Chris Turner’s SNOOKER ARCHIVE

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Pontins Open

Pontins Professional

Non Ranking Events

Brief History of the Pontins Open and Professional

From the early 1970s, top professionals had supplemented their income entertaining and coaching holiday makers on the holiday camp circuit and at Pontin’s in particular. That organisation organised several Snooker Festivals at which ordinary members of the public could join with top amateurs and the best professionals in open tournaments.

The most important of these festivals is the Spring Festival at Prestatyn in North Wales. Coming as it does at the very end of the snooker season it provides an opportunity for the professionals to enjoy themselves without the pressure of ranking points at stake. The first of these events was held in 1974 and eight top professionals were invited to take part in the ‘Professional’ while many others joined them in the Open event where up to 1000 hopefuls would set out with the chance to meet one of their idols in the later rounds. There are also events for Juniors, Seniors and Ladies.

A similar Open event is held at Prestatyn in the Autumn and, in recent years, this has attracted almost as many top names as the spring event.

The pros have to concede up to 25 points per frame to the amateurs (this figure has varied over the years) and this format meant that many of the star names fell to good amateurs.

In the earlier years nearly all the top players took part but as the number of tour events has increased very few of the really big names have entered in recent years. Right up to the mid 1990s however it was possible to see newly crowned world champions like Stephen Hendry and Ken Doherty playing for a top prize which was rarely more than about £5,000.

The Professional event was discontinued in 2001 but the Open continued and the festival has, in recent years, also hosted the final Challenge Tour event where players battle for places on the next season’s main tour, as well as ‘Seniors’ and ‘Stars of the Future’ events.

In 2003 one the most exciting prospects for years, 13 year-old Judd Trump, became the youngest ever winner of the ‘Open’ beating veteran, Mike Hallett in the final. He was receiving ten points per frame but it was no less an achievement for that.

© Chris Turner

May 2003

Winners and Runners Up – Pontins Professional – Pontins Spring Open – Pontins Autumn Open

Pontins Professional Championship

Year	Winner	Runner Up	Score
1974	Ray Reardon	John Spencer	10-9
1975	Ray Reardon	John Spencer	10-4
1976	Ray Reardon	Fred Davis	10-9
1977	John Spencer	John Pulman	7-5
1978	Ray Reardon	John Spencer	7-2
1979	Doug Mountjoy	Graham Miles	8-4
1980	John Virgo	Ray Reardon	9-6
1981	Terry Griffiths	Willie Thorne	9-8
1982	Steve Davis	Ray Reardon	9-4
1983	Doug Mountjoy	Ray Reardon	9-7
1984	Willie Thorne	John Spencer	9-7
1985	Terry Griffiths	John Spencer	9-7
1986	Terry Griffiths	Willie Thorne	9-6
1987	Neal Foulds	Willie Thorne	9-6
1988	John Parrott	Mike Hallett	9-1
1989	Darren Morgan	Tony Drago	9-2
1990	Stephen Hendry	Mike Hallett	9-6
1991	Neal Foulds	Mike Hallett	9-6
1992	Steve James	Neal Foulds	9-8
1993	Ken Doherty	Darren Morgan	9-3
1994	Ken Doherty	Nigel Bond	9-5
1995	Peter Ebdon	Ken Doherty	9-8
1996	Ken Doherty	Nigel Bond	9-7
1997	Martin Clark	Andy Hicks	9-7
1998	Mark J. Williams	Martin Clark	9-6
1999	Jimmy White	Matthew Stevens	9-5
2000	Darren Morgan	Jimmy White	9-2

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Pontins Spring Open Championship

Year	Winner	Runner Up	Score
1974	Doug Mountjoy*	John Spencer	7-4
1975	Ray Reardon	John Virgo*	7-1
1976	Doug Mountjoy*	Lance Pibworth*	7-1
1977	Alex Higgins	Terry Griffiths*	7-4
1978	Steve Davis*	Tony Meo*	7-6
1979	Steve Davis	Jimmy White*	7-3
1980	Willie Thorne	Cliff Wilson	7-3
1981	John Hargreaves*	Cliff Wilson	7-2
1982	John Parrott*	Ray Reardon	7-4
1983	Terry Griffiths	Ray Reardon	7-3
1984	Neal Foulds	Doug Mountjoy	7-4
1985	Jim Chambers*	John Parrott	7-6
1986	John Parrott	Tony Putnam	7-6
1987	Stefan Mazrocis*	Barry Pinches*	7-2
1988	Ken Doherty*	Colin Morton*	7-5
1989	Peter Ebdon*	Ken Doherty*	7-4
1990	Tony Rampello*	Paul Davies*	7-3
1991	Mike Hallett	Wayne Brown*	7-5
1992	Declan Hughes*	Steve James	7-2
1993	Mike Hallett	Steve James	7-6
1994	Wayne Brown*	Graeme Dott*	7-3
1995	Mark J. Williams	Peter Ebdon	7-4
1996	Ken Doherty	Darren Morgan	7-3
1997	Ken Doherty	Craig Bunyard*	7-6
1998	James McGouran*	Neal Foulds	7-0
1999	John Gallagher*	Luke Simmonds*	7-4
2000	Ian Preece*	Scott McKenzie*	7-4
2001	Luke Simmonds*	Brian Morgan	7-5
2002	Paul Sweeny	Scott McKenzie	4-3
2003	Judd Trump*	Mike Hallett	4-2
2004	Stuart Bingham	Wayne Cooper