James Galvin

Last night I attended the Cork Masters / Liam O’Connor Memorial snooker match between Stephen Hendry and the defending champion: Dominic Dale. I have never been a huge snooker fan, although I would happily watch it when theres a tournament on, in the same way I might watch bobsledding in the winter olympics. But on this occasion, my brother had VIP tickets courtesy of 96fm. With the match hosted only 18 minutes away (in The Commons in Blackpool) there was no excuse not to go.

Dominic Dale drew first blood, dealing so comfortably with the initial long shots that it reminded me of that time I once potted three balls in a row in the Vic. An impressive break of 92 or so gave him that frame, and when he followed this up with a century break, I was thoroughly satisfied. You could go to a thousand snooker halls and never see a player like this. A nice guy too, very sound (despite the embarrassing ‘flamboyant’ dress and hair style) and I was happy for him when he made it 3-0.

The Scottish superstar scowling in the far corner looked even more pissed off than usual. Perhaps it was because the tiny crowd, inclusive of restless kids in Man Utd jersies and disinterested women who went for drinks during play. It might have been the slightly miserable venue in the heart of beautiful Blackpool that was not worthy of the talents of the most successful snooker player of all time, and current #2 in the world, but he was not enjoying himself at all. Or maybe he just wasn’t warmed up properly, because after a 10min break he came back and destroyed the Welshman, taking five frames straight to win 5-3 (ending with a very impressive break of 124). It was great entertainment, well worth the 15euro that I didn’t have to pay. Hendry seemed friendly enough too when I met him afterwards, although I can’t say for sure because I couldn’t understand a word he was saying.

I was looking forward to attending the final - Hendry vs Doherty (who knocked out Steve Davis earlier), but laziness got the better of me. I will make an effort to go if its on again next year… front row seats make all the difference. I had no idea that Stephen Hendry was such a legend:

1. Hendry has won the World Snooker Championships seven times, a record for the modern era, and is thus regarded as the greatest player of all time.
2. He was Scottish Amateur Champion at the age of 15, and turned professional aged just 16.
3. Hendry first won the World Professional Snooker Championship in at the age of 21, becoming the youngest player ever to win the event.
4. He has earned more prize money than any other player (about £8 million).
5. He has scored the most 147s (eight times).
6. He is the only player to have scored a 147 in a deciding frame.
7. He has compiled the most century breaks (currently over 700).
8. He holds the most ranking event titles (36).
9. Winner of 6 masters titles - 5 of which were in a row. 7 World titles (5 in a row). 18 major titles (World, UK, Masters).
10. In 1990/1991, he won five ranking events - a record for a single season.
11. He had the longest unbeaten run spanning 10 month and over 5 events.
12. He was ranked number 1 from 1990 to 1998 in a record breaking 8 season streak.
13. He has won 72 professional titles in total - just one less than Steve Davis’ record of 73.
14. He was awarded an MBE in 1994.
15. He was voted BBC Scotland’s Sports Personality of the Year in 1987 and 1996.
16. He has been voted World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association Player of the Year of the Year on seven occasions.
17. He played in the 2005 World Series of Poker.

There are at least 17 reasons why you’d think he might cheer up a bit