Editing Joe Davis (section)

{{short description|English professional snooker player (1901–1978)}}
{{other people||Joe Davis (disambiguation)}}
{{good article}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2023}}
{{Use British English|date=November 2018}}
{{Infobox snooker player
| name             = Joe Davis
| honorific_suffix = {{post-nominals|size=100|country=GBR|OBE}}
| image            = Joe Davis.jpg
| image_size       = 
| alt = Joe Davis dressed in a waistcoat and bow tie, holding a billiard cue
| caption          = Davis {{circa}} 1920
| birth_date       = {{birth date|1901|4|15|df=y}}
| birth_place      = [[Whitwell, Derbyshire]], England
| death_date       = {{death date and age|1978|7|10|1901|4|15|df=y}}
| death_place      = [[Hampshire]], England
| Sport country    = England
| Professional     = 1919–1964
| High ranking     =
| Official maximums = 
| Ranking wins     =
| World champ      = [[World Snooker Championship|Snooker]]: {{Hlist|[[1927 World Snooker Championship|1927]] | [[1928 World Snooker Championship|1928]] | [[1929 World Snooker Championship|1929]] | [[1930 World Snooker Championship|1930]]}} {{Hlist|[[1931 World Snooker Championship|1931]] | [[1932 World Snooker Championship|1932]] | [[1933 World Snooker Championship|1933]] | [[1934 World Snooker Championship|1934]]}} {{Hlist|[[1935 World Snooker Championship|1935]] | [[1936 World Snooker Championship|1936]] | [[1937 World Snooker Championship|1937]] | [[1938 World Snooker Championship|1938]]}} {{Hlist|[[1939 World Snooker Championship|1939]] | [[1940 World Snooker Championship|1940]] | [[1946 World Snooker Championship|1946]]}} (15 times)<br />[[World Billiards Championship (English billiards)|English billiards]]: {{Hlist|1928, 1929, 1930, 1932}} (4 times)
}}

'''Joseph Davis''' (15 April 1901{{spnd}}10 July 1978) was an English professional [[snooker]] and [[English billiards]] player. He was the dominant figure in snooker from the 1920s to the 1950s, and has been credited with inventing aspects of the way the game is now played, such as {{cuegloss|break}}-building. With the help of equipment manufacturer [[Bill Camkin]], he drove the creation of the [[World Snooker Championship]] by persuading the [[Billiards Association and Control Council]] to recognise an official professional snooker championship in 1927. Davis won the first 15 world championships from 1927 to 1946, and he is the only undefeated player in World Snooker Championship history. In 1935, he scored the championship's first {{cuegloss|century|century break}}.

A professional English billiards player from the age of 18, Davis was [[World Professional Billiards Championship|World Billiards Champion]] four times between 1928 and 1932. He was the first person to win world championship titles in both billiards and snooker. After his [[1946 World Snooker Championship|1946 victory]], Davis no longer played in the World Snooker Championship but he participated in other tournaments and exhibition matches until 1964, winning four [[News of the World Snooker Tournament|''News of the World'' Snooker Tournament]] titles. He also continued to wield considerable influence over the professional game through his chairmanship of the professional players' association, his co-ownership of the [[Thurston's Hall|Leicester Square Hall]] venue, and his negotiation of television contracts. His younger brother, [[Fred Davis (snooker player)|Fred Davis]], was the only person to defeat him in a competitive snooker match without receiving a [[Head start (positioning)|start]].

In 1955, Davis was the first player to make an officially recognised [[maximum break]]. He collapsed whilst watching his brother Fred play [[Perrie Mans]] in the semi-final of the [[1978 World Snooker Championship]]. During his [[convalescence]], Davis contracted a chest infection which led to his death on 10&nbsp;July that year.