Bradley Jones (snooker player)

Born in 1974, Jones turned professional in 1991. His first few years on the tour were low-key, but he reached the first semi-final of his career at Event 1 of the 1994 Strachan Challenge; there, he defeated Wayne Lloyd, John Giles, Darren Limbug, Billy Snaddon and Matt Wilson before losing 4–5 to Andy Hicks.

The following season, runs to the last 16 of the 1994 Benson & Hedges Championship, where he lost 2–5 to the rising Rod Lawler, and the quarter-final of Event 5 of the 1995 Minor Tour, where twenty-year-old John Higgins defeated him 4–0, were highlights, although Jones' prize money from these exploits amounted only to £1,575.[1]

The 1995/1996 season was very poor for Jones, and having earned nothing from ten tournaments, he dropped to 199th in the world rankings. However, he enjoyed a vast upturn in form from 1996; Jones reached the last 32 of the 1997 International Open, losing 1–5 to Paul Wykes, having earlier defeated the prominent Canadian Alain Robidoux 5–4, and also that year's Thailand Open, where the 1996 World finalist Peter Ebdon beat him 5–3. The highlight of this season was Jones' début appearance at the Crucible Theatre in the last 32 of the 1997 World Championship; he held John Parrott to 9–9, before losing the deciding frame by 44 points to 54.

Jones' performances in 1996/1997 had seen him rise 119 places in the rankings to 80th, and 1997/1998 saw more good form; having entered qualifying school to ensure he would keep his place on tour, Jones reached the last 32 of the 1997 UK Championship, losing 6–9 to Darren Morgan, and the last 48 of the 1998 Thailand Masters and that year's World Championship, meeting Jimmy White in both. In the former, he had led White 4–1 but lost 4–5, while the latter encounter resulted in a more comfortable 10–5 victory for White. Jones finished that season 44th in the world rankings, a rise of 155 places over two seasons.

In the 1998/1999 season, Jones was defeated 2–5 by Ken Doherty in the last 16 of the 1998 Irish Open, and 3–5 by James Wattana in the last 32 of the 1998 Thailand Masters, Wattana's home event. Several more last-32 runs ensured that Jones would finish the season in the highest position of his career, 33rd in the world.

Now an established top-64 player, Jones reached the quarter-final of the 2000 Welsh Open, defeating Jamie Burnett, Jimmy Michie and Drew Henry before losing 1–5 to Higgins, who would go on to win the tournament.

The highlight of season 2000/2001 for Jones was a run to the last 16 of the 2000 China Open; there, he lost 3–5 to Henry.

After reaching the last 32 of the 2002 Scottish Open, where he lost to Dave Harold, Jones' form declined sharply once more. He failed to progress beyond the last 64 of another ranking event and, ranked 104th at the end of the 2003/2004 season, lost his professional status immediately thereafter at the age of 30.

Jones' attempts to requalify the following season were in vain. He won three matches to set up an encounter against seventeen-year-old Judd Trump in qualifying for the 2007 World Championship; Trump made two century breaks in defeating Jones 10–8 and would make his début at the Crucible later that year, but Jones did not play professionally again.

In 2016, Jones won several matches at Q-School, in another attempt to regain his professional status; in Event 1, he lost 1–4 in the last 64 to Lyu Chenwei, and at the last-32 stage in Event 2, Adam Duffy defeated him 4–3. In light of his high finishing place on the Q-School order of merit - a rankings list based on performances at both events - Jones was invited to participate in several ranking events during the 2016/2017 season. At the Riga Masters, in his first-round match, he led Morgan - by now also playing as an amateur - 3–1, but could not prevent a 3–4 loss; similar form followed in the 2016 European Masters, where David John whitewashed him 4–0.

After losing 0–6 to Jimmy Robertson in the International Championship in September 2016, Jones did not play in a tournament until the 2017 Snooker Shoot-Out, five months later; he beat Sanderson Lam 80–7 in the first round - his first win in a ranking event since 2007 - but was eliminated at the last-64 stage, 27–34 by Darryl Hill.