Sam Baird

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Sam Baird
Born (1988-06-17) 17 June 1988
Uffculme, England
Sport country  England
Nickname The Blade
Professional 2009/10, 2011–
Highest ranking 74 (March–April 2012)[1][2]
Current ranking 75 (as of 10 February 2014)
Career winnings UK£ 31,650[3]
Highest break 142 (2013 World Snooker Championship Qualifying)
Best ranking finish Last 16 (2013 Welsh Open)

Sam Baird (born 17 June 1988) is a professional snooker player from England. He first entered the professional tour for the 2009/10 season, by winning the EBSA Pro-Ticket Tour Play-Offs.

Career

2011/2012 season

Baird reached the main draw of a ranking event for the first time in 2012 by coming through four qualifying matches, concluding with a 4–2 win over Dominic Dale, to make the 2012 Welsh Open.[4] He played against world number 1, Mark Selby in the first round of the event and almost pulled off the result of his career as he led the best-of-seven match, 3–2. Baird then missed a blue off the spot with 2 balls remaining when he required just the blue and pink for the match and, despite chances in the decider, he would lose the game 3–4.[5] Baird also qualified for the 2012 World Open in Haikou, China. He again won four matches, sealing his place with a 5–4 victory over Mark Davis.[6] He was required to play in a wildcard round in China to make the last 32 of the event and was beaten 3–5 by Jin Long.[7]

Baird failed to win a match in qualifying for the final three ranking events and finished the season ranked world number 76, out of the top 64 who retain their places on the tour.[8][9] Baird therefore entered Q School in a bid to play in the 2012/2013 season and succeeded at his first attempt by winning each of his five matches 4–0 to gain a two year spot on the main tour.[8]

2012/2013 season

Baird produced his best snooker towards the end of the 2012/2013 season as he beat Luca Brecel and Martin Gould to reach the main draw of the Welsh Open for the second successive year.[10] He whitewashed Gerard Greene 4–0 in the first round, before losing 2–4 to Robert Milkins.[11] In qualifying for the World Championship Baird defeated Chen Zhe 10–7, Peter Lines 10–9 and Rory McLeod 10–9 to find himself just one match away from playing in the biggest tournament on the snooker calendar.[10] He faced world number 20 Joe Perry, but it was world number 83 Baird who played by far the better as he won 10–3 and in the 12th frame made a break of 142, the highest of the whole qualifying tournament.[12][13] Baird played Stuart Bingham in the first round, losing 2–10 to finish the year ranked world number 81.[14][15]

Performance and rankings timeline

Tournament 2009/
10 		2010/
11 		2011/
12 		2012/
13 		2013/
14
Ranking[16][nb 1] UR[nb 2] UR[nb 3] 82[17] 76 81
Ranking tournaments
Wuxi Classic Non-Ranking LQ LQ
Australian Goldfields Open Not Held LQ LQ LQ
Shanghai Masters LQ A LQ LQ LQ
Indian Open Tournament Not Held LQ
International Championship Not Held LQ LQ
UK Championship LQ A LQ LQ 1R
German Masters NH A LQ LQ LQ
Welsh Open LQ A 1R 2R
World Open[nb 4] LQ LQ WR LQ LQ
Players Tour Championship Final NH DNQ DNQ DNQ
China Open LQ A LQ LQ
World Championship LQ LQ LQ 1R
Non-ranking tournaments
The Masters LQ A A A A
Performance Table Legend
LQ lost in the qualifying draw #R lost in the early rounds of the tournament
(WR = Wildcard round, RR = Round robin)		 QF lost in the quarter-finals
SF lost in the semi–finals F lost in the final W won the tournament
DNQ did not qualify for the tournament A did not participate in the tournament WD withdrew from the tournament
NH / Not Held means an event was not held.
NR / Non-Ranking Event means an event is/was no longer a ranking event.
R / Ranking Event means an event is/was a ranking event.
MR / Minor-Ranking Event means an event is/was a minor-ranking event.
  1. ↑ From the 2010/2011 season it shows the ranking at the beginning of the season.
  2. ↑ New players on the Main Tour don't have a ranking.
  3. ↑ He was an amateur.
  4. ↑ The event was called the Grand Prix (2009/2010)

Tournament wins

Amateur

  • Silver Waistcoat Tour - 2006/7
  • Gold Waistcoat Tour - 2008/9
  • Pontin’s Businessland U-21 Series - 2008
  • EASB Pro-Ticket Tour Play-Off - 2009

References

  1. ↑ "Rankings after 2012 World Open" (PDF). World Snooker. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 5 March 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2013. 
  2. ↑ "Rankings after 2012 PTC Final" (PDF). World Snooker. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 19 March 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2013. 
  3. ↑ "Sam Baird Player Profile". Snooker Database. Retrieved 19 May 2013. 
  4. ↑ "Sam The Man Dominates Dale". 13 February 2012. Retrieved 14 February 2012. 
  5. ↑ "Lucky Selby sneaks through to second round of Wales Open". Daily Mail. 14 February 2012. Retrieved 15 February 2012. 
  6. ↑ "Fu Through With A 147". WPBSA. 14 January 2012. Retrieved 15 January 2012. 
  7. ↑ "Baird and Bond ousted at World Open". Eurosport. 27 February 2012. Retrieved 27 February 2012. 
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Sam Baird 2011/2012". Snooker Database. Retrieved 9 May 2012. 
  9. ↑ "Official World Ranking List for the 2012/2013 Season". Retrieved 9 May 2012. 
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 "Sam Baird 2012/2013". Snooker.org. Retrieved 18 April 2013. 
  11. ↑ "Rising Devon snooker star Sam Baird ready for Crucible test". This Is North Devon. Retrieved 18 April 2013. 
  12. ↑ "White Denied By Milkins". World Snooker. Retrieved 18 April 2013. 
  13. ↑ "Betfair World Championship Qualifiers Centuries". worldsnookerdata.com. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. Archived from the original on 14 April 2013. Retrieved 14 April 2013. 
  14. ↑ "Bingham Blasts Into Second Round". World Snooker. Retrieved 26 April 2013. 
  15. ↑ "Official World Snooker Ranking List For The 2013/2014 Season". World Snooker. Retrieved 24 May 2013. 
  16. ↑ "Ranking History". Snooker.org. Retrieved 6 February 2011. 
  17. ↑ "Rankings after PTC1 2011" (PDF). World Snooker. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. Retrieved 1 January 2013. 

External links

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