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Peter Lines

Peter Lines
Born (1969-12-11) 11 December 1969 (age 54)
Leeds, England
Sport country England
Professional1991–2004, 2006/2007, 2008–2016, 2017–2023
Highest ranking42 (1999/2000)
Best ranking finishSemi-final (x1)

Peter Lines (born 11 December 1969) is an English former professional snooker player. He has reached the semi-finals of one ranking tournament, the 2018 Paul Hunter Classic. He reached his highest ranking, 42nd in the world, in 1999. He is the father of professional snooker player Oliver Lines. In January 2022, he won the 2022 UK Seniors Championship, part of the World Seniors Tour.

Career

Lines turned professional in 1991, and in his debut season reached the last 32 stage twice, at the 1992 Strachan Open and the 1992 Asian Open. He had few wins in the next few seasons, although he qualified for the 1995 International Open, beating players including Fergal O'Brien and Doug Mountjoy in the process. Lines briefly fell off tour in 1997 but returned immediately via Qualifying School, and his results started to improve. The 1997/98 season saw him reach the last 32 of the Welsh Open and Scottish Open before coming through qualifying for the World Championship to reach The Crucible for the first (and to date only) time in his career; there he was beaten 10–4 by John Parrott, but not before compiling a 141 total clearance - the highest break by a debutant. As a result, he finished the season ranked 53, and rose to 42 after the next season, despite having failed to reach another last 32.

Lines scored his best ever result at the 1999 China International as he defeated John Higgins and Peter Ebdon en route to his first career quarter-final, where he lost 4–5 to Brian Morgan. Following this result, however, he started to struggle for form and to slip down the rankings, before an eventual relegation from the tour in 2004. He briefly regained his place in 2006 but was again relegated after another poor season.

After working with coach Steve Prest, Lines had a successful 2007–08 season in the Pontins International Open Series. He won one event and reached the final of another to finish second in the top 8, thus qualifying for the main tour. He carried his good form into the 2008–09 season, finishing in the top 64 to retain his tour place. During the next season, he reached the last 64 of the Shanghai Masters and the last 48 of the Grand Prix, before a strong run in the UK Championship. He defeated Xiao Guodong, Ian McCulloch and Nigel Bond to qualify for the venue stages; there he beat Marco Fu 9–3, before causing an upset by edging out Mark Williams 9–8 to reach his second career quarter-final. Despite the 5–9 loss to Stephen Maguire, this performance could have allowed Lines to return to the top 48 of the world rankings, but another drop in form resulted in three opening round defeats in the remaining tournaments of the season to leave him ranked 50.

The 2010–11 season saw Lines record a number of good results in the newly introduced minor-ranking PTC events, with three last 16 appearances and a quarter-final at Event 5. However, his performances in the major tournaments were less successful; aside from a last 48 appearance in the UK Championship, he won only one more match. As a result, he could not improve his ranking at the end of the season. Lines qualified for the 2011 UK Championship by defeating Ken Doherty 6–5 in round 4 of qualifying. He played Martin Gould in the last 32 and was beaten 6–2. He qualified for the 2013 German Masters by defeating John Higgins 5–3 in round 4 of qualifying. He played Ken Doherty in the last 32 and won 5–3, before losing 3–5 to Marco Fu in the last 16. In June 2014 he won the Pink Ribbon pro–am event, defeating Lee Walker 4–1 in the final.[1] Lines beat defending champion Neil Robertson on a run to the last 32 of the 2016 UK Championship. In March 2017 he won the World Seniors Championship, defeating John Parrott 4–0 in the final.

He regained full professional status for the 2017–18 season by coming through an EBSA playoff, where he defeated Zack Richardson 4–0 in the final round. He reached the last 16 on two occasions during the 2017/18 campaign, at the 2017 Paul Hunter Classic and the 2017 European Masters. During the 2019-2020 season, Lines reached the last 16 of the 2020 Snooker Shoot Out. He is known for having a 4-3 (excluding the Shoot-Out) winning head-to-head record against 4-time world champion John Higgins.

While playing Xiao Guodong at the 2021 Northern Ireland Open qualifiers in Leicester, Lines became angry over what he regarded as the incorrect replacement of balls after referee Brendan Moore called a foul and a miss against Xiao.[2] Lines confronted his opponent in the players' lounge after the match, accused him of cheating, swore at him, and challenged him to a fight, which led to security personnel removing Lines from the area.[3] A WPBSA disciplinary committee fined him £2,500 over the incident and ordered him to pay costs of £5,464.80 for breaching conduct rules and bringing the game into disrepute.[4][5]

In January 2022, Lines won the UK Seniors Championship, defeating David Lilley 4–1 in the final.[6] He finished the 2022–23 season ranked 73rd in the world rankings and was relegated from the professional tour.[7]

Personal life

He is married to Sarah and has three children, Penny, Leo and Oliver. Both he and Oliver practise at the Northern Snooker Centre in Leeds.[8]

Performance and rankings timeline

Tournament 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
2024/
25
Ranking[9][nb 1] [nb 2] 73 111 129 129 111 90 53 42 45 59 74 83 [nb 3] [nb 3] [nb 2] [nb 3] [nb 2] 64 50 50 53 57 61 57 [nb 3] [nb 2] 75 [nb 4] 89 [nb 4] 73 [nb 3] [nb 3]
Ranking tournaments
Championship League Tournament Not Held Non-Ranking Event RR 2R RR RR RR
English Open Tournament Not Held 2R 1R 1R 1R WD LQ 1R A
British Open LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ A LQ LQ 1R 1R 1R 1R A Tournament Not Held 1R 1R A
Northern Ireland Open Tournament Not Held 1R 1R 2R 1R 1R LQ LQ A
International Championship Tournament Not Held LQ 2R LQ LQ LQ LQ 1R LQ Not Held A
UK Championship LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ 1R 1R 1R LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ A A LQ A LQ QF LQ 1R LQ 2R 2R 1R 3R 3R 1R 1R 1R 4R LQ A
Shoot Out Tournament Not Held Non-Ranking Event 1R 2R 2R 4R 1R 2R 1R A
Scottish Open[nb 5] NH LQ LQ 2R LQ LQ 2R 1R 1R LQ LQ LQ LQ Tournament Not Held MR Not Held 1R 3R 1R 2R 1R LQ A A
German Masters[nb 6] Tournament Not Held LQ LQ LQ NR Tournament Not Held LQ LQ 2R 1R LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ A
Welsh Open 1R LQ LQ LQ LQ 1R 2R LQ 1R 2R LQ LQ LQ A A LQ A LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ 2R 1R 2R A 1R 2R 1R 1R LQ LQ A
World Open[nb 7] LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ 1R LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ A A LQ A LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ Not Held LQ LQ LQ LQ Not Held A
World Grand Prix Tournament Not Held NR DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ
Players Championship[nb 8] Tournament Not Held DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ
Tour Championship Tournament Not Held DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ
World Championship LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ 1R LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ A LQ A LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ
Non-ranking tournaments
The Masters LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ A A A A LQ A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A
World Seniors Championship A Tournament Not Held LQ A A A LQ LQ W A NH A A SF 1R A
Former ranking tournaments
Classic LQ Tournament Not Held
Strachan Open[nb 9] 2R MR NR Tournament Not Held
Asian Classic[nb 10] LQ 1R LQ LQ LQ LQ Tournament Not Held
Malta Grand Prix Not Held Non-Ranking Event LQ NR Tournament Not Held
Thailand Masters[nb 11] 2R LQ LQ LQ LQ 1R LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ NR Not Held NR Tournament Not Held
Irish Masters Non-Ranking Event LQ LQ A NH NR Tournament Not Held
Northern Ireland Trophy Tournament Not Held NR LQ A LQ Tournament Not Held
Bahrain Championship Tournament Not Held LQ Tournament Not Held
Wuxi Classic[nb 12] Tournament Not Held Non-Ranking Event LQ 3R LQ Tournament Not Held
Australian Goldfields Open[nb 13] Not Held Non-Ranking Tournament Not Held LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ Tournament Not Held
Shanghai Masters Tournament Not Held A LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ 2R LQ LQ LQ LQ Non-Ranking Not Held Non-Ranking
Paul Hunter Classic[nb 14] Tournament Not Held Pro-am Event Minor-Ranking Event 3R 4R SF NR Tournament Not Held
Indian Open Tournament Not Held LQ 1R NH LQ LQ 1R Tournament Not Held
China Open[nb 15] Tournament Not Held NR WR QF LQ LQ Not Held A A LQ A LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ 1R 1R 1R LQ LQ LQ Tournament Not Held
Riga Masters[nb 16] Tournament Not Held Minor-Rank LQ LQ 1R LQ Tournament Not Held
China Championship Tournament Not Held NR LQ LQ LQ Tournament Not Held
WST Pro Series Tournament Not Held RR Tournament Not Held
Turkish Masters Tournament Not Held LQ Not Held
Gibraltar Open Tournament Not Held MR 1R 1R 3R 1R 1R 2R Not Held
WST Classic Tournament Not Held 1R Not Held
European Masters[nb 17] LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ LQ NH LQ Not Held LQ LQ LQ A A LQ NR Tournament Not Held LQ 3R 2R LQ 2R LQ LQ A NH
Former non-ranking tournaments
Shoot Out Tournament Not Held 3R 1R 2R 1R 1R 2R Ranking Event
Six-red World Championship[nb 18] Tournament Not Held A A A NH A A A A A A A A Not Held LQ Not Held
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 means an event is/was a minor-ranking event.
PA / Pro-am Event means an event is/was a pro-am event.
  1. ^ From the 2010/2011 season it shows the ranking at the beginning of the season
  2. ^ a b c d New players don't have a ranking
  3. ^ a b c d e f He was an amateur
  4. ^ a b Players qualified through Q School started the season without ranking points
  5. ^ The event was called the International Open (1992/1993–1996/1997) and the Players Championship (2003/2004)
  6. ^ The event was called the German Open (1995/1996–1997/1998)
  7. ^ The event was called the Grand Prix (1991/1992–2000/2001 and 2004/2005–2009/2010) and the LG Cup (2001/2002–2003/2004)
  8. ^ The event was called the Players Tour Championship Grand Final (2010/2011–2015/2016)
  9. ^ The event was called the Strachan Challenge (1992/1993–1993/1994)
  10. ^ The event was called the Dubai Classic (1991/1992–1994/1995) and the Thailand Classic (1995/1996)
  11. ^ The event was called the Asian Open (1991/1992–1992/1993) and the Thailand Open (1993/1994–1996/1997)
  12. ^ The event was called the Jiangsu Classic (2008/2009–2009/2010)
  13. ^ The event was called the Australian Open (1994/1995–1995/1996) and the Australian Masters (1995/1996)
  14. ^ The event was called the Grand Prix Fürth (2004/2005) and the Fürth German Open (2005/2006–2006/2007)
  15. ^ The event was called the China International (1997/1998–1998/1999)
  16. ^ The event was called the Riga Open (2014/2015–2015/2016)
  17. ^ 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)
  18. ^ The event was called the Six-red Snooker International (2008/2009) and the Six-red World Grand Prix (2009/2010)

Career finals

Non-ranking finals: 4 (3 titles)

Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final Score
Winner 1. 1998 Merseyside Professional Championship Wales Lee Walker 5–4
Runner-up 1. 2010 World Seniors Championship Qualifying Event England Nigel Bond 3–4
Winner 2. 2017 World Seniors Championship England John Parrott 4–0
Winner 3. 2022 UK Seniors Championship England David Lilley 4–1

Pro-am finals: 7 (5 titles)

Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final Score
Winner 1. 1993 Pontins Autumn Open England Andrew Hannah 5–3
Winner 2. 2008 Pontins Pro-Am - Event 3 England Judd Trump 4–3[10]
Winner 3. 2008 Pontins Pro-Am - Event 5 England Paul Davison 4–1[11]
Winner 4. 2008 Pontins Pro-Am - Event 6 England Stephen Craigie 4–1[12]
Runner-up 1. 2009 Pontins Pro-Am - Event 3 England Judd Trump 2–5[13]
Runner-up 2. 2012 Pink Ribbon England Stuart Bingham 0–4
Winner 5. 2014 Pink Ribbon Wales Lee Walker 4–1

Amateur finals: 4 (2 titles)

Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final Score
Runner-up 1. 1996 English Amateur Championship England Stuart Bingham 4–8
Winner 1. 2007 PIOS – Event 5 Wales Daniel Wells 6–5
Runner-up 2. 2008 PIOS – Event 7 Wales Jamie Jones 2–6
Winner 2. 2024 Q Tour – Event 7 Germany Umut Dikme 5–1

References

  1. ^ "Pink Ribbon 2014". On Q Promotions. Archived from the original on 10 June 2014. Retrieved 10 June 2014.
  2. ^ "Peter Lines is fined after offering a rival a fight outside, but he keeps his snooker board job. » Brinkwire". Brinkwire. 15 January 2022. Archived from the original on 15 January 2022. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
  3. ^ "Lines fined for Xiao confrontation". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 15 January 2022. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
  4. ^ "WPBSA Statement: 14th January 2022". World Snooker. 14 January 2022. Archived from the original on 15 January 2022. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
  5. ^ "Peter Lines fined over Xiao Guodong confrontation". 14 January 2022. Archived from the original on 15 January 2022. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
  6. ^ "UK Seniors Championship - Peter Lines claims maiden title after Jimmy White stunned by David Lilley semi-final comebaclk". 7 January 2022. Archived from the original on 28 March 2022. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  7. ^ Huart, Matt (8 April 2023). "World Championship 2023 | Tour Survival Blog". WPBSA. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  8. ^ "David Grace: Bramley Man on cue for career as snooker professional". Archived from the original on 7 January 2009. Retrieved 4 March 2009.
  9. ^ "Ranking History". Snooker.org. Archived from the original on 19 December 2018. Retrieved 6 February 2011.
  10. ^ "2008 Pontins Pro-Am – Event 3". Global Snooker Centre. Archived from the original on 30 January 2009.
  11. ^ "2008 Pontins Pro-Am – Event 5". Global Snooker Centre. Archived from the original on 30 January 2009.
  12. ^ "2008 Pontins Pro-Am – Event 6". Global Snooker Centre. Archived from the original on 30 January 2009.
  13. ^ "2009 Pontins Pro-Am – Event 3". Global Snooker. Archived from the original on 25 July 2009.