 Stevens at the2016 Paul Hunter Classic | |
| Born | (1977-09-11)11 September 1977 (age 48) Carmarthen, Wales |
|---|---|
| Sport country |  Wales |
| Nickname | The Welsh Dragon[1] |
| Professional | 1994–present |
| Highestranking | 4 (2005/06) |
| Current ranking | 49 (as of 9 November 2025) |
| Maximum breaks | 1 |
| Century breaks | 363 (as of 23 November 2025) |
| Tournament wins | |
| Ranking | 1 |
Matthew John Stevens (born 11 September 1977) is a Welsh professionalsnooker player.[2] He has won two of the game'sTriple Crown events, theMasters in2000 and theUK Championship in2003. He has also been a two-time runner-up in the other triple crown event, theWorld Snooker Championship, in2000 and2005. Stevens reached a career highranking of No. 4 for the2005/2006 season. Stevens has compiled more than 350century breaks during his career.
Stevens became a professional snooker player in 1994; inhis second season, he won theBenson & Hedges Championship to qualify for theMasters, where he beatTerry Griffiths 5–3 but lost 5–6 toAlan McManus. He also showed potential the following season by beatingStephen Hendry 5–1 in theGrand Prix. In the1997–98 season, he reached the semi-finals of both the Grand Prix and theUK Championship, achieving the highest break of the tournament at the latter. He also reached the quarter-finals on his debut at theCrucible in theWorld Championship, beatingAlain Robidoux andMark King before losing toKen Doherty. In 1998, he reached his first ranking final at theUK Championship, losing 6–10 toJohn Higgins.
In the1999–00 season Stevens got to all three finals of theTriple Crown events. In the final of the1999 UK Championship he lost toMark Williams 8–10. He won the2000 Masters title, with a 10–8 win overKen Doherty in the final. At the2000 World Championship, he reached the first of his two world championship finals to date. After victories overTony Drago,Alan McManus,Jimmy White, andJoe Swail, he faced Mark Williams in the final, losing 16–18, after having led 10–6, 13–7, and then 14–10, with the final session to play. Stevens became only the second player in the history of the world championship to lose in the final from holding a four frame overnight lead. He has also been beaten in a world championship semi-final on four occasions: in2001,2002,2004, and2012. In 2002, he looked certain to have won a place in the final, leadingPeter Ebdon 16–14 in their semi-final tie, and just needing a relatively simple red in the 31st frame to leave his opponent requiring snookers. When Stevens missed the pot, Ebdon made an impressive clearance to win the frame and went on to take the next two frames to win the match 17–16.[3]
Stevens won the2003 UK Championship, after beating Stephen Hendry in the final. He trailed Hendry 0–4 at the first interval, but remarkably he reeled off the next five frames; Hendry found his form again to lead 7–5, but Stevens was not to be denied and clinched a 10–8 victory. This remains the onlyranking tournament victory of his career.[4] However, he followed this achievement with a run of nine successive first round defeats in best-of-nine matches, only interrupted by a run to the semi-final of the2004 World Championship.
He was again runner-up at the2005 World Championship, losing 16–18 toShaun Murphy in the final, having been up 10–6, and then 12–11 with only the final session to play. He again relinquished a four frame overnight lead to lose in the final, only the third time this had ever happened in world championship history. The turning point was arguably the 22nd frame, in which he had a shot at the final blue to leave Murphy needing snookers; Stevens elected to play the shot left-handed rather than use the rest and, when he missed the shot, Murphy then cleared the table to level the match at 11–11. Despite the disappointment of losing the final, Stevens insisted that Murphy had simply been the "better player" and that he would himself eventually win the championship.[citation needed]
The following year, Stevens was beaten by Ken Doherty 8–13 in the second round of the2006 World Championship, having gone into the final session level at 8–8.
In 2007, Stevens lost 12–13 toShaun Murphy in the quarter-finals of theWorld Championship, having led 11–5 and 12–7 earlier in the match, making him the first person to ever lose a best-of-25 match from a 12–7 lead. The defeat left him ranked outside the top 16 for the first time in eight years. In 2008, he was defeated in the first round of theWorld Championship for the first time in his career, by defending championJohn Higgins, and he finished ranked outside the top 16 for the second consecutive season. The only highlight of the2008–09 season was a run to the final of theBahrain Championship, in which he was given a top 16 seeding due to the unavailability of three leading players. He only reached the last 16 of one other event, and failed to qualify for theWorld Championship after a defeat toMartin Gould. He finished the season with a drop of nine places to world number 26.
Stevens enjoyed a solid2009–10 season. He qualified for theWelsh Open by beatingBarry Pinches 5–4. In the first round, he caused an upset by defeating Shaun Murphy 5–4. He then faced Northern Ireland'sMark Allen in the second round but, despite making two century breaks, he lost the match 2–5. He also lost a close match 9–10 toMarcus Campbell in the2010 World Championship qualifiers, and thus did not make it to the main draw at The Crucible for the second year in succession.
Stevens made a promising start to the2010–11 season by qualifying for theShanghai Masters with a 5–2 victory overAnda Zhang. In the first round, he defeatedLiang Wenbo 5–3, and he caused another upset in the last 16 by beating Shaun Murphy 5–2. He playedAli Carter in the quarter-finals, but lost 4–5 on the final black despite an earlier lead of 4–1.
He continued his solid form by reaching the quarter-finals at theWelsh Open, where he qualified by defeating Anthony Hamilton 4–2. He whitewashed number 5 seed Shaun Murphy 4–0 in the last 32, and in the last 16 he beat fellow Welshman and close friendRyan Day 4–3. Stevens was drawn againstJohn Higgins in the quarter-finals, but was edged out 3–5. Despite these performances, he was still not ranked in the top 16, so did not automatically qualify for theWorld Championship; in the fifth round of qualifying, he overcameFergal O'Brien 10–9 on the final black to qualify for the first time since 2008. He was eliminated by Mark Allen in the first round of the main draw, losing four consecutive frames after leading 9–6. He then won the2011 Championship League, beatingMark Williams 3–1 in the semi-final, and Shaun Murphy 3–1 in the final, to qualify for thePremier League.
His performances during the season were enough to see Stevens return to the elite top 16 in the world rankings for the first time since 2006, meaning he would no longer need to play qualifying matches to reach the main stage of the ranking events.[5]
After losing in the first round of theAustralian Goldfields Open toLiang Wenbo, Stevens reached the quarter-finals of theShanghai Masters by defeatingStephen Lee andMartin Gould. However, his run was ended by compatriotMark Williams, who whitewashed him 0–5.[6] A last 16 exit in the2011 UK Championship toDing Junhui followed, before Stevens reached his second ranking event quarter-final of the season in theGerman Masters courtesy of 5–1 victories over bothCraig Steadman andNeil Robertson. He then lost toRonnie O'Sullivan 3–5.[7]
Due to being ranked inside the top 16, Stevens played in his firstMasters tournament since2007 during the season and was beaten byJohn Higgins 2–6 in the first round.[8] His firstPremier League campaign since2002 saw Stevens win 3 and lose 3 of the 6 matches he played to finish 7th in the 10-manleague and therefore fail to make it to the play-offs.[9]Stevens finished runner-up to O'Sullivan inEvent 7 of the minor-rankingPlayers Tour Championship series and with last 16 finishes coming inEvent 9 andEvent 11, he was ranked 17th in theOrder of Merit, inside the top 24 who qualified for theFinals.[10] There he playedRicky Walden in the last 24 and lost 0–5 in 50 minutes.[6]
Stevens was defeated in the second round of theWelsh Open and had successive first round losses in theWorld Open andChina Open to go into theWorld Championship in less than auspicious form.[6] However, Stevens had an excellent run as he reached his sixth semi-final in the event, and first since 2005.[11] He reached the last four with wins overMarco Fu (10–3),Barry Hawkins (13–11) and Ryan Day (13–5, having won 11 consecutive frames).[6][11] He played Ronnie O'Sullivan in the semi-final and lost 10–17, meaning Stevens has not beaten his opponent in almost a decade.[12] Stevens finished the season ranked world number 10, the highest he has ended the year since 2005.[5]
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Stevens withdrew from theseason's opening ranking event, theWuxi Classic due to a bad back and could not advance beyond the second round in any of the next three events.[13][14] At the2012 UK Championship he beatDominic Dale 6–1 andMarco Fu 6–4 to reach the quarter-finals for the first time since lifting the trophy in 2003. In a scrappy game versusMark Davis, Stevens was beaten 4–6.[15] Stevens missed a simple brown at 4–1 up againstMark Williams in the first round of theMasters and then made a series of errors during the rest of the match to lose 4–6.[16] His second quarter-final of the season came at theGerman Masters, where he was defeated 3–5 byMarco Fu, before losing 2–4 toStephen Maguire in the second round of theWelsh Open.[14]
Stevens travelled toHaikou, China, for theWorld Open, but his cue failed to arrive on time for his first round match againstDavid Gilbert. However, he beat Gilbert 5–4 with a borrowed cue andShaun Murphy 5–3 with Mark Williams' cue before his own finally arrived for his quarter-final againstJudd Trump.[17] It was Trump this time who suffered cue troubles as his tip became damp during the match and Stevens took full advantage to triumph 5–3.[18] He then came back from 4–5 againstNeil Robertson in the semi-finals to win 6–5 and reach his first ranking event final since the2008 Bahrain Championship.[19] He facedMark Allen in the final and, despite making two centuries, he was comfortably beaten 4–10.[20] Stevens' season finished in disappointment as he lost in first round of theChina Open 2–5 toRory McLeod and 7–10 toMarco Fu in theWorld Championship, which saw him finish the year ranked world number 14.[14][21]
At theseason's opening ranking event, the2013 Wuxi Classic, Stevens beatLu Ning 5–1,Liang Wenbo andPeter Lines both 5–3, andDavid Morris 5–2, to advance to the semi-finals.[22] He threatened a brief comeback againstJohn Higgins from 0–5 down, but lost 2–6.[23] He gained some revenge over Higgins at theInternational Championship by beating him 6–2, before being eliminated byDing Junhui 1–6 in the third round.[22] He was beaten in the last 32 of both theUK Championship (2–6 byRobert Milkins) and theGerman Masters (4–5 byShaun Murphy, after Stevens had led 4–1).[24][25] He also lost deciding frames in the last 32 of theWelsh Open andWorld Open toJoe Perry andJudd Trump respectively.[22] He failed to qualify for theWorld Championship this year as he lost 8–10 toTom Ford in the final qualifying round.[26] Stevens dropped out of the top 16 and ended the year as world number 19.[27]
At the2014 Australian Goldfields Open, Stevens reached his first quarter-final in a year by knocking outLuca Brecel 5–3 andFergal O'Brien 5–3, but lost 2–5 toXiao Guodong.[28] He was eliminated 2–6 byJohn Higgins in the third round of theUK Championship, but reached the last 16 of theWelsh Open by recording his first victory overRonnie O'Sullivan in twelve years, recovering from 0–2 down to win 4–3.[29] However, he lost 2–4 againstMarco Fu in the fourth round.[28] He was beaten in the first round of the next two ranking events, but thrashedMark Williams 10–2 at theWorld Championship,[30] before suffering a heavy 5–13 defeat to O'Sullivan in the second round.[31]
Stevens was eliminated at the first round stage of theInternational Championship andUK Championship, before achieving his first successes at a ranking event this season when he oustedDavid Morris andMartin O'Donnell at theWelsh Open, winning both matches 4–2.[32] He made three half centuries in the third round againstMartin Gould, but lost 3–4.[33] He reached the final round of qualifying for theWorld Championship, but was beaten 6–10 byKyren Wilson.[32]
Stevens lost 1–4 toNeil Robertson in the last 16 of theRiga Masters. At theUK Championship, he beatJames Cahill 6–1,Michael White 6–4, andJoe Perry 6–2,[34] but his run ended with a 2–6 loss toRonnie O'Sullivan.[35] He was knocked out 2–5 byDaniel Wells in the second round of theChina Open, and failed to qualify for theWorld Championship for the second year in a row, after falling 8–10 toLee Walker in the first qualifying round.[36] His end of season ranking of 55 is the lowest he has finished a season since 1996.[37]
Stevens reached the semifinal of the2018 International Championship, having beatenDing Junhui in the last sixteen. He lost the semifinal 9-6 toMark Allen. In the2019 UK Championship, Stevens beatMark Selby in the last 16 before losing toStephen Maguire in the quarterfinals.[38]
Stevens reached the Fourth Round of the2020 English Open, where he lost 4-3 toJak Jones. He had a 4-1 win overRonnie O'Sullivan in the Third Round.
Stevens qualified for theWorld Snooker Championship in 2018, 2020 and 2022, but lost in qualifying all other years to 2025, including the2025 World Championship, after a 9–10 defeat in the final round of qualifying toWu Yize.[39]
Stevens was born inCarmarthen, Wales. He attended an all-Welsh-speaking school,Bro Myrddin Welsh Comprehensive School, and is fluent in the Welsh language. His career took off after beating Martyn Holloway in the Regal Welsh under 16s regional tournament in Morriston. Stevens took a 2–1 victory on the black.[citation needed]
His father Morrell, who was also his manager, died unexpectedly in 2001.[40] He was a close friend ofPaul Hunter and was apallbearer at his funeral.[41] He is also a celebrityTexas hold 'em poker player and in 2004 won the UK's richest poker tournament at just 27 years old, beating 16-timeWorld Darts championPhil Taylor to first place. Stevens had only been playing poker for 18 months before his victory.[42][43]
In 2015, Stevens was declared bankrupt and got divorced around the same time.[44][45]
| Tournament | 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 | 2025/ 26 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ranking[nb 1] | [nb 2] | 236 | 67 | 53 | 26 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 6 | 4 | 14 | 20 | 17 | 26 | 25 | 14 | 10 | 14 | 19 | 28 | 44 | 55 | 47 | 43 | 33 | 36 | 56 | 42 | 48 | 52 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ranking tournaments | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Championship League | Tournament Not Held | Non-Ranking Event | RR | 2R | RR | 2R | 2R | 2R | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Saudi Arabia Masters | Tournament Not Held | 3R | 4R | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wuhan Open | Tournament Not Held | LQ | LQ | 1R | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| English Open | Tournament Not Held | 1R | 3R | 3R | 1R | 4R | LQ | LQ | LQ | 1R | LQ | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| British Open | LQ | 1R | LQ | 2R | 1R | 1R | 3R | 2R | 3R | SF | 2R | Tournament Not Held | 1R | 3R | 2R | LQ | 1R | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Xi'an Grand Prix | Tournament Not Held | 1R | 2R | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northern Ireland Open | Tournament Not Held | 1R | 2R | 3R | 2R | 3R | 2R | LQ | 1R | 1R | LQ | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International Championship | Tournament Not Held | 2R | 3R | 1R | 1R | 2R | LQ | SF | 1R | Not Held | 1R | 2R | 1R | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UK Championship | LQ | 2R | LQ | SF | F | F | 3R | QF | 3R | W | 2R | 2R | 3R | LQ | 2R | 1R | 1R | 2R | QF | 3R | 3R | 1R | 4R | 1R | 2R | QF | WD | 1R | 1R | LQ | LQ | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Shoot Out | Tournament Not Held | Non-Ranking Event | 1R | 3R | 1R | 2R | 3R | 1R | 1R | 2R | 2R | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Scottish Open[nb 3] | LQ | LQ | LQ | LQ | 3R | QF | QF | 2R | 3R | 2R | Tournament Not Held | MR | Not Held | 2R | 1R | 4R | 2R | 2R | LQ | 1R | 1R | LQ | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| German Masters[nb 4] | NH | LQ | LQ | LQ | NR | Tournament Not Held | 1R | QF | QF | 2R | LQ | LQ | LQ | LQ | 1R | LQ | LQ | LQ | 1R | 1R | LQ | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Grand Prix | Tournament Not Held | NR | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | 1R | 2R | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Players Championship[nb 5] | Tournament Not Held | SF | 1R | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Welsh Open | LQ | 1R | LQ | 1R | 3R | QF | 1R | 2R | 1R | 2R | 2R | 3R | 2R | 1R | 1R | 2R | QF | 2R | 2R | 3R | 4R | 3R | 1R | 4R | 1R | 3R | 2R | 3R | 1R | 1R | 3R | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Open[nb 6] | LQ | 3R | 2R | SF | 1R | 2R | 3R | 3R | 2R | QF | 1R | 1R | 2R | RR | LQ | 1R | 1R | 1R | F | 2R | Not Held | 1R | 1R | WD | 1R | Not Held | 2R | 1R | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tour Championship | Tournament Not Held | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Championship | LQ | LQ | LQ | QF | QF | F | SF | SF | 2R | SF | F | 2R | QF | 1R | LQ | LQ | 1R | SF | 1R | LQ | 2R | LQ | LQ | 1R | LQ | 1R | LQ | 1R | LQ | LQ | LQ | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Non-ranking tournaments | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The Masters | LQ | 1R | LQ | LQ | LQ | W | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | WD | LQ | LQ | A | 1R | 1R | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Championship League | Tournament Not Held | RR | RR | A | W | RR | RR | RR | RR | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Former ranking tournaments | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Asian Classic[nb 7] | LQ | WR | LQ | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Malta Grand Prix | Non-Ranking Event | 2R | NR | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Thailand Masters[nb 8] | LQ | LQ | LQ | LQ | 1R | QF | QF | SF | NR | Not Held | NR | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Irish Masters | Non-Ranking Event | QF | 1R | F | NH | NR | Tournament Not Held | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northern Ireland Trophy | Tournament Not Held | NR | 3R | 1R | 1R | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bahrain Championship | Tournament Not Held | F | Tournament Not Held | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wuxi Classic[nb 9] | Tournament Not Held | Non-Ranking Event | WD | SF | LQ | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Australian Goldfields Open[nb 10] | Non-Ranking | Tournament Not Held | 1R | 2R | A | QF | A | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Shanghai Masters | Tournament Not Held | QF | 1R | 2R | QF | QF | 1R | 1R | LQ | LQ | LQ | 1R | Non-Ranking | Not Held | Non-Ranking | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Paul Hunter Classic[nb 11] | Tournament Not Held | Pro-am Event | Minor-Ranking Event | 2R | 3R | A | NR | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Indian Open | Tournament Not Held | LQ | 1R | NH | 2R | LQ | A | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| China Open[nb 12] | Not Held | NR | 2R | 2R | QF | 1R | Not Held | 1R | 1R | 2R | 1R | LQ | LQ | 1R | 1R | 1R | LQ | 1R | 1R | 2R | 1R | LQ | Tournament Not Held | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Riga Masters[nb 13] | Tournament Not Held | Minor-Rank | 3R | 1R | LQ | A | Tournament Not Held | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| China Championship | Tournament Not Held | NR | 3R | LQ | 2R | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| WST Pro Series | Tournament Not Held | RR | Tournament Not Held | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Turkish Masters | Tournament Not Held | 2R | Tournament Not Held | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gibraltar Open | Tournament Not Held | MR | 1R | 2R | WD | A | 1R | 2R | Tournament Not Held | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| WST Classic | Tournament Not Held | 2R | Not Held | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| European Masters[nb 14] | LQ | LQ | 1R | NH | LQ | Not Held | 2R | 2R | 1R | SF | 1R | 1R | NR | Tournament Not Held | LQ | LQ | LQ | LQ | 3R | 1R | 1R | 1R | Not Held | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Former non-ranking tournaments | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Belgian Masters | NH | W | Tournament Not Held | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| China Masters | NH | SF | Tournament Not Held | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pontins Professional | A | A | A | A | F | SF | Tournament Not Held | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Malta Grand Prix | A | A | A | A | A | R | RR | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Champions Cup[nb 15] | A | A | A | A | A | A | RR | A | Tournament Not Held | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Scottish Masters | A | A | A | A | LQ | W | QF | QF | 1R | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northern Ireland Trophy | Tournament Not Held | W | Ranking Event | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Irish Masters | A | A | A | A | A | QF | QF | SF | Ranking Event | NH | RR | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pot Black | Tournament Not Held | W | QF | A | Tournament Not Held | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Masters Qualifying Event[nb 16] | SF | W | QF | 1R | 2R | A | A | A | A | A | NH | A | A | 1R | SF | QF | Tournament Not Held | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wuxi Classic[nb 9] | Tournament Not Held | A | A | A | 1R | Ranking Event | Tournament Not Held | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Power Snooker | Tournament Not Held | A | 1R | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Premier League[nb 17] | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | RR | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | RR | A | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Shoot Out | Tournament Not Held | 1R | 2R | 1R | QF | 1R | 1R | Ranking Event | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Six-red World Championship[nb 18] | Tournament Not Held | A | 2R | A | NH | 2R | 3R | 2R | RR | 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 |
| NH / Not Held | means an event was not held. | |||
| NR / Non-Ranking Event | means an event is/was no longer a ranking event. | |||
| R / Ranking Event | means an 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. | |||
| Legend |
|---|
| World Championship (0–2) |
| UK Championship (1–2) |
| Other (0–3) |
| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runner-up | 1. | 1998 | UK Championship |  John Higgins | 6–10 |
| Runner-up | 2. | 1999 | UK Championship(2) | Mark Williams | 8–10 |
| Runner-up | 3. | 2000 | World Snooker Championship | Mark Williams | 16–18 |
| Winner | 1. | 2003 | UK Championship | Stephen Hendry | 10–8 |
| Runner-up | 4. | 2005 | Irish Masters |  Ronnie O'Sullivan | 8–10 |
| Runner-up | 5. | 2005 | World Snooker Championship(2) | Shaun Murphy | 16–18 |
| Runner-up | 6. | 2008 | Bahrain Championship |  Neil Robertson | 7–9 |
| Runner-up | 7. | 2013 | World Open |  Mark Allen | 4–10 |
| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runner-up | 1. | 2011 | Kay Suzanne Memorial Trophy | Ronnie O'Sullivan | 2–4 |
| Legend |
|---|
| The Masters (1–0) |
| Other (7–1) |
| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | 1. | 1995 | Benson & Hedges Championship | Paul McPhillips | 9–3 |
| Winner | 2. | 1996 | Belgian Masters |  Patrick Delsemme | 7–1 |
| Runner-up | 1. | 1999 | Pontins Professional | Jimmy White | 5–9 |
| Winner | 3. | 1999 | Scottish Masters Qualifying Event |  Marco Fu | 5–1 |
| Winner | 4. | 1999 | Scottish Masters | John Higgins | 9–7 |
| Winner | 5. | 2000 | The Masters |  Ken Doherty | 10–8 |
| Winner | 6. | 2005 | Northern Ireland Trophy | Stephen Hendry | 9–7 |
| Winner | 7. | 2005 | Pot Black | Shaun Murphy | 1–0 |
| Winner | 8. | 2011 | Championship League | Shaun Murphy | 3–1 |
| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runner-up | 1. | 2004 | Grand Prix Fürth | Paul Hunter | 2–4 |
| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Team/partner | Opponent(s) in the final | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | 1. | 1999 | Nations Cup | Wales | Scotland | 6–4 |
| Runner-up | 1. | 2000 | Nations Cup | Wales | England | 2–6 |
