Stephen Hendry

Stephen Hendry
MBE

Hendry at the 2011 Paul Hunter Classic
Born	(1969-01-13) 13 January 1969 (age 55) Scotland
Sport country	Scotland
Nickname	The King of the Crucible[1] the Golden Bairn[2]
Professional	1985–2012, 2021–present
Highest ranking	1 (April 1990 – May 1998, May 2006 – May 2007)
Current ranking	129 (as of 7 May 2024)
Maximum breaks	11
Century breaks	777 (as of 22 June 2024)
Tournament wins
Ranking	36
World Champion	1990 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1999

Stephen Gordon Hendry MBE (born 13 January 1969^[3]) is a Scottish professional snooker player who is best known for dominating the sport during the 1990s, when he became one of the most successful players in its history. After turning professional in 1985 at age 16, Hendry rose rapidly through the snooker world rankings, reaching number four in the world by the end of his third professional season. He won his first World Snooker Championship in 1990 aged 21 years and 106 days, surpassing Alex Higgins as the sport's youngest world champion, a record he still holds. From 1990 to 1999, he won seven world titles, setting a modern-era record that stood outright until Ronnie O'Sullivan equalled it in 2022. Hendry also won the Masters six times and the UK Championship five times for a career total of 18 Triple Crown tournament wins, a total exceeded only by O'Sullivan's 23. His total of 36 ranking titles is second only to O'Sullivan's 41, while his nine seasons as world number one were the most by any player under the annual ranking system used until 2010.

Hendry's five consecutive Masters titles between 1989 and 1993 and five consecutive world titles between 1992 and 1996 are both records in the modern era. His 36 consecutive victories in ranking events between March 1990 and January 1991 and his 29 consecutive wins at the Crucible between 1992 and 1997 also remain modern-era records.^[4] One of three players to have won all three Triple Crown events in a single season, he is the only player to have achieved the feat twice, in the 1989–90 and 1995–96 seasons. His 777 career century breaks include 11 maximum breaks, putting him behind only O'Sullivan (15) and John Higgins (13) for the most officially recognised maximums in professional competition. Awarded an MBE in 1994,^[5] he was twice named the BBC Scotland Sports Personality of the Year, in 1987 and 1996.^[6][7]

Hendry's form became less consistent after his sixth world title in 1996 and his career declined in the 2000s, his play increasingly affected by the yips. He reached the last of his nine world finals at the 2002 World Championship but lost in a deciding frame to Peter Ebdon. He won his last ranking title at the 2005 Malta Cup and reached his last ranking final at the 2006 UK Championship, losing 6–10 to Ebdon.

In the 2011–12 season, he fell out of the top 16 in the world rankings for the first time in 23 years. He qualified for the 2012 World Championship, where he made his 27th consecutive Crucible appearance. Although he compiled his 11th career maximum in his first-round match against Stuart Bingham, he announced his retirement from professional snooker at age 43 after losing 2–13 to Stephen Maguire in the quarter-finals. After almost nine years in retirement, he returned to the professional tour in 2021 under an invitational tour card. He also competes on the World Seniors Tour and regularly features as a commentator and studio pundit for snooker coverage on BBC and ITV.^{[citation needed]}