Chris Small

Template:Short description Template:For Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use British English Template:Infobox snooker player Christopher Small (born 26 September 1973) is a retired Scottish professional snooker player and now a qualified snooker coach.<ref name="coach">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> His playing career was ended by the spinal condition ankylosing spondylitis.<ref name="coach"/><ref name="Ex Snooker Star Chris gives up">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Career

At age 15, Small was the number 1 under-19 player in Scotland. He turned professional the following year.<ref name="career">Career details on Chris Small website</ref> In 1992, he won the Benson & Hedges Championship, defeating Alan McManus in the final, and in 1995 he reached the Semi-finals of the Welsh Open,<ref name="career"/> and was again a semi-finalist at the 1998 Grand Prix event. His greatest achievement was winning the 2002 LG Cup, beating Ronnie O'Sullivan and John Higgins, before a 9–5 win over Alan McManus in the final. This followed a season in which he won only three matches, owing to the severity of his medical condition.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He reached the quarter-finals of the LG Cup in the following season.

The 2003/2004 season ended with him having to pull out of a World Championship match against Alan McManus while trailing 1–7, as the regular steroid injections he required in his neck caused problems with his vision.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The 2004–05 season was disastrous for him, as he lost all his ranking tournament matches, and in September 2005 he announced his retirement from the game. Small then started coaching other players, but by 2009 his condition had worsened, and he had to give up coaching.<ref name="coach"/>

Despite being the youngest player ever to win on his Crucible debut (10–7 against Doug Mountjoy aged 18 in 1992), he never progressed beyond the last-16 in the World Championship. He was a regular in the top 32 for several years, but his LG Cup win helped him reach #12 for the 2004–05 season, the only time he had entered the top 16. His career-high break was a 141.

He applied for a grant from a trust fund for players who have fallen on hard times from the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association, but was rejected.<ref name="Scotsman18492007">Template:Cite news</ref> This decision, stemming from Small's refusal to provide a £250 medical certificate, has been criticised by figures including Jimmy White, Graeme Dott ("Everybody in the game that I've spoken to is behind him")<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and Clive Everton.<ref name="Ex Snooker Star Chris gives up"/>

In 2012, improved medication allowed Small to return to coaching, one of his players being former snooker professional Michael Leslie.<ref name="coach"/>

Personal life

Small is the son of a taxi driver.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> He worked as a bank clerk before his success in snooker.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Small and his wife Clare have four children.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Performance and rankings timeline

Tournament	1991/ 92	1992/ 93	1993/ 94	1994/ 95	1995/ 96	1996/ 97	1997/ 98	1998/ 99	1999/ 00	2000/ 01	2001/ 02	2002/ 03	2003/ 04	2004/ 05
Ranking<ref name="Ranking history">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref group="nb">From the 2010/2011 season it shows the ranking at the beginning of the season.</ref>	<ref group="nb">New players on the Main Tour don't have a ranking.</ref>	75	98	86	62	30	25	25	18	21	24	29	18	12
Ranking tournaments
Grand Prix<ref group="nb">The event also ran under the name LG Cup (2001/2002–2003/2004)</ref>	LQ	LQ	LQ	1R	LQ	2R	QF	SF	3R	1R	1R	W	QF	1R
UK Championship	LQ	1R	LQ	1R	3R	2R	2R	1R	2R	2R	2R	3R	2R	2R
Malta Cup<ref group="nb" name="MAL">The event also ran as the European Open (1991/1992–1996/1997 and 2001/2002–2003/2004) and Irish Open (1998/1999)</ref>	A	LQ	1R	LQ	LQ	2R	NH	LQ	Not Held		LQ	LQ	2R	1R
Welsh Open	LQ	LQ	LQ	SF	3R	2R	3R	2R	2R	1R	1R	LQ	2R	2R
China Open<ref group="nb" name="CHN">The event ran under a different name as China International (1997/1998–1998/1999)</ref>	Tournament Not Held						NR	1R	LQ	LQ	LQ	Not Held		1R
World Championship	2R	LQ	LQ	LQ	LQ	LQ	LQ	2R	1R	2R	1R	1R	1R	1R
Non-ranking tournaments
The Masters	LQ	WR	LQ	LQ	LQ	LQ	A	A	A	A	A	A	A	1R
Former ranking tournaments
Classic	LQ	Tournament Not Held
Strachan Open	LQ	Tournament Not Held
Dubai Classic<ref group="nb">The event also ran under the names Thailand Classic (1995/1996) and Asian Classic (1996/1997)</ref>	A	LQ	LQ	LQ	LQ	LQ	Tournament Not Held
German Open	Tournament Not Held				1R	LQ	1R	NR	Tournament Not Held
Malta Grand Prix	Not Held		Non-Ranking Event					LQ	NR	Tournament Not Held
Thailand Masters<ref group="nb" >The event also ran under the names Asian Open (1992/1993) and Thailand Open (1993/1994–1996/1997)</ref>	A	LQ	LQ	LQ	LQ	LQ	1R	LQ	1R	1R	LQ	NR	Not Held
Scottish Open<ref group="nb" >The event also ran under the names International Open (1991/1992–1996/1997) and Players Championship (2003/2004)</ref>	A	LQ	LQ	LQ	3R	2R	1R	3R	2R	2R	1R	1R	1R	NH
British Open	LQ	1R	1R	2R	LQ	1R	2R	3R	2R	1R	1R	SF	1R	2R
Irish Masters	Non-Ranking Event											QF	SF	LQ
Former non-ranking tournaments
Australian Masters	Not Held			A	F	Tournament Not Held
Scottish Masters	A	1R	A	A	A	A	A	LQ	LQ	LQ	A	LQ	Not Held

NH / Not Held				event was not held.
NR / Non-Ranking Event				event is/was no longer a ranking event.
R / Ranking Event				event is/was a ranking event.
MR / Minor-Ranking Event				event is/was a minor-ranking event.

Career finals

Ranking finals: 1 (1 title)

Outcome	No.	Year	Championship	Opponent in the final	Score
Winner	1.	2002	LG Cup	Template:Flagicon Template:Sortname	9–5

Minor-ranking finals: 1 (1 title)

Outcome	No.	Year	Championship	Opponent in the final	Score
Winner	1.	1992	Benson & Hedges Championship	Template:Flagicon Template:Sortname	9–1

Non-ranking finals: 2

Outcome	No.	Year	Championship	Opponent in the final	Score
Runner-up	1.	1995	Australian Masters	Template:Flagicon Template:Sortname	6–8
Runner-up	2.	1995	Australian Open	Template:Flagicon Template:Sortname	7–9

Team finals: 1

Outcome	No.	Year	Championship	Team/partner	Opponent(s) in the final	Score
Runner-up	1.	1999	Nations Cup	Template:Flagcountry	Template:Flagcountry	4–6

External links

• Template:Snooker.org player