Andrew_Higginson

Andrew Higginson

Andrew Higginson

English snooker player

This article is about the English snooker player. For the British business executive, see Andrew Higginson (businessman).

Andrew Higginson (born 13 December 1977) is an English professional snooker player from Widnes, Cheshire. He is best known for being the surprise finalist of the 2007 Welsh Open.

Quick Facts Born, Sport country ...

Career

Early years

After some success in amateur tournaments, Higginson turned professional for the 2000/2001 season after finishing third on the Challenge Tour. He remained there for five seasons before dropping off, after encountering limited success. He won a place back on the tour for 2006/2007 after finishing second on the Pontins' International Open Series.

Breakthrough

Higginson reached the televised stages of a ranking tournament for the first time at the 2007 Malta Cup, where he beat Steve Davis 5–4 before losing 2–5 to Ken Doherty at the last 16. At the very next tournament, the 2007 Welsh Open, Higginson hit an extraordinary run of form, defeating Marco Fu 5–2, John Higgins 5–3 (from 0–3 down), Michael Judge 5–1, Ali Carter 5–1 (making his first professional 147 break[6] in the process) and Stephen Maguire 6–3 to reach the final. As he had spent the 2005–06 season on the secondary Challenge Tour, he was the first unranked player to reach a ranking final since Terry Griffiths won the World title in 1979. At the end of the first session of the final, he trailed 2–6 to Neil Robertson. In the second session, Higginson managed to take the lead and change the score to 8–6, but Robertson recovered to level the scores at 8–8 and force a deciding frame, which he won.[7] Higginson earned £20,000 for his 147 break, £2000 for the highest break and £17,500 for being the runner-up.

Subsequent career

Despite his good season, Higginson failed to qualify for the 2007 World Championship, losing 9–10 to Ricky Walden in the third qualifying round. His performance in the Welsh Open and Malta Cup brought him to 44th in the 2007/2008 rankings, and 24th on the one-year list.

The following season proved tougher, with Higginson only qualifying for one event – the 2008 Welsh Open again.[8]

However, he qualified for the 2008 Grand Prix, losing 0–5 to Mark Selby in the last 32.[9] He then beat Jamie Jones and Michael Judge to make his Crucible debut in the 2009 World Championship,[10] giving eventual finalist Shaun Murphy a test, leading 7–6[11] before losing 8–10.[12]

2011/12

Higginson won his first professional title during the 2011–12 season at the minor-ranking Players Tour Championship Event 5, where he beat reigning world champion John Higgins 4–1 in the final.[13] He played in all 12 of the PTC events and finished 6th on the Order of Merit, comfortably inside the top 24 who qualified for the Finals.[14] At the Finals he beat Jamie Jones and Xiao Guodong, before losing to Stephen Lee 2–4 in the semi-finals.[15]

He qualified for all but three of the other ranking events during the season.[15] In the German Masters he led Ronnie O'Sullivan 4–0 in their best-of-nine frames first round match, before being defeated 5–4 having missed a pot in the sixth frame that would have left O'Sullivan requiring snookers to stay in the tournament.[16] He finished the season by reaching the last 16 of the World Championship after defeating Stephen Lee 10–6 in the first round.[15] There he trailed Jamie Jones 6–10 after two sessions, but rallied to level at 10–10, before Jones won three successive frames to take the match 13–10.[17] Higginson finished the season ranked world number 18, meaning he had climbed 7 places during the year.[18]

2012/13

Higginson at the 2013 German Masters

Due to non-entries among the top 16 players, Higginson was automatically seeded into the venue stages of first two major ranking events of the 2012–13 season, Wuxi Classic and Australian Open, only to be beaten on both occasions by Robert Milkins and Ryan Day respectively. He was then whitewashed by Steve Davis in the qualifying for Shanghai Masters, making it three consecutive first round defeats for him. Higginson broke the streak by beating David Gilbert to reach the main draw of the International Championship, but was beaten 0–6 by Shaun Murphy in the first round at the venue in Chengdu, China.[19] He suffered yet another whitewash in UK Championship qualifying, losing 0–6 to Liang Wenbo, and as a result fell to No. 29 in the world rankings. Higginson enjoyed more success in the minor-ranking Players Tour Championship events, reaching the semi-finals in Event One[20] and European Tour Event Five;[21] in the latter tournament he lost 3–4 to Anthony McGill on a respotted black, despite having been 3–1 ahead at one point and his opponent having needed two snookers in the decider. Higginson went on to finish 13th on the PTC Order of Merit to qualify for the Grand Final for the third year in a row.

Higginson's form improved in the second half of the season as he qualified for five of the six remaining ranking tournaments of the season. His best results were last 16 appearances at the German Masters and the Welsh Open: in Germany he beat Stuart Bingham 5–1 before losing by the same scoreline to Neil Robertson, and in Wales he beat Michael Wasley 4–2 before losing 1–4 to Judd Trump.[19] At the PTC Finals Higginson was leading eventual tournament winner Ding Junhui 3–1 in the first round, before losing 3–4.[22] His season however ended in disappointment as he was beaten 4–10 by Michael White in the final round of World Championship Qualifying, to finish it ranked world number 22.[23][24]

2013/14

Higginson beat Steve Davis 5–1 in the first round of the 2013 Wuxi Classic, before losing 5–2 against Peter Lines.[25] He was defeated in the qualifying round for the Australian Goldfields Open and, despite another win over Davis to qualify, was beaten 5–4 in the wildcard round of the Shanghai Masters by Lin Shuai. Higginson exited the Indian Open in the last 32 and the UK Championship in the last 64.[25] Higginson won two matches in a ranking event for the only time this season at the Welsh Open with victories over Martin O'Donnell and Jimmy Robertson, before Scott Donaldson came from 3–2 down to eliminate him 4–3.[26] Higginson had a very poor season in the eight European Tour events as his best finishes were four last 64 defeats to be placed a lowly 79th on the Order of Merit.[27] He came within a match of qualifying for the World Championship, but lost 10–6 to Dominic Dale.[28] Higginson fell 14 places and outside the top 32 in the rankings during they year to end it 36th in the world.[29]

2014/15

At the Australian Goldfields Open, Higginson was defeated 5–2 by home favourite Neil Robertson in the first round. He won three games to qualify for the Shanghai Masters, but was knocked out in the opening round 5–3 by Mark Allen. A further first round exit followed in the International Championship at the hands of Joe Swail, before Higginson won his first match at the venue stage of a ranking event this season by beating Tian Pengfei 6–3 at the UK Championship. He was eliminated in the second round 6–4 by James Cahill.[30] Higginson qualified for the China Open, but lost 5–3 to Judd Trump in the first round.[31] He reached the final qualifying round for the World Championship thanks to wins over Scott Donaldson and Luca Brecel, and forced a deciding frame from 9–6 against Robert Milkins which he lost. The defeat meant that Higginson has failed to advance beyond the last 32 of any ranking event in over two years.[32] His decline in the rankings continued as he ended the season 48th in the world.[33]

2015/2016

After winning three matches to qualify for the Australian Goldfields Open, Higginson lost 5–3 to Ricky Walden in the first round and he was knocked out in the same stage of the International Championship 6–4 by Liang Wenbo.[34] Another opening round defeat in a ranking came at the UK Championship 6–1 to David Grace.[35] At the Gdynia Open, Higginson defeated five players to reach the semi-finals, but lost 4–2 to Mark Selby. This saw him finish 15th on the Order of Merit and qualify for the Grand Final, where he was knocked out 4–1 by Matthew Selt.[36] Higginson failed to win a match at a ranking event for the sixth time this season when he suffered a 5–3 loss to Yuan Sijun in the wildcard round of the China Open.[34] His ranking slump continued as he was placed 56th in the world.[37]

2016/2017

Higginson won a first round ranking event match for the first time since the 2014 UK Championship by eliminating Mitchell Mann 4–1 at the 2016 Indian Open, but lost 4–2 against Oliver Lines in the second round.[38] He was beaten 4–3 by Robbie Williams in the third round of the Paul Hunter Classic. Higginson qualified for the European Masters by defeating Stephen Maguire 4–3 and Ashley Hugill 4–1 and got to the last 16 of a full ranking event for the first time in over three years by whitewashing Marco Fu 4–0, but then lost 4–0 to Judd Trump.[38] He was edged out 6–5 after being 5–2 up on Joe Perry in the opening round of the International Championship.[39] After knocking out David Gilbert 5–3 and Ricky Walden 5–4 at the China Open, Higginson was close to making the quarter-finals as he was 4–3 ahead of world number one Mark Selby, but went on to lose 5–4.[40]

Performance and rankings timeline

More information Tournaments, 1996/97 ...
More information Performance Table Legend ...
NH / Not Heldmeans an event was not held.
NR / Non-Ranking Eventmeans an event is/was no longer a ranking event.
R / Ranking Eventmeans an event is/was a ranking event.
MR / Minor-Ranking Eventmeans an event is/was a minor-ranking event.
  1. [N 1]
    From the 2010/2011 season it shows the ranking at the beginning of the season
  2. [N 2]
    New players on the Main Tour don't have a ranking
  3. [N 3]
    He was an amateur
  4. [N 4]
    Players qualified through the Q School started the season without ranking points
  5. [N 5]
    The event was called the European Open (1996/1997 and 2001/2002–2003/2004), the Irish Open (1998/1999) and the Malta Cup (2005/2006–2007/2008)
  6. [N 6]
    The event was called the International Open (1996/1997) and the Players Championship (2003/2004)
  7. [N 7]
    The event was also called the German Open (1996/1997–1997/1998)
  8. [N 8]
    The event was called the Players Tour Championship Grand Final (2010/2011–2015/2016)
  9. [N 9]
    The event was also called the Grand Prix (1996/1997–2000/2001 and 2004/2005–2009/2010) and the LG Cup (2001/2002–2003/2004)
  10. [N 10]
    The event was also called the Thailand Open (1996/1997)
  11. [N 11]
    The event was called the Jiangsu Classic (2008/2009–2009/2010)
  12. [N 12]
    The event was called the Fürth German Open (2006/2007)
  13. [N 13]
    The event was called the Riga Open (2014/2015–2015/2016)
  14. [N 14]
    The event was also called the Benson & Hedges Championship (1990/1991–2002/2003)
  15. [N 15]
    The event was called the General Cup International (2004/2005–2011/2012)
  16. [N 16]
    The event was called the Six-red Snooker International (2008/2009) and the Six-red World Grand Prix (2009/2010)

Career finals

Ranking finals: 1

Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final Score
Runner-up 1. 2007 Welsh Open Australia Neil Robertson 8–9

Minor-ranking finals: 1 (1 title)

Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final Score
Winner1.2011Players Tour Championship – Event 5Scotland John Higgins4–1

Non-ranking finals: 3 (1 title)

Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final Score
Winner1.2000UK Tour - Event 2Scotland Scott MacKenzie6–3
Runner-up1.2009Masters Qualifying EventEngland Rory McLeod1–6
Runner-up2.2012HK Spring TrophyEngland Mark Selby1–6

Amateur events

  • North West Championship (1998, 1999)
  • Merseyside Junior Championship (1997)
  • North West Pairs Championship (1996)
  • North West Junior Championship (1995)

References

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    "Andrew Higginson". WPBSA. Archived from the original on 13 February 2024. Retrieved 13 February 2024.
  2. [2]
    "Issued after the Players Tour Championship 2011 – Event 7" (PDF). World Snooker. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 11 October 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 December 2014. Retrieved 1 January 2013.
  3. [3]
    "Issued after the Players Tour Championship 2011 – Event 8" (PDF). World Snooker. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 25 October 2011. Retrieved 1 January 2013.
  4. [4]
    "Issued after the Players Tour Championship 2011 – Event 9" (PDF). World Snooker. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 14 November 2011. Retrieved 1 January 2013.
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    "Official World Snooker Ranking List for the 2012/2013 Season" (PDF). World Snooker. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 8 May 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 May 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2013.
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    Yahoo! Sport. 2009. Andrew Higginson. [Online] Eurosport UK (Updated 2010) Available at: http://uk.yahoo.eurosport.com/snooker/person_prs112770.sdoc Archived 26 December 2008 at the Wayback Machine [Accessed 17 February 2010].
  7. [7]
    Robertson wins epic Welsh final
  8. [8]
    Higginson seeks unlikely repeat (Archive)
  9. [9]
    Mark Selby breezes past Andrew Higginson
  10. [10]
    Andrew Higginson profile
  11. [11]
    "West Bank star Andrew Higginson beaten by 2005 world champion Shaun Murphy on Crucible debut". Archived from the original on 27 July 2011. Retrieved 6 May 2009.
  12. [12]
    "Shaun Murphy beats Andrew Higginson to set up second-round showdown with Marco Fu". The Guardian. 22 April 2009. Archived from the original on 16 June 2023.
  13. [13]
    "Andrew Higginson beats John Higgins to land first professional tour title". Runcorn & Widnes Weekly News. 29 September 2011. Retrieved 20 May 2012.
  14. [14]
    "Order of Merit". Snooker.org. 8 January 2012. Retrieved 20 May 2012.
  15. [15]
    "Andrew Higginson 2011/2012". Snooker.org. Retrieved 20 May 2012.
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    "Ronnie O'Sullivan beats Andrew Higginson in German Masters". BBC Sport. 2 February 2012. Retrieved 20 May 2012.
  17. [17]
    "Widnes snooker star Andrew Higginson disappointed after losing to Jamie Jones in the Betfred.com World Championship second round". Liverpool Echo. 1 May 2012. Retrieved 20 May 2012.
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  19. [19]
    Andrew Higginson 2012/2013, Snooker.org
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  21. [21]
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  23. [23]
    "Betfair World Championship Qualifiers". Snooker.org. Retrieved 16 April 2013.
  24. [24]
    "Official World Snooker Ranking List for the 2013/2014 Season" (PDF). World Snooker. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 June 2013. Retrieved 28 May 2013.
  25. [25]
    "Andrew Higginson 2013/2014". Snooker.org. Retrieved 5 May 2014.
  26. [26]
    "Wenbo Stuns Murphy In Wales". World Snooker. Retrieved 5 May 2014.
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    "European Order of Merit 2013/2014". Snooker.org. Archived from the original on 8 April 2014. Retrieved 5 May 2014.
  28. [28]
    "Dott / Williams / Stevens Miss Crucible". World Snooker. Archived from the original on 18 April 2014. Retrieved 5 May 2014.
  29. [29]
    "World Snooker Rankings After the 2014 World Championship" (PDF). World Snooker. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 May 2014. Retrieved 9 May 2014.
  30. [30]
    "Andrew Higginson 2014/2015". Snooker.org. Retrieved 27 April 2015.
  31. [31]
    "Snooker - Mark Selby overcomes Mark Joyce despite neck pain". Eurosport. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
  32. [32]
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  33. [33]
    "World Rankings After 2015 World Championship". World Snooker. Archived from the original on 7 May 2015. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  34. [34]
    "Andrew Higginson 2015/2016". Snooker.org. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
  35. [35]
    "Honeymoon incentive as Grace aims to clean up at York". The Yorkshire Post. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
  36. [36]
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  37. [37]
    "Historic Seedings After 2016 World Championship". Snooker.org. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
  38. [38]
    "Andrew Higginson 2016/2017". Snooker.org. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
  39. [39]
    "Joe Perry 6–5 Andrew Higginson". World Snooker. Archived from the original on 8 April 2017. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  40. [40]
    "Selby Battles Past Higginson". World Snooker. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  41. [41]
    "Ranking History". Snooker.org. Retrieved 6 February 2011.
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