1986 Grand Prix (snooker)
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 18–26 October 1986 |
| Venue | Hexagon Theatre |
| City | Reading |
| Country | England |
| Organisation | WPBSA |
| Format | Ranking event |
| Total prize fund | £275,000[1] |
| Winner's share | £55,000[1] |
| Highest break | Jimmy White (ENG) (138)[2] |
| Final | |
| Champion | Jimmy White (ENG) |
| Runner-up | Rex Williams (ENG) |
| Score | 10–6 |
← 1985 1987 → | |
The 1986 Rothmans Grand Prix was a professional ranking snooker tournament that took place from 18 to 26 October 1986 at the Hexagon Theatre in Reading.[3][4]
Rex Williams made his first (and only) major final in a professional snooker tournament after being a professional since 1951. He was 53 years and 98 days old, making him the oldest player in a ranking final. He had beaten Jim Bear, Mark Wildman, Alex Higgins, Steve Davis and Neal Foulds before facing Jimmy White in the final.[5] During that match Williams took a 5–2 lead which he had made a break of 125 in the 7th frame and 6–4 before White took the last 6 frames to win 10–6.[6][7]
Rounds 1 to 3 were played at Redwood Lodge, Bristol, from 17 to 24 September 1986.[8]
Terry Griffiths set a Grand Prix record with a break of 136 against Steve Davis in the fourth round.[9] This was superseded by a break of 137 by Willie Thorne against Neal Foulds in round five.[9] White then made a break of 138 against Silvino Francisco in their semi-final.[9][10][6]
The quarter-final between White and 17-year-old Stephen Hendry went to the deciding frame.[9] Hendry missed potting the blue ball in that frame and White went on to win.[9] Williams nearly inflicted the first whitewash of Davis's professional career, taking a four-frame lead but then not potting a black ball that would have meant a 5–0 win.[10] After Davis had won the fifth frame, Williams completed his victory with a break of 74 in frame 6.[10]
In the semi-finals, White defeated Francisco 9–6, and Williams eliminated Foulds 9–8.[11]
Williams led 5–3 at the end of the first session of the final.[9] White took the first frame of the second session, then Williams won the next frame to lead 6–4.[9] White then added six consecutive frames to take the title.[6][7]
Prize fund
The breakdown of prize money is shown below:[12]
- Winner: £55,000
- Runner-up: £33,000
- Semi-finalists: £16,500
- Quarter-finalists: £8,250
- Last 16: £4,125
- Last 32: £2,664
- Last 64: £1,202
- Highest break, round 4 onwards: £5,500
- Highest break, rounds 1 to 3: £1,375
In addition to the prize fund, the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association made contributions of £150 to 24 of the players who lost in rounds 1 and 2.[12]
Main draw
Final
| Final: Best of 19 frames. Referee: John Williams Hexagon Theatre, Reading, England, 26 October 1986. | ||
| Jimmy White England |
10–6 | Rex Williams England |
| 11–72 (53), 57–47, 130–3 (101), 54–73, 44–84, 44–74, 0–126 (125), 90–4 (73), 83–24, 0–76, 72–16, 79–39 (68), 79–23, 63–61, 88–8 (51), 79–8 (72) | ||
| 101 | Highest break | 125 |
| 1 | Century breaks | 1 |
| 5 | 50+ breaks | 2 |
Rounds 1 and 2
Results from the first two rounds are below.[13]
Century breaks
Round 4 onwards[14]
- 138, 114, 101 – Jimmy White
- 137 – Willie Thorne
- 136 – Terry Griffiths
- 125 – Rex Williams
- 106 – Stephen Hendry
- 103 – John Parrott
Rounds 1 to 3[15]
- 134 – Tony Chappel
- 124 – Tony Knowles
- 113 – Willie Thorne
- 108 – Eddie Charlton
- 107 – Stephen Hendry
- 102– Wayne Jone
- 101 – Jim Bear
References
- ^ a b Morrison, Ian (1986). The Hamlyn Encyclopedia of Snooker. Twickenham: Hamlyn Publishing Group. p. 101. ISBN 0600501922.
- ^ "White sweeps away veteran". Leicester Daily Mercury. 27 October 1986. p. 27 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Stars cue up at the Hexagon". Reading Evening Post. 4 October 1986. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Turner, Chris. "Professional Players Tournament, Grand Prix, LG Cup". cajt.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk. Chris Turner's Snooker Archive. Archived from the original on 16 February 2012. Retrieved 4 June 2012.
- ^ Turner, Chris. "Various Snooker Records". cajt.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk. Chris Turner's Snooker Archive. Archived from the original on 10 February 2013. Retrieved 4 June 2012.
- ^ a b c Smith, Terry (27 October 1986). "William falls at final hurdle". The Daily Telegraph. p. 34 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b Everton, Clive (27 October 1986). "White's tornado". The Guardian. p. 28 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Calendar of events 1986-7". Cue World. September 1986. pp. 14–15.
- ^ a b c d e f g "White is hero at Hexagon". Cue World. December 1986. pp. 5–9.
- ^ a b c Everton, Clive (25 October 1986). "Williams humbles Davis 5–1". The Guardian. p. 16 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Grand Prix". Snooker Scene. Archived from the original on 24 January 2013. Retrieved 11 May 2012.
- ^ a b "Where the £275,000 went". Snooker Scene. December 1986. p. 17.
- ^ "Road to Reading ends at Bristol for some top players". Snooker Scene. November 1986. pp. 22–25.
- ^ "Break Chart". Cue World. December 1986. p. 9.
- ^ "Breaks". Cue World. November 1986. p. 13.