| Born | 1973 Glasgow |
|---|---|
| Sport country | Scotland |
| Professional | 1991- |
| Highest ranking | 67 |
| Best ranking finish | Last 32 |
John Lardner (born 1973 in Glasgow, Scotland) is a professional snooker player. His best performance came in the 1999 World Snooker Championship, where he reached the last 32. He reached a peak world ranking on 67 in 2000/2001.
Contents |
Lardner was born in Glasgow in 1973. He left school early to spend time practising snooker, confident that he could be come a professional player.[1] In 1988 Lardner won the Star of the Future award at a competition in Prestatyn.[2]
Lardner turned professional in 1991.[1] In the 1993/1994 season, he reached the final of the Benson & Hedges Championship, losing 9-6 to Ronnie O'Sullivan.[3]
In 1999, at the age of 26, Lardner reached the first round of the World Snooker Championship by defeating Neal Foulds, Quinten Hann and Martin Clark in the qualifying rounds.[4] In his first round match against world number 9 Stephen Lee, Lardner trailed 9-3 before recovering to lose only 10-7. Despite the defeat, he described the Crucible Theatre as "the best place I've ever played snooker".[5]
The following season, Lardner climed to position 72 in the world rankings, and reached the first round of the UK Championship, losing to David Gray.[6] However, he was defeated in the qualifying rounds of the World Championship to Icelandic player Kristjan Helgason.[7] His world ranking climbed to 67 for the 2000/2001 season.[8]