Stephen Maguire Player Profile
Stephen Maguire Stats
Date of birth: 13 March, 1981
Nationality: Scotland
First turned professional: 1998
Highest ranking: 2
Ranking titles: 6
Triple Crown titles: 1
Crucible best: semi-final
Masters appearances: 16
147 breaks: 3
SHQ Stars:
★★★★★
Summary
Stephen Maguire first turned professional in 1998, but it was during the 2003/2004 season that he announced himself as a big-time player.
At the 2004 European Open, Maguire’s maiden ranking victory provided the catalyst for one of the most impressive UK Championship triumphs ever later that year.
Maguire counted Ronnie O’Sullivan among his conquests in York, and it was the Rocket who labelled the Scot as a future world champion and a player who could dominate for years to come.
Ironically, though, several knockout blows dealt by O’Sullivan curtailed Maguire’s seemingly rapid ascent at this stage of his career.
There were back-to-back World Championship defeats in 2004 and 2005 before a heavy 10-2 loss in the final of the 2007 UK Championship, to name but a few.
By around 2008 and 2009, Maguire was widely regarded as the second best player in the world behind O’Sullivan, but he didn’t really have the silverware to prove it.
At the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, there were constant struggles to live up to lofty expectations.
MORE PLAYER PROFILES:
Maguire once opined that he’d be disappointed not to win the World Championship by the time he turned 30.
But aside from two semi-final runs in 2007 and 2012, he has generally failed to feature at the business end of the blue-riband event and has, in fact, suffered an array of first-round defeats at the Crucible.
Known for a volatile temperament on the baize that can just as often be to his detriment as it is to his benefit, there have been other standout moments for the former world number two.
At a COVID-impacted Tour Championship in 2020, Maguire beat Neil Robertson, Judd Trump, and Mark Allen to claim his first ranking title in seven years.
His six centuries against Robertson in the quarter-finals demonstrated his scoring prowess when in top form.
A year earlier, Maguire partnered John Higgins to victory in the World Cup at the Wuxi City Sports Park Stadium.
Yet his career has been curtailed by inconsistency, with Maguire undoubtedly set to go down as one of the game’s greatest underachievers.
Click here for the latest news on Stephen Maguire
Ranking Event Victories
- 2004 European Open
- 2004 UK Championship
- 2007 Northern Ireland Trophy
- 2008 China Open
- 2013 Welsh Open
- 2020 Tour Championship
Other Notable Victories
- Minor ranking events (2012 FFB Snooker Open, 2012 PTC 1, 2014 Lisbon Open)
- Six Red World Championship (2014, 2019)
- World Cup (2019)
Featured photo credit: WST
Stephen Maguire 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 |
