Steve Davis

Steve Davis OBE (born 22 August 1957) is an English professional snooker player from Plumstead, London. Known for dominating the sport during the 1980s, when he won the World Championship six times and was ranked world number one for seven consecutive seasons, he is remembered particularly for contesting the 1985 World Championship final with Dennis Taylor, the black-ball conclusion of which attracted a record 18.5 million British viewers. He is a well known public figure and is generally viewed by his peers as one of the greatest players of all time.

In addition to his six world titles, Davis's career achievements include three Masters and a record six UK Championship titles. He won a total of 28 ranking events, second only to Stephen Hendry, and made over £5.6 million in prize money. Davis compiled more than 300 competitive century breaks,including the first officially recognised (and first televised) maximum break in professional competition, in 1982. During the 1987/1988 season, he became the first player to complete snooker's Triple Crown by winning the UK Championship, Masters, and World Championship in the same season. His other accomplishments include winning the World Doubles Championship four times with Tony Meo and winning the World Team Classic/World Cup four times with England.

Davis won his last world title in 1989, and captured his last major title when he won the 1997 Masters at the age of 39, but he continued to play snooker at a high level into his 50s. He reached the final of the 2005 UK Championship at the age of 48 and was still ranked inside the top 16 when he turned 50 during the 2007/2008 season. He reached the quarter-finals of the 2010 World Championship at the age of 52, making him the oldest quarter-finalist since Eddie Charlton in 1983.

Outside snooker, Davis has competed in pool tournaments, notably playing on Team Europe at the Mosconi Cup between 1994 and 2004, helping the team win the event in 1995 and 2002. He is also noted for his participation in poker events, having reached the final stages of several televised tournaments. Since 1996 he has been a regular broadcaster with Phoenix FM and an expert in the progressive rock genres of Zeuhl, RIO and the Canterbury scene. A keen amateur chess player, he has co-authored a chess book with grandmaster David Norwood and is a former president of the British Chess Federation. He has also published several books on snooker, including three autobiographies, one technical book and one comedy book called "How To Be Really Interesting."