Robin Hull facts for kids
Hull at the 2017 Paul Hunter Classic
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| Born | 16 August 1974 Espoo, Uusimaa, Finland |
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| Sport country |  Finland |
| Professional | 1993–1997, 1998–2008, 2011/2012, 2013–2019 |
| Highest ranking | 32 (2003/2004) |
| Current ranking | 99 (as of 8 May 2018) |
| Best ranking finish | Quarter-final (x3) |
Robin Hull (born on August 16, 1974) is a former professional snooker player from Finland.
For a while, he was the only player from the Nordic countries on the main professional snooker tour. He is known for being great at building breaks, which means scoring many points in one turn. He has made over 150 centuries (scores of 100 points or more) in his career. This is a lot for a player who never reached the top 16 in the world rankings.
Robin Hull is one of only six players who have almost made a perfect game, called a maximum break, but missed the very last black ball.
Contents
Robin's Snooker Journey
Robin Hull became a professional snooker player in 1992. In the 2001-2002 season, he did very well. He reached the last 16 players in the 2001 UK Championship. He also qualified for the main 2002 World Snooker Championship by beating famous player Steve Davis. In his first match at the World Championship, he lost to Graeme Dott. These good results helped him get into the world's top 32 players the next season.
Health Challenges and Comebacks
Robin faced a serious health problem, a viral infection, which kept him from playing much in the 2003-2004 season. Even with this, he still made it to his first quarter-final (top 8) at the 2003 Welsh Open. He reached the quarter-finals again at the 2006 Malta Cup. However, his health issues made his playing inconsistent. He even had to stop playing in the 2007 World Snooker Championship because of an irregular heartbeat, which was linked to his past illness. After more health problems, he decided to retire from professional snooker.
In 2010, Robin played in a special event called the Finnish Challenge. He surprised everyone by beating top players like Darren Morgan, Ken Doherty, and Matthew Stevens. He reached the final but lost to Mark Williams. This encouraged Robin to try to become a professional again. He successfully qualified for the 2011-2012 main tour.
However, he didn't have enough sponsors, so he could only play in a few events. His best result was reaching the qualifying rounds for the 2011 UK Championship. He won two matches before losing. He didn't play in any more tournaments that season and lost his spot on the main tour.
Returning to the Top
Robin Hull got his professional tour spot back for the 2013-2014 season. He won the EBSA European Snooker Championships in Poland, beating Gareth Allen in the final. He even finished the match with two "centuries" in a row!
He qualified for the 2013 International Championship but had to pull out. He almost beat the world champion, Ronnie O'Sullivan, in a smaller tournament, leading 3-1 before losing 4-3. Robin didn't win many other matches that season. Due to money reasons, he skipped most of the second half of the season.
But then came the 2014 World Snooker Championship! Robin played his best in years. He won three tough qualifying matches against Tony Drago, Tian Pengfei, and Ian Burns. This meant he reached the famous Crucible Theatre for the World Championship for the second time. There, he played against Ronnie O'Sullivan again and lost, but he still played very well.
More Success and a Big Win
The 2014-2015 season started well for Robin. He reached the quarter-finals of the 2014 Wuxi Classic, which was his third time reaching the top 8 in a professional event and his first in eight years. He won most of his first-round matches in other tournaments. At the 2015 China Open, he reached the last 16 players.
To keep his professional tour card, Robin needed to do well in the 2015 World Snooker Championship qualifiers, just like the year before. And he did it! He beat three players to qualify for the Crucible for the second year in a row. He lost to Shaun Murphy in the first round, but his efforts helped him stay in the world's top 64 players.
Robin didn't play in many tournaments at the start of the 2015-2016 season. His first big win came at the 2015 UK Championship, where he beat world number eight Barry Hawkins. He then lost in the third round.
His biggest success came at the 2016 Snooker Shoot-Out. This is a special tournament where each match is just one quick 10-minute game. Robin won his second professional title by beating Luca Brecel in the final. This win earned him £32,000, which was the most money he had ever won in his career!
Because he won the Shoot-Out, he got to play in the 2016 Champion of Champions tournament. He lost to Ronnie O'Sullivan in the first round. His only other last 16 appearance that year was at the 2017 German Masters. In the qualifying round for the 2017 World Snooker Championship, Robin had a surprising loss to Reanne Evans, who is an 11-time ladies world champion.
About Robin's Life
Robin Hull was born and grew up in Finland. His mother is Finnish, and his father is English.
Career Finals: Wins and Runner-ups
Robin Hull has played in several finals during his career, both as a professional and an amateur.
Professional Non-ranking Finals
Robin has won two non-ranking professional titles.
| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | 1. | 2002 | WPBSA Open Tour Event 3 |  Colm Gilcreest |
5–4 |
| Runner-up | 1. | 2010 | Finnish Challenge |  Mark Williams |
1–6 |
| Winner | 2. | 2016 | Snooker Shoot Out |  Luca Brecel |
1–0 |
Professional Pro-am Finals
He has won one pro-am event, where professionals and amateurs play together.
| Outcome | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | 2000 | Austrian Open |  Matthew Couch |
5–1 |
Amateur Finals
Robin Hull has had great success as an amateur, winning many championships.
| Outcome | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | 1992 | IBSF World Under-21 Snooker Championship | Patrick Delsemme |
11–7 |
| Winner | 1992 | Finnish Amateur Championship |  Jyri Virtanen |
5–0 |
| Runner-up | 1993 | EBSA European Championship | Neil Mosley |
6–8 |
| Winner | 1997 | EBSA European Championship |  Kristján Helgason |
7–3 |
| Winner | 2005 | Finnish Amateur Championship | Risto Värynen |
5–4 |
| Winner | 2009 | Finnish Amateur Championship | Kimmo Lang |
4–0 |
| Winner | 2011 | Finnish Amateur Championship | Antti Mannila |
4–0 |
| Winner | 2013 | Finnish Amateur Championship | Kimmo Lang |
5–0 |
| Winner | 2013 | EBSA European Championship (2) | Gareth Allen |
7–2 |
| Winner | 2014 | Finnish Amateur Championship | Kimmo Lang |
5–4 |
| Winner | 2018 | Finnish Amateur Championship | Antti Tolvanen |
4–1 |
| Winner | 2020 | Finnish Amateur Championship | Heikki Niva |
4–0 |
