Stephen Hendry facts for kids
Hendry at the 2011 Paul Hunter Classic
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| Born | 13 January 1969 Edinburgh, Scotland |
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| Sport country |  Scotland |
| Professional | 1985–2012, 2020–2024 |
| Highest ranking | 1 (April 1990 – May 1998, May 2006 – May 2007) |
| Tournament wins | |
| Ranking | 36 |
| World Champion |
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Stephen Gordon Hendry (born 13 January 1969) is a Scottish former professional snooker player. He is also a commentator and expert. Many people consider him one of the greatest snooker players ever.
Stephen Hendry became a professional player in 1985 when he was just 16. He quickly became one of the top players in the world. He won his first World Snooker Championship in 1990. He was 21 years old, making him the youngest world champion ever. This record still stands today.
Between 1990 and 1999, he won seven world titles. This was a new record for the modern era. Only Ronnie O'Sullivan has equalled this record in 2022. Hendry also won the Masters six times and the UK Championship five times. In total, he won 18 "Triple Crown" tournaments. Only Ronnie O'Sullivan has won more.
Stephen Hendry won 36 ranking titles, which is the second-highest ever. He was the world number one for nine seasons. This was the most by any player under the old ranking system. He also holds records for winning the Masters five times in a row (1989–1993). He won the World Championship five times in a row (1992–1996). He is one of only three players to win all three Triple Crown events in one season. He is the only player to do this twice!
Hendry made 777 century breaks in his career. A century break is scoring 100 points or more in one turn. He also made 11 maximum breaks (147 points). This puts him third for the most maximums in professional snooker. He received an MBE award in 1994. He was named BBC Scotland Sports Personality of the Year twice.
After 1996, Hendry's performance became less steady. His career slowed down in the 2000s. He reached his last World Championship final in 2002. He lost a very close match to Peter Ebdon. He won his last ranking title in 2005. He retired from professional snooker in 2012 at age 43. He came back to play professionally in 2020 but retired again in 2024.
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Stephen Hendry's Early Life
Stephen Hendry was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1969. His parents were Gordon Hendry and Irene Rixson. When Stephen was nine, his family moved to Dalgety Bay. He went to Inverkeithing High School.
Stephen started playing snooker when he was 12. His parents bought him a small snooker table for Christmas in 1981. He then started playing on full-sized tables. He played at Maloco's Snooker Hall and the Classic Snooker Centre. He made his first century break (102 points) in 1982. This was just after his 13th birthday.
When he was 15, his parents separated. Stephen and his brother Keith moved with their mother. They moved to Kirkliston. Stephen continued to play snooker. His father often traveled with him to tournaments.
Becoming a Snooker Champion
Amateur Years: Learning the Game (1982–1985)
Stephen Hendry won his first tournament as a young player. It was an "Under-16 Stars of the Future" event in Wales. He won both the Scottish and British Under-16 Championships. In 1983, he appeared on TV for the first time. He won the Scottish Amateur Championship in 1984. He was the youngest player ever to do so. In 1985, he became a professional player. He was only 16 years and three months old. This made him the youngest professional snooker player at that time.
Early Professional Career: Rising Fast (1985–1989)
In his first professional season (1985–86), Hendry won the Scottish Professional Championship. He was the youngest player to win this title. He played in his first World Championship in 1986. He was 17 years old. He was the youngest player to compete at the Crucible Theatre.
In the 1986–87 season, he won the Scottish Professional Championship again. He reached his first ranking semi-final. He also won the 1987 World Doubles Championship with Mike Hallett. He reached the quarter-finals of the World Championship. He almost won, but lost in the final frame.
In the 1987–88 season, Hendry won his first ranking title. He beat Dennis Taylor in the Grand Prix final. He won his second ranking title at the British Open. He also won his third Scottish Professional Championship. By the end of this season, he was ranked number four in the world. He was named BBC Scotland Sports Personality of the Year.
He won the Masters in 1989 on his first try. He reached his first World Championship semi-final.
World Champion and Number One: Dominating the 1990s (1989–1999)
The 1989–90 season was the start of Stephen Hendry's amazing success. He won his first UK Championship. He won his second Masters title. And he won his first world title at the 1990 World Championship. He became the second player to win all three Triple Crown events in one season. He was the youngest world champion ever. He also won other ranking titles and became world number one.
In the 1990–91 season, Hendry won five ranking titles. This was a record for one season. He won his second UK Championship and third Masters. However, he lost in the World Championship quarter-finals. In the 1991–92 season, he won his fourth Masters. He won his second world title at the 1992 World Championship. He made his first maximum break in a professional match.
In the 1992–93 season, he won his fifth Masters title in a row. He won his third world title at the 1993 World Championship. He won easily, losing only 25 frames in the whole tournament. In the 1993–94 season, he lost the UK Championship final to 17-year-old Ronnie O'Sullivan. He also lost his first Masters final. But he won his fourth world title at the 1994 World Championship. He won a very close final match.
In 1994, Hendry received an MBE award. In the 1994–95 season, he won his third UK Championship. He set a record for the most century breaks in a match (seven). He finished the season by winning his fifth world title.
In the 1995–96 season, Hendry won all three Triple Crown events again. He won his fourth UK Championship, sixth Masters, and sixth world title. He was named BBC Scotland Sports Personality of the Year again. In the 1996–97 season, he won his fifth UK Championship. He made a maximum break in the deciding frame of a final. This is a unique record. He reached his sixth straight world final but lost to Ken Doherty. His 29 wins in a row at the Crucible Theatre is still a record.
In the 1997–98 season, he lost two Triple Crown finals. He also lost in the first round of the World Championship. He dropped to second in the world rankings. In the 1998–99 season, he lost a match 0–9, which was a big shock. But he came back strong. He won his seventh and final world title at the 1999 World Championship. He held the record for seven world titles for 23 years.
Later Career and Retirement
After His Dominance (1999–2012)
In the 1999–2000 season, Hendry won the British Open. He made his fifth 147 break in the final. But he lost in the first round of the World Championship. In the 2000–01 season, he did not win any ranking titles. This was the first time since 1989.
In the 2001–02 season, he won the European Open. He almost won his eighth world title in 2002. He reached the final but lost a very close match to Peter Ebdon. This was his last World Championship final. He made 16 century breaks in that tournament, a record at the time.
He won the Welsh Open in 2003. He also won the British Open in 2003. In 2003, his snooker cue broke during a flight. He had used this cue to win all seven of his world titles. He reached the semi-finals of the 2004 World Championship. But he lost badly to Ronnie O'Sullivan. In 2005, he won the Malta Cup. This was his 36th and last ranking title.
Hendry became world number one again for the 2005–06 season. This was his ninth season as world number one, a record under the old system. In 2006, he reached his last ranking final at the 2006 UK Championship. He lost to Peter Ebdon again. In 2008, he reached his 12th World Championship semi-final. This broke Steve Davis's record. He was 39, the oldest player to reach the semi-finals in many years. But he lost to Ronnie O'Sullivan.
In 2009, he made a maximum break against Shaun Murphy at the World Championship. He was 40 years old. He was the oldest player to make a maximum in a ranking tournament. He also became the second player to make more than one 147 at the Crucible.
In the 2010–11 season, Hendry said he had been suffering from "the yips" for ten years. This is a problem where a player struggles to hit the ball correctly. He made his tenth professional maximum break in 2011.
In the 2011–12 season, he fell out of the top 16 world rankings. This was the first time in 23 years. He still qualified for the 2012 World Championship. He made his 27th straight appearance there. He made his 11th career maximum break in the first round. He beat the defending champion John Higgins in the second round. But he lost in the quarter-finals. After this match, Stephen Hendry announced his retirement. He was 43 years old. He said he was not happy with his playing and wanted to do other things.
Return and Second Retirement (2020–2024)
In August 2020, Hendry reached the semi-finals of the World Seniors Championship. The next month, he decided to return to professional snooker. He was given a special two-year tour card. He played his first professional match in almost nine years in 2021. He won his first qualifying match at the 2021 World Championship against Jimmy White.
During the 2021–22 season, he played in six tournaments. He did not get past the early rounds. He said he was not practicing enough to be competitive. In April 2022, his tour card was renewed for two more seasons. He played a few matches in the 2022–23 season. He lost to his ex-wife's nephew, James Cahill, in the 2023 World Championship qualifiers.
In the 2023–24 season, he lost his first few matches. He said he was thinking about retiring again. He felt his performances were "embarrassing." He did not enter the 2024 World Championship qualifiers. In June 2024, he officially retired from professional snooker for the second time. He said his body was not doing what his brain wanted it to. He had won only three of 20 matches since his return.
Stephen Hendry's Achievements
When Stephen Hendry first retired in 2012, he was the most successful snooker player ever. He had earned almost £9 million in prize money. This was more than any other player at the time.
He held many records:
- Most world titles in the modern era (7).
- Most ranking titles (36).
- Most Triple Crown titles (18).
- Most century breaks (775).
- Most maximum breaks (11), shared with Ronnie O'Sullivan.
However, since then, Ronnie O'Sullivan has broken some of these records. As of 2024, O'Sullivan has equalled Hendry's 7 world titles. He has won 41 ranking titles and 23 Triple Crown titles. He has also made over 1,200 century breaks and 15 maximum breaks. Other players like John Higgins, Neil Robertson, Mark Selby, and Judd Trump have also made more century breaks than Hendry.
Some snooker experts debate who is the greatest player. Many say Ronnie O'Sullivan is the best player. But some, like Steve Davis, say Hendry is the greatest winner. Stephen Hendry himself says O'Sullivan is the greatest player he has played against. But he believes he would win if both played at their very best.
After O'Sullivan equalled Hendry's seven world titles in 2022, both players praised each other. O'Sullivan said Hendry "didn't miss a ball." Hendry said O'Sullivan's snooker was "supreme in all departments."
Stephen Hendry's Life Outside Snooker
Stephen Hendry met Amanda Tart when he was 16. They married in 1995. They had two sons, Blaine and Carter. Amanda's sister Maria is the aunt of James Cahill, who also plays snooker professionally.
In 2014, Stephen Hendry separated from his wife. He started a relationship with Lauren Thundow. His father, Gordon, passed away in 2017. In 2018, Hendry wrote his autobiography called Me and the Table. In 2022, he started a YouTube channel called "Stephen Hendry's Cue Tips." He teaches snooker and talks with other players.
Stephen Hendry also enjoys playing golf and poker. He supports the Scottish football team Hearts of Midlothian.
Awards
| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) | 1993 | |
| BBC Scotland Sports Personality of the Year | 1987, 1996 | |
| WPBSA Player of the Year | 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999 | |
| WPBSA Young Player of the Year | 1985, 1987, 1988 | |
| WPBSA Performance of the Year | 1995 | |
| World Snooker Hall of Fame | 2011 |
Images for kids
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Hendry at the Brugge Open in 2010
See also
In Spanish: Stephen Hendry para niños
