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Fergal O'Brien

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For the racehorse trainer, see Fergal O'Brien (trainer).

Fergal O'Brien (born 8 March 1972) is an Irish retired professional snooker player who competed on the World Snooker Tour from 1991 to 2024. He won one ranking title during his career, defeating Anthony Hamilton 9–7 in the final of the 1999 British Open. He was runner-up at the 2001 Masters, where he lost the final 9–10 to Paul Hunter.[2] His best performance at the World Snooker Championship was reaching the quarter-finals of the 2000 event, where he lost 5–13 to eventual champion Mark Williams. He reached his highest world ranking of ninth in the 2000–01 season, but spent only three seasons of his 33-year career ranked inside the top 16. He retired from professional competition at the end of the 2023–24 season, intending to remain active in the sport as a coach and a commentator for Eurosport.[3][4]

Fergal O'Brien
O'Brien at the 2016 Paul Hunter Classic
Born (1972-03-08) 8 March 1972 (age 52)
County Dublin, Ireland
Sport country Ireland
NicknameFearless Fergal[1]
Professional1991–2024
Highest ranking9 (2000/01)
Current ranking 106 (as of 8 April 2024)
Maximum breaks1
Century breaks240 (as of 24 April 2024)
Tournament wins
Ranking1

Career edit

O'Brien is the only player to score a century in their first frame at the World Championships in the Crucible, which he achieved against Alan McManus in 1994 (though he lost the match 10–7 and did not qualify again until 1998). His greatest achievement was winning the British Open in 1999, beating Anthony Hamilton 9–7 in the final. Hamilton opened with two centuries, but O'Brien won five frames on the final black to defeat the Nottingham man.

O'Brien also came close to winning the Masters title in 2001. After beating Mark Williams, Ken Doherty and Dave Harold, he lost in the final to Paul Hunter after leading 7–3. He has reached one further ranking final, and three semi-finals

O'Brien peaked at No. 9 in the rankings following his sole title, but nosedived after this. He narrowly retained his top 16 place for the 2001/2002 season, but dropped out a year later – and then out of the top 32 a year later. Three further falls down the rankings left him at No. 45, before beginning to recover.

O'Brien's best run at the World Championship is the quarter-final and 2005 he became the first player to beat John Parrott in a World Championship qualifier.

 
Fergal O'Brien at 2015 German Masters

O'Brien started the 2007–08 campaign in Shanghai where he had beaten Paul Davies and Barry Hawkins in qualifying rounds, however, he lost to Steve Davis in the first round. O'Brien also qualified for the Grand Prix but lost four of his group matches to finish 5th in his group ahead of only Graeme Dott.

After qualifying for the main draw of the 2007 Northern Ireland Trophy by beating Barry Pinches in a deciding frame, O'Brien went on to beat Dave Harold in the first round of the main draw. Victories over John Higgins (in a decider), Barry Hawkins and Ronnie O'Sullivan, before he reached the second ranking-event final of his career by beating Mark Allen by 6 frames to 3. He lost the final to Stephen Maguire, 5–9. This run helped him return to the top 32 of the Snooker world rankings 2007/2008, but the early part of the 2008–09 season proved disappointing, O'Brien not reaching the last sixteen of any of the first four tournaments.

As of the end of 2009 O'Brien had compiled 101 competitive century breaks in his career.

He qualified for the Players Tour Championship 2011/2012 – Finals held in Galway but lost his Last 24 match 0–4 to Joe Perry.

On 12 April 2017, O’Brien qualified for the 2017 World Snooker Championship after a record-breaking victory in the final qualifying round match against David Gilbert. The final frame set the record for the longest frame of the modern era, lasting 123 minutes and 41 seconds.[5]

Performance and rankings timeline edit

Tourname 1991/
92 		1992/
93 		1993/
94 		1994/
95 		1995/
96 		1996/
97 		1997/
98 		1998/
99 		1999/
00 		2000/
01 		2001/
02 		2002/
03 		2003/
04 		2004/
05 		2005/
06 		2006/
07 		2007/
08 		2008/
09 		2009/
10 		2010/
11 		2011/
12 		2012/
13 		2013/
14 		2014/
15 		2015/
16 		2016/
17 		2017/
18 		2018/
19 		2019/
20 		2020/
21 		2021/
22 		2022/
23 		2023/
24
Ranking[6][nb 1] [nb 2] 192 100 42 38 36 23 20 11 9 16 23 33 41 44 46 37 24 31 47 37 34 36 31 27 40 45 51 63 [nb 3] 76 [nb 4] 94
Ranking tournaments
Championship League Tournament Not Held Non-Ranking Event RR 2R RR RR
European Masters[nb 5] LQ LQ 2R LQ LQ LQ NH LQ Not Held 2R LQ 1R LQ LQ 2R NR Tournament Not Held LQ LQ 2R 1R 1R 1R A A
British Open LQ LQ LQ LQ 3R 1R 1R W 3R 2R 3R 3R 3R LQ Tournament Not Held 1R LQ 3R
English Open Tournament Not Held 3R 1R 1R 3R 1R 2R LQ 1R
Wuhan Open Tournament Not Held A
Northern Ireland Open Tournament Not Held 3R 1R 1R 3R 2R 1R LQ LQ
International Championship Tournament Not Held 1R 3R 2R 2R 1R LQ LQ LQ Not Held A
UK Championship LQ 1R 1R 3R LQ LQ 1R QF 1R QF 2R 1R 3R LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ 1R 3R 1R 2R 3R 1R 1R 1R 1R 1R LQ LQ
Shoot Out Tournament Not Held Non-Ranking Event 4R 2R 1R 1R A 1R 3R A
Scottish Open[nb 6] NH 2R LQ LQ 2R LQ SF 3R 3R 2R 2R 1R LQ Tournament Not Held MR Not Held 2R 1R 1R 1R 1R 3R LQ LQ
World Grand Prix Tournament Not Held NR DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ
German Masters[nb 7] Tournament Not Held LQ LQ LQ NR Tournament Not Held LQ LQ LQ 1R 1R 1R LQ 1R 1R LQ 2R LQ LQ A
Welsh Open LQ LQ 3R 3R 2R QF 3R 3R QF 2R QF LQ LQ LQ 1R LQ LQ 1R 1R LQ 1R 1R 2R 1R 3R 3R 1R 1R 1R 1R 2R LQ LQ
Players Championship[nb 8] Tournament Not Held DNQ 1R DNQ 2R DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ
World Open[nb 9] LQ LQ LQ LQ QF 2R 1R 2R 2R 3R 2R 3R LQ 1R 2R RR RR LQ LQ 1R LQ LQ LQ Not Held 1R LQ 3R 2R Not Held A
Tour Championship Tournament Not Held DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ
World Championship LQ LQ 1R LQ LQ LQ 2R 1R QF 1R 1R LQ LQ 1R LQ 2R LQ LQ 1R LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ 1R LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ
Non-ranking tournaments
The Masters LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ 1R F QF LQ LQ A LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ A A A A A A A A A A A A A A
Championship League Tournament Not Held RR A A A A A A RR RR A A A A A A A A
World Seniors Championship A Tournament Not Held A A A A F 1R A A NH A A A A A
Former ranking tournaments
Classic LQ Tournament Not Held
Strachan Open[nb 10] LQ MR NR Tournament Not Held
Asian Classic[nb 11] LQ LQ LQ LQ 1R 1R Tournament Not Held
Malta Grand Prix Not Held Non-Ranking Event 2R NR Tournament Not Held
Thailand Masters[nb 12] LQ 3R LQ LQ LQ QF 2R LQ 1R 2R QF NR Not Held NR Tournament Not Held
Irish Masters Non-Ranking Event LQ LQ LQ NH NR Tournament Not Held
Northern Ireland Trophy Tournament Not Held NR LQ F 1R Tournament Not Held
Bahrain Championship Tournament Not Held LQ Tournament Not Held
Wuxi Classic[nb 13] Tournament Not Held Non-Ranking Event 2R 1R 1R Tournament Not Held
Australian Goldfields Open[nb 14] Not Held Non-Ranking Tournament Not Held LQ LQ 2R 2R 2R Tournament Not Held
Shanghai Masters Tournament Not Held 1R 1R LQ LQ 2R WR LQ QF LQ LQ 2R Non-Ranking Not Held NR
Paul Hunter Classic[nb 15] Tournament Not Held Pro-am Event Minor-Ranking Event 2R 2R 2R NR Tournament Not Held
Indian Open Tournament Not Held 2R 1R NH LQ 2R 1R Tournament Not Held
China Open[nb 16] Tournament Not Held NR LQ LQ 1R 1R Not Held LQ LQ LQ 1R 1R 1R LQ WR LQ 2R 1R LQ 1R 2R LQ Tournament Not Held
Riga Masters[nb 17] Tournament Not Held MR 2R LQ 1R LQ Tournament Not Held
China Championship Tournament Not Held NR QF 2R LQ Tournament Not Held
WST Pro Series Tournament Not Held 2R Not Held
Turkish Masters Tournament Not Held LQ Not Held
Gibraltar Open Tournament Not Held MR 1R 1R 2R 4R 1R 1R Not Held
WST Classic Tournament Not Held 1R NH
Former non-ranking tournaments
Finnish Masters Tournament Not Held SF Tournament Not Held
China Masters Tournament Not Held SF Tournament Not Held
Pakistan Masters Tournament Not Held SF Tournament Not Held
Malta Grand Prix Not Held A A A A A R SF Tournament Not Held
Champions Cup[nb 18] Not Held A A A A A RR A A Tournament Not Held
Scottish Masters A A A A A A A A 1R 1R LQ LQ Tournament Not Held
Irish Open Tournament Not Held F Tournament Not Held
Irish Masters A A SF A A A QF A 1R 1R 1R Ranking Event NH SF Tournament Not Held
Irish Professional Championship SF 1R Tournament Not Held SF QF F Tournament Not Held
Irish Classic Tournament Not Held F F F W W Tournament Not Held
Shoot Out Tournament Not Held 3R 2R 1R 1R 1R A Ranking Event
Performance Table Legend
LQ lost in the qualifying draw #R lost in the early rounds of the tournament
(WR = Wildcard round, RR = Round robin) 		QF lost in the quarter-finals
SF lost in the semi-finals F lost in the final W won the tournament
DNQ did not qualify for the tournament A did not participate in the tournament WD withdrew from the tournament
DQ disqualified from the tournament
NH / Not Held event was not held.
NR / Non-Ranking Event event is/was no longer a ranking event.
R / Ranking Event event is/was a ranking event.
MR / Minor-Ranking Event event is/was a minor-ranking event.
  1. ^ From the 2010/2011 season it shows the ranking at the beginning of the season
  2. ^ New players on the Main Tour don't have a ranking
  3. ^ Players qualified One Year Ranking List started the season without ranking points
  4. ^ Players qualified through Q School started the season without ranking points
  5. ^ The event was called the European Open (1991/1992–1996/1997 and 2001/2002–2003/2004), the Irish Open (1998/1999) and the Malta Cup (2004/2005–2007/2008)
  6. ^ The event was called the International Open (1992/1993–1996/1997) and the Players Championship (2003/2004)
  7. ^ The event was called the German Open (1995/1996–1997/1998)
  8. ^ The event was called the Players Tour Championship Grand Finals (2010/2011–2015/2016)
  9. ^ The event was called the Grand Prix (1991/1992–2000/2001 and 2004/2005–2009/2010), the LG Cup (2001/2002–2003/2004) and the Haikou World Open (2011/2012–2013/2014)
  10. ^ The event was called the Strachan Challenge (1992/1993–1993/1994)
  11. ^ The event was called the Dubai Classic (1991/1992–1994/1995) and the Thailand Classic (1995/1996)
  12. ^ The event was called the Asian Open (1991/1992–1992/1993) and the Thailand Open (1993/1994–1996/1997)
  13. ^ The event was called the Jiangsu Classic (2008/2009–2009/2010)
  14. ^ The event was called the Australian Open (1994/1995–1995/1996) and the Australian Masters (1995/1996)
  15. ^ The event was called the Grand Prix Fürth (2004/2005) and the Fürth German Open (2005/2006–2006/2007)
  16. ^ The event was called the China International (1997/1998–1998/1999)
  17. ^ The event was called the Riga Open (2014/2015–2015/2016)
  18. ^ The event was called the Charity Challenge (1994/1995–1998/1999)

Career finals edit

Ranking finals: 2 (1 title) edit

Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final Score
Winner 1. 1999 British Open   Anthony Hamilton 9–7
Runner-up 1. 2007 Northern Ireland Trophy   Stephen Maguire 5–9

Minor-ranking finals: 1 edit

Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final Score
Runner-up 1 2014 Gdynia Open   Shaun Murphy 1–4

Non-ranking finals: 9 (2 titles) edit

Legend
The Masters (0–1)
Other (2–5)
Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final Score
Runner-up 1. 2001 The Masters   Paul Hunter 9–10
Runner-up 2. 2003 Irish Open   Joe Swail 3–10[7]
Runner-up 3. 2007 Irish Professional Championship   Ken Doherty 2–9
Runner-up 4. 2007 Irish Classic   David Morris 3–5
Runner-up 5. 2008 Irish Classic (2)   Ken Doherty 2–5
Runner-up 6. 2009 Irish Classic (3)   Joe Swail 0–5
Winner 1. 2010 Irish Classic   Michael Judge 5–1
Winner 2. 2011 Irish Classic (2)   Ken Doherty 5–2
Runner-up 7. 2015 World Seniors Championship   Mark Williams 1–2

Team finals: 1 edit

Outcome No. Year Championship Team Opponent(s) in the final Score
Runner-up 1. 1996 World Cup   Ireland   Scotland 7–10

References edit

  1. ^ "Fergal O'Brien". World Snooker Tour. Archived from the original on 22 September 2023. Retrieved 13 February 2024.
  2. ^ "Echo Sports Awards 2019: Ireland snooker great Fergal O'Brien receives 'Hall of Fame' accolade". echo.ie. Archived from the original on 12 June 2020. Retrieved 12 June 2020.
  3. ^ "Eurosport snooker pundit and former British Open champion Fergal O'Brien announces retirement at end of season". Eurosport. 2 January 2024. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
  4. ^ "Crucible Qualifying Day Two: Revesz Weathers The Storm". World Snooker Tour. 9 April 2024. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
  5. ^ "World Snooker Championship: Fergal O'Brien wins longest frame in snooker history to qualify". BBC. 13 April 2017. Retrieved 13 April 2017.
  6. ^ "Ranking History". Snooker.org. Retrieved 6 February 2011.
  7. ^ "Swail lifts Irish crown". BBC Sport. Retrieved 16 February 2020.

External links edit

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