Gary Wilkinson (born 7 April 1966) is an English former professional

snooker Snooker (pronounced , ) is a cue sport played on a rectangular Billiard table#Snooker and English billiards tables, billiards table covered with a green cloth called baize, with six Billiard table#Pockets 2, pockets: one at each corner and ...

player.

Career

Wilkinson turned professional in 1987. In 1988, he won the non-ranking WPBSA Invitation Event beating

Alex Higgins Alexander Gordon Higgins (18 March 1949 – 24 July 2010) was a Northern Irish professional snooker player and a two-time world champion who is remembered as one of the most iconic figures in the sport's history. Nicknamed "Hurricane Higgi ...

5–4 in the final. He climbed the rankings to reach the no. 5 spot in the world within four seasons. One of his career highlights was at the 1989 UK Championship, where he led

John Parrott John Stephen Parrott (born 11 May 1964) is an English former professional snooker player who won the 1991 World Snooker Championship. He came to prominence in the mid to late 1980s, and remained within the top 16 of the world rankings for 14 ...

7–0 and 8–1 in their Last 16 match before falling over the line at 9–6, then whitewashing

Jimmy White James Warren White (born 2 May 1962) is an English professional snooker player who has won ten ranking events. Nicknamed "The Whirlwind" because of his swift and attacking style of play, White has reached six World Snooker Championship finals ...

9–0 in the quarter-finals, and then leading world number 1

Steve Davis Steve Davis (born 22 August 1957) is an English retired professional snooker player who is currently a Sports commentator, commentator, DJ, electronic musician and author. He dominated professional snooker in the 1980s, when he reached eight ...

4–0, 6–2 and 8–7 in the semi-finals, before Wilkinson misread the score thinking that Davis didn't need snookers and went for a risky shot. It proved costly as Davis came back to get the snookers he needed, win that frame and then the deciding frame as Davis won 9–8. Wilkinson failed to sustain his late 1980s and early 1990s results and has never won a ranking tournament, losing in the final of the 1991 British Open 9–10 to

Stephen Hendry Stephen Gordon Hendry (born 13 January 1969) is a Scottish retired professional snooker player and a current Sports commentator, commentator and pundit. One of the most successful players in snooker history, he turned professional in 1985, ag ...

, losing the 1992 Scottish Masters final 8–10 to

Neal Foulds Neal Foulds (born 13 July 1963) is an English former professional snooker player and six-time tournament winner, including the 1986 International Open, the 1988 Dubai Masters and the 1992 Scottish Masters, as well as the invitational Pot Bla ...

, as well as losing in four ranking semi-finals. While fancied to potentially go far at the 1991 World Championship, Wilkinson missed the chance of a 147 maximum break and a £100,000 prize in his first round match against

Doug Mountjoy Douglas James Mountjoy (8 June 1942 – 14 February 2021) was a Welsh snooker player from Tir-y-Berth, Gelligaer, Wales. He was a member of the professional snooker circuit from the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s, and remained within t ...

after missing the final yellow off its spot, and eventually lost 3–13 to Jimmy White in the quarter-finals in a surprisingly one-sided scoreline. Wilkinson spent a decade in the top 32, but without reaching a ranking semi-final after 1992. He has made ten appearances in the

World Championship A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

, meaning that he has come through qualifying eight times. His best runs were to the quarter-finals in 1991 and 1995. After dropping off the main tour he played in the PIOS whilst also working as a tournament assistant for World Snooker. However, Wilkinson did capture one major title when he won the 1991 World Matchplay. During this peak moment of his career in December 1991, Wilkinson defeated

Dean Reynolds Dean Reynolds (born 11 January 1963 in Grimsby) is an English former professional snooker player whose career spanned twenty years from 1981 to 2001. Early and personal life From Grimsby, Reynolds is a left-handed player and started playing ...

5–1, world champion

9–8,

9–6 and then beat

18–11 in the final to win the 1991 World Matchplay title and the £70,000 winner's cheque.

Performance and rankings timeline

Career finals

Ranking finals: 1

Non-ranking finals: 3 (2 titles)

Pro-am finals: 1 (1 title)

Amateur finals: 2 (1 title)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilkinson, Gary 1966 births English snooker players Living people Sportspeople from Kirkby-in-Ashfield Sportspeople from Nottinghamshire