Ken Doherty Player Profile
Ken Doherty Stats
Date of birth: 17 September, 1969
Nationality: Ireland
First turned professional: 1990
Highest ranking: 2
Ranking titles: 6
Triple Crown titles: 1
Crucible best: champion
Masters appearances: 17
147 breaks: 1
SHQ Stars:
★★★★★★
Summary
Ken Doherty orchestrated a commendable career during an era that may go down as the best in terms of the standard at the very top.
After landing a World Amateur Championship and World Under-21 Amateur Championship double in 1989, the Irishman turned professional the following year.
It took just three years for Doherty to capture his first ranking title, beating Alan McManus 9-7 to claim the 1993 Welsh Open.
This victory helped to propel him into the top 16 of the world rankings, and for 15 years he enjoyed an almost-permanent presence among the top eight.
This was an impressive feat considering he had the likes of Stephen Hendry, Ronnie O’Sullivan, John Higgins, and Mark Williams in their primes to regularly battle against.
Doherty held his own as one of the best all-round competitors of the game, garnering the nickname Crafty Ken.
And in 1997, the Dubliner embarked on the pinnacle run of his career when he upset defending champion Hendry to capture World Championship glory in Sheffield.
It was the presence of these star rivals, however, that ultimately limited Doherty’s success in the Triple Crown tournaments to just one.
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There were defeats to Higgins and Williams in the 1998 and 2003 World Championship finals, losses to Hendry, O’Sullivan, and Williams in UK Championship title deciders, and reverses against Higgins and Matthew Stevens in the Masters.
In the 2000 Masters final against the latter, Doherty infamously missed the last black off the spot for what would have been a lucrative 147 break in the sport’s most prestigious invitational event.
Still, there were other notable highs – including a remarkable run of form in 2001 when he came just a couple of frames shy of a hat-trick of ranking titles.
Doherty thrashed Paul Hunter and Hendry to lift the Welsh Open and Thailand Masters trophies, before just being denied a third title on the trot by Peter Ebdon in the subsequent Scottish Open.
After winning the 2006 Malta Cup, Doherty was among the favourites again at the Crucible but suffered a surprise loss to Marco Fu in the quarter-finals.
Had he won that match he would have finished the season as the world number one, and following that his career began to decline.
More commonly known now for his media work off the baize, Doherty still participates on the Main Tour thanks to an invitational tour card.
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Ranking Event Victories
- 1993 Welsh Open
- 1997 World Snooker Championship
- 2000 Malta Grand Prix
- 2001 Welsh Open
- 2001 Thailand Masters
- 2006 Malta Cup
Other Notable Victories
- Premier League (1996, 1998)
- Irish Masters (1998)
- Scottish Masters (1993, 1994)
- Malta Grand Prix (1997)
- Pot Black (2007)
- Pontins Professional (1993, 1994, 1996)
- UK Seniors Championship (2018)
Featured photo credit: WST
Ken Doherty Player Profile
SHQ Stars: How it works
| Rating | SHQ Stars | Career Requirements |
|---|---|---|
| Black | ★★★★★★★ | multiple world champion; 30+ ranking titles; career triple crown; world no.1 (at least 3) |
| Pink | ★★★★★★ | world champion; 10+ ranking titles; multiple winner of triple crown events; member of top 2; 15+ seasons in top 16 (at least 3) |
| Blue | ★★★★★ | winner of triple crown event; 5+ ranking titles; member of top 4; 12+ seasons in top 16 (at least 2) |
| Brown | ★★★★ | 2+ ranking titles; member of top 8; triple crown event finalist; 8+ seasons in the top 16 (at least 2) |
| Green | ★★★ | ranking title; member of top 16 (at least 1) |
| Yellow | ★★ | member of top 64 |
| Red | ★ | professional |
