first round of the main event! Remarkable really.
3 more, Hendry, Williams and Bond, were knocked out at the next stage, while Chris Small lost in the last 16.

The last men standing were John Higgins and Dave Harold. Harold was beaten in the quarter final by world number 132 Nick Pearce, but Higgins held his nerve. The 20-year-old Wizard somehow managed to avoid the curse affecting his fellow top pros, and beat exciting* up-and-coming 24 year-old Rod Lawler (yes, that one) 9-3 in the final. This was his fifth ranking title.

QFs:
John Higgins (2) 5-2 Karl Broughton (58)
Alain Robidoux (27) 5-2 Stephen Lee (19)
Nick Pearce (132) 5-2 Dave Harold (15)
Rod Lawler (23) 5-1 Dave Finbow (18)

SFs:
Higgins (2) 6-4 Robidoux (27)
Lawler (23) 6-5 Pearce (132)

Final:
Higgins (2) 9-3 Lawler (23)

*While 'exciting' is the stock adjective for young players moving up the rankings, I do not mean that Rod's game was exciting to watch.

Following the 1996 International Championship...

Top 16
1 = Stephen Hendry 25952
2 = John Higgins 23170
3 +1 Peter Ebdon 14921
4 -1 John Parrott 14767
5 = Ronnie O'Sullivan 14221
6 = Nigel Bond 13154
7 +4 Mark Williams 12021
8 = James Wattana 11588
9 -2 Jimmy White 11483
10 -1 Alan McManus 11262
11 +1 Ken Doherty 10919
12 -2 Steve Davis 10663
13 = Andy Hicks 10419
14 = Darren Morgan 9664
15 +1 Chris Small 9533
16 +7 Rod Lawler 9491

In: Rod Lawler
Out: Dave Harold

Top 32
In: Anthony Hamilton
Out: Mark Bennett

Top 64
In: Barry Pinches; Chris Scanlon; Michael Judge
Out: Martin Clark; Ian Brumby; Stephen Murphy

Top 128
In: Nick Pearce
Out: - (2 players joint 128)

1996 European Open - Mediterranean Conference Centre, Valletta
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1996_Euro ... n_(snooker)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valletta

From Swindon, the players travelled to Malta. It was generally a similarly poor performance from the top players, with many of them exiting early again.
The class of 92 all lost in the first round. Ronnie O'Sullivan to Dave Finbow, John Higgins was thrashed 5-0 by Joe Johnson, and Mark Williams lost to a rapidly declining Terry Griffiths. And then Stephen Hendry was beaten by Joe Swail in the last 16.

John Parrott and Peter Ebdon showed the rest how it was done and contested a close final. Parrott's experience told in the end, the 31-year-old beating the 25-year-old 9-7.

QFs:
John Parrott (4) 5-1 Dave Harold (17)
Joe Swail (21) 5-3 Anthony Davies (30)
Peter Ebdon (3) 5-2 Tony Drago (27)
Andy Hicks (13) 5-1 Ton Chappel (38)

SFs:
Parrott (4) 6-5 Swail (21)
Ebdon (3) 6-3 Hicks (13)

Final:
Parrott (4) 9-7 Ebdon (3)

Following the 1996 European Open...

Top 16
1 = Stephen Hendry 26456
2 = John Higgins 23170
3 +1 John Parrott 17603
4 -1 Peter Ebdon 17497
5 = Ronnie O'Sullivan 14445
6 = Nigel Bond 13210
7 = Mark Williams 12245
8 +5 Andy Hicks 11895
9 -1 James Wattana 11756
10 -1 Jimmy White 11595
11 = Ken Doherty 11507
12 -2 Alan McManus 11486
13 -1 Steve Davis 10731
14 = Darren Morgan 10168
15 +2 Dave Harold 10090
16 +5 Joe Swail 10078

In: Dave Harold; Joe Swail
Out: Chris Small; Rod Lawler

Top 32
In: Tony Chappel
Out: Paul Davies

Top 64
In: Ian Brumby
Out: Michael Judge

Top 128 - no change

Parrott always seemed to do well in Europe. I think I’m right to say all his ranking titles (except his World and UK) came overseas.

badtemperedcyril wrote:Parrott always seemed to do well in Europe. I think I’m right to say all his ranking titles (except his World and UK) came overseas.

That's right, this was one of three European Opens he won! He also won the Dubai Classic twice, and the Thailand Classic once.

He did win one other event in the UK, the 1994 International Open, in Bournemouth.

1996 Thailand Open - Montien Riverside Hotel, Bangkok
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1996_Thailand_Open

This was the second ranking event of the season to be held in Thailand.
It was a dramatic return to form for Alan McManus, who had been steadily slipping down the rankings over the last year or so. He won his second (and to date, final) ranking title.
Although he was perhaps fortunate not to face Stephen Hendry in the final (Hendry had been defeated by Ken Doherty in the semis), his run to the title was by no means easy, beating as he did Neal Foulds, Alain Robidoux, James Wattana, Peter Ebdon, and then Doherty in a final frame decider.

24 year-old Jamie Woodman, who today owns a Caravan Park in Somerset, was the surprise package of the event. He made it as far as the quarter-finals after winning seven matches, including victories over Danny Fowler, Mark King, Martin Clark, Terry Griffiths and Anthony Hamilton.

QFs:
Alan McManus (12) 5-4 James Wattana (9)
Peter Ebdon (4) 5-0 John Higgins (2)
Ken Doherty (11) 5-1 Jamie Woodman (67)
Stephen Hendry (1) 5-1 John Parrott (3)

SFs:
McManus (12) 6-5 Ebdon (4)
Doherty (11) 6-3 Hendry (1)

Final:
McManus (12) 9-8 Doherty (11)

Following the 1996 Thailand Open...

Top 16
1 = Stephen Hendry 27904
2 = John Higgins 23886
3 +1 Peter Ebdon 18982
4 -1 John Parrott 18303
5 = Ronnie O'Sullivan 15081
6 +5 Ken Doherty 14119
7 +5 Alan McManus 13927
8 -2 Nigel Bond 13400
9 -2 Mark Williams 12245
10 -1 James Wattana 12031
11 -3 Andy Hicks 11895
12 -2 Jimmy White 11881
13 = Steve Davis 10545
14 +2 Joe Swail 10454
15 = Dave Harold 10272
16 -2 Darren Morgan 10140

no ins or outs

Top 32 - no change

Top 64
In: Jamie Woodman
Out: John Read

Top 128
In: -
Out: Tai Pichit

chengdufan wrote:

badtemperedcyril wrote:Parrott always seemed to do well in Europe. I think I’m right to say all his ranking titles (except his World and UK) came overseas.

That's right, this was one of three European Opens he won! He also won the Dubai Classic twice, and the Thailand Classic once.

He did win one other event in the UK, the 1994 International Open, in Bournemouth.

I'd forgotten that one - my bad.

1996 British Open - Plymouth Pavilions
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1996_British_Open

The British Open was the ninth of ten ranking events in the 1995-96 season. We're nearly at the 1996 World Championship!

Nigel Bond won a famous victory in Plymouth, entertaining Janners by winning deciding frames in both his semi-final and his final. This was his first (and to date, only) ranking title.

Mark Johnston-Allen popped up again out of nowhere for this event, beating Steve Davis in the last 64. This result means that Davis drops out of the top 16 of our rankings for the first time since 1980. He was ranked 18th after his first ranking event, the 1979 World Championship, and ranked 5th after his second, the 1980 World Championship.

QFs:
Ronnie O'Sullivan (5) 5-3 Mark Williams (9)
John Higgins (2) 5-3 John Parrott (4)
Dave Harold (15) 5-1 Darren Morgan (16)
Nigel Bond (8) 5-3 Peter Ebdon (3)

SFs:
Higgins (2) 6-4 O'Sullivan (5)
Bond (8) 6-5 Harold (15)

Final:
Bond (8) 9-8 Higgins (2)

Following the 1996 British Open...

Top 16
1 = Stephen Hendry 27516
2 = John Higgins 25853
3 = Peter Ebdon 19060
4 = John Parrott 18492
5 +3 Nigel Bond 15473
6 -1 Ronnie O'Sullivan 15009
7 -1 Ken Doherty 14291
8 -1 Alan McManus 13236
9 = Mark Williams 12788
10 +1 Andy Hicks 12196
11 +1 Jimmy White 11810
12 +3 Dave Harold 11751
13 -3 James Wattana 10984
14 = Joe Swail 10679
15 +1 Darren Morgan 10416
16 +1 Stephen Lee 10082

In: Stephen Lee
Out: Steve Davis

Top 32
In: Steve James
Out: Tony Chappel

Top 64
In: Martin Clark; Tony Knowles
Out: Chris Scanlon; Ian Brumby

Top 128
In: Tai Pichit; John Giles; Steve Meakin; Noppadon Noppachorn
Out: Silvino Francisco; Ken Owers; Jim Wych; Nick Fruin

Interestingly, Silvino is still playing. He hasn't made it as far as the last 128 in many events so far this season (one, maybe two of the nine). His nephew Peter hasn't played any events this season, though is still ranked 99th in these rankings due to the points he gained in the 94-95 season.
Their careers rankings using our system has them remarkably matched throughout. They seem to have risen and fallen together for the majority of the time.

Here is the draw for the first round of the 1996 World Championship:

Stephen Hendry (1) v Jason Ferguson (48)
David Roe (37) v Gary Wilkinson (22)
Ken Doherty (7) v Nick Terry (54)
Darren Morgan (15) v Drew Henry (26)
James Wattana (13) v Jimmy Michie (52)
Nigel Bond (5) v Anthony Hamilton (23)
Dave Harold (12) v Neal Foulds (34)
John Parrott (4) v Rod Lawler (18)
Ronnie O'Sullivan (6) v Alain Robidoux (20)
Tony Drago (27) v Steve James (31)
John Higgins (2) v Martin Clark (59)
Alan McManus (8) v Mick Price (57)
Jimmy White (11) v Euan Henderson (51)
Peter Ebdon (3) v Dene O'Kane (41)
Terry Griffiths (46) v Jamie Burnett (39)
Steve Davis (17) v Willie Thorne (33)

4 members of the top 16 failed to qualify:
Mark Williams 8-10 Jamie Burnett (L96)
Andy Hicks 6-10 Jimmy Michie (L48)
Joe Swail 9-10 Euan Henderson (L48)
Stephen Lee 8-10 Chris Small (L64)

With Stephen Hendry's points from winning the 1994 World Championship due to come off, John Higgins goes into the championship as the provisional end of season number 1...

Let's have a look at the first round results:

Stephen Hendry (1) 10-8 Jason Ferguson (48)
David Roe (37) 9-10 Gary Wilkinson (22)
Ken Doherty (7) 10-5 Nick Terry (54)
Darren Morgan (15) 10-8 Drew Henry (26)
James Wattana (13) 10-8 Jimmy Michie (52)
Nigel Bond (5) 10-9 Anthony Hamilton (23)
Dave Harold (12) 10-4 Neal Foulds (34)
John Parrott (4) 6-10 Rod Lawler (18)
Ronnie O'Sullivan (6) 10-3 Alain Robidoux (20)
Tony Drago (27) 10-2 Steve James (31)
John Higgins (2) 10-5 Martin Clark (59)
Alan McManus (8) 10-5 Mick Price (57)
Jimmy White (11) 10-9 Euan Henderson (51)
Peter Ebdon (3) 10-1 Dene O'Kane (41)
Terry Griffiths (46) 10-9 Jamie Burnett (39)
Steve Davis (17) 10-8 Willie Thorne (33)

John Parrott and David Roe were the only seeds to lose, although Roe's defeat to Wilkinson should not have come as a surprise.
It has been mentioned on the island that John Parrott disrespected Rod Lawler at one point, so perhaps that result is not too much of a shock either, particularly with Lawler on the way up and playing as the highest ranked qualifier. It was a great result for thim though, with Parrott still being one of the top players in the game. Lawler provisionsally moves into the top 16 as a result.

Terry Griffiths' win over Jamie Burnett is notable. Griffiths has had a very poor season and has slipped all the way to 46th. We can see that his status as a true top-16 player ended around late 1994. Meanwhile, Jamie Burnett has had some good results and been moving up. In fact, at this point, he is 7 places above Griffiths.
It seems Griffiths' Crucible experience saw him through in this match.

1996 World Championship Last 16

I've put the higher ranked player of the real rankings on the left, to help comparison between the two ranking systems.

Hendry (1) 13-7 Wilkinson (22)
Morgan (15) 13-5 Doherty (7)
Wattana (13) 4-13 Bond (5)
Harold (12) 13-6 Lawler (18)
O'Sullivan (6) 13-4 Drago (27)
McManus (8) 5-13 Higgins (2)
White (11) 12-13 Ebdon (3)
Davis (17) 13-8 Griffiths (46)

So the higher seeded player won in 5 of the 8 matches. The player with the higher ranking based on our rankings won 7 of the 8 matches.

The surprise result from the last 16 was 8th seed Darren Morgan beating 9th seed Ken Doherty, particularly the convincing manner of the victory.

1996 World Championship - Crucible Theatre, Sheffield
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1996_Worl ... ampionship

Stephen Hendry won his fifth consecutive World Championship, beating Peter Ebdon in the final.

It was an eventful, erm.. event, for Ronnie O'Sullivan, being accused by Robidoux of disrespect for playing a frame left-handed in the first round, being fined 30,000GBP and given a 2-year suspended ban for assaulting an official, and taking part in a record fast 167 minute bo25 frame match with Tony Drago.

QFs:
Hendry (1) 13-5 Morgan (15)
Bond (5) 13-7 Harold (12)
O'Sullivan (6) 13-12 Higgins (2)
Davis (17) 10-13 Ebdon (3)

SFs:
Hendry (1) 16-7 Bond (5)
O'Sullivan (6) 14-16 Ebdon (3)

Final:
Hendry (1) 18-12 Ebdon (3)

Hendry's victory, along with Higgins' (slightly) surprising reverse to O'Sullivan in the quarter final, means that Hendry retains his number 1 ranking.