List of snooker players investigated for match-fixing

Snooker has been plagued by allegations of corruption virtually since its inauguration as a professional sport. BBC commentator and retired professional player, Willie Thorne, concedes that match-fixing has always been a part of snooker, even acknowledging that some of the results in his own matches were bent.[1] The earliest known case of corruption in the game involves Joe Davis, pioneer of the professional game and winner of the first fifteen world championships, who is believed to have "carried" weaker opponents in multi-session matches to maximise the gate revenue.[2] Match-fixing is notoriously difficult to prove, and the only player ever to be successfully prosecuted by the governing body for it is Stephen Lee, who was banned in 2013 for influencing the outcome of seven matches between 2008 and 2009. However, three other players including Quinten Hann, John Higgins and Joe Jogia have all served bans on match-fixing related charges.

Players investigated for match-fixing

Name Event Date Opponent Score Outcome Ref
Match
Francisco, SilvinoSilvino Francisco Masters
Last 16		 29 January 1986 Knowles, TonyTony Knowles 1–5 Arrested, but later released without charge. [3][4][5][6]
Masters
Last 16		 23 January 1989 Griffiths, TerryTerry Griffiths 1–5
Francisco, PeterPeter Francisco World Championship
Round 1		 15–16 April 1995 White, JimmyJimmy White 2–10 Found guilty of bringing the game into disrepute, and was banned for five years. Cleared of match-fixing. [7][8]
Hann, QuintenQuinten Hann China Open
Round 1		 31 March 2005 Doherty, KenKen Doherty 2–5 Hann was found in breach of rule 2.8, which states "a member shall not directly or indirectly solicit, attempt to solicit or accept any payment or any form of remuneration of benefit in exchange for influencing the outcome of any game of snooker or billiards." He was banned for eight years in 2006 and fined £10,000. [9][10][11][12]
Lee, StephenStephen Lee Malta Cup
League stage		 8 February 2008 Swail, JoeJoe Swail 5–1 WPBSA concluded that the match was not fixed. [13][14][15][nb 1]
4 February 2008 Robertson, NeilNeil Robertson 1–5 Lee was found guilty of breaching Rule 2.9 of the WPBSA Members Rule and Regulations by accepting payment to influence the outcome of a match. The case was heard by Sports Resolutions UK from 9–11 September 2013. Lee received a twelve-year ban, which is back-dated to the beginning of his suspension on 12 October 2012 and will run until 12 October 2024. Lee also notched up £125,000 in costs awarded against him after an unsuccessful appeal.
5 February 2008 Doherty, KenKen Doherty 2–4
7 February 2008 Fu, MarcoMarco Fu 1–5
UK Championship 13–14 December 2008
Round 1		 Hendry, StephenStephen Hendry 9–7
15–16 December 2008
Round 2		 King, MarkMark King 9–5
China Open
Round 1		 1 April 2009 Selby, MarkMark Selby 1–5
World Championship
Round 1		 22 April 2009 Day, RyanRyan Day 4–10
Ebdon, PeterPeter Ebdon Northern Ireland Trophy
2nd round		 26 August 2008 Liang Wenbo 0–5 Investigated by the Gambling Commission over suspicious betting patterns. [19]
Burnett, JamieJamie Burnett UK Championship
Round 1		 15 December 2008 Maguire, StephenStephen Maguire 3–9 Arrested, but later released without charge. [20]
Maguire, StephenStephen Maguire UK Championship
Round 1		 15 December 2008 Burnett, JamieJamie Burnett 9–3 Arrested, but later released without charge. [20]
Lee, StephenStephen Lee UK Championship 5–8 December 2009 Unknown Arrested and charged. Charges later dropped. [21][22][23]
Higgins, JohnJohn Higgins World Series of Snooker 2010 Matches did not go ahead Found guilty of 'giving the impression' he would breach betting rules, and of failing to report the approach. Higgins was banned for six months, fined £75,000 and ordered to pay £10,000 in costs. [24]
Michie, JimmyJimmy Michie Shoot-Out
Round 1		 28 January 2011 Campbell, MarcusMarcus Campbell 21–32
(points)		 Investigated by the WPBSA over suspicious betting patterns, but no charges were brought. [25][26]
Campbell, MarcusMarcus Campbell Shoot-Out
Round 1		 28 January 2011 Michie, JimmyJimmy Michie 32–21
(points)		 Investigated by the WPBSA over suspicious betting patterns, but no charges were brought. [25][26]
Jogia, JoeJoe Jogia Shoot-Out
Round 1		 28 January 2012 Selt, MatthewMatthew Selt Jogia withdrew Jogia was found guilty of breaching Rule 2.1.4.1, which states "It shall be a breach of these rules for a member to engage in any other conduct that is corrupt or fraudulent, or creates an actual or apparent conflict of interest for the member, or otherwise risks impairing public confidence in the integrity and/or the honest and orderly conduct of the Tour and/or any Tournament or Match." Jogia was banned for two years (spanning the 2012/2013 and 2013/2014 seasons) and ordered to pay £2,000 in costs. [27]
Un-Nooh, ThepchaiyaThepchaiya Un-Nooh PTC – Event 3
Round 1		 8 September 2012 Davis, SteveSteve Davis 0–4 Investigated by the WPBSA over unusual betting patterns, but no charges were brought. [28][29]
Lee, StephenStephen Lee Premier League
League stage		 11 October 2012 Higgins, JohnJohn Higgins 2–4 Lee was suspended and investigated by the WPBSA and the Gambling Commission over suspicious betting patterns, but no charges were brought. [22][30]
Thirapongpaiboon, ThanawatThanawat Thirapongpaiboon Shanghai Masters
Qualifying round 1		 7 August 2013 Muir, RossRoss Muir 0–5 Investigated by the WPBSA and the Gambling Commission over unusual betting patterns but no charges were brought. [31][32]
Suwannawat, PassakornPassakorn Suwannawat Shanghai Masters
Qualifying round 1		 7 August 2013 Khairy, MohamedMohamed Khairy 4–5 Investigated by the WPBSA and the Gambling Commission over unusual betting patterns but no charges were brought. [31][32]
Sutton, JohnJohn Sutton International Championship
Qualifying round		 24 September 2014 Burnett, JamieJamie Burnett 0–6 Sutton was found guilty by the WPBSA Disciplinary Committee of violating sections 2.1.2.1 and 2.1.3.1 of its Members Rules, in relation to match-fixing and misuse of inside information for betting purposes. Sutton has been suspended since 9 February 2015 and a sanction will be announced at a later date. [33][34]

Notes

  1. ↑ At Stephen Lee's original hearing, £40,000 in costs were awarded against him.[15] This was increased to £75,000 after Lee unsuccessfully appealed,[16] and he incurred a further £30,000 in costs after an earlier appeals panel was forced to recuse itself after finding him to be an unreliable witness.[17] The remainder of his appeal saw a further £20,000 awarded against him, bringing the total amount to £125,000.[18]

References

  1. ↑ Liew, Jonathan (10 October 2011). "Former snooker star Willie Thorne makes match-fixing claims". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 12 October 2012.
  2. ↑ Everton, Clive (1993). The Embassy Book of World Snooker. The Book People. p. 12.
  3. ↑ "Gambling enquiry in snooker". The Times. 25 January 1989. p. 42.
  4. ↑ "Police look at betting". The Times. 25 February 1989. p. 49.
  5. ↑ "Francisco arrested by police". The Times. 24 January 1990. p. 44.
  6. ↑ "Francisco cleared of alleged betting coup". The Times. 19 May 1990. p. 48.
  7. ↑ Hodgson, Guy (9 May 1995). "Snooker: Francisco banned for five years". The Independent. Retrieved 12 October 2012.
  8. ↑ Downer, Chris (2012). Crucible Almanac. pp. 40–41.
  9. ↑ "Guilty Hann given eight-year ban". BBC Sport. 17 February 2006. Retrieved 12 October 2012.
  10. ↑ "2005 China Open". Global Snooker Centre. Archived from the original on 19 November 2005.
  11. ↑ "2005 China Open Information". Global Snooker Centre. Archived from the original on 25 August 2007. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
  12. ↑ "BBC Sport: "Guilty Hann given eight-year ban"". BBC Sport. 17 February 2006. Retrieved 3 May 2006.
  13. ↑ "World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) and Stephen Lee decisison" (PDF). Sport Resolutions (UK). 16 September 2013. Retrieved 16 September 2013.
  14. ↑ "2008 Malta Cup Information". Global Snooker Centre. Archived from the original on 7 February 2008.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 "Stephen Lee: Snooker player given 12-year ban for match-fixing". BBC Sport. 25 September 2013. Retrieved 25 September 2013.
  16. ↑ "Stephen Lee: Appeal against 12-year ban dismissed". BBC Sport. 15 May 2014. Retrieved 15 May 2014.
  17. ↑ "Stephen Lee: Appeal panel steps down over 'truthfulness' doubts". BBC Sport. 14 March 2014. Retrieved 15 May 2014.
  18. ↑ "WPBSA Statement – Stephen Lee". World Snooker. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 4 June 2014. Retrieved 12 June 2014.
  19. ↑ Everton, Clive (21 September 2008). "Probe into 5–0 Ebdon defeat". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 October 2012.
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 "Stephen Maguire and Jamie Burnett quizzed by police over 'irregular' betting patterns". The Daily Telegraph. 27 August 2009. Retrieved 12 October 2012.
  21. ↑ "Snooker player Stephen Lee bailed in betting inquiry". BBC Sport. 12 February 2010. Retrieved 12 October 2012.
  22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 Hayes, Roy (12 October 2012). "Stephen Lee suspended from snooker over 'suspicious' betting patterns". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 12 October 2012.
  23. ↑ "Stephen Lee suspended while WPBSA investigate allegations". BBC Sport. 12 October 2012. Retrieved 12 October 2012.
  24. ↑ The World Professional Billiards & Snooker Association Limited Disciplinary Hearing Board (8 September 2010). "In full: the John Higgins ‘match fix’ ruling by Ian Mill QC". Sporting Intelligence. Retrieved 12 October 2012.
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 "Snooker chiefs conclude there is 'no evidence' against Michie or Campbell following betting probe". Daily Mail. 14 September 2011. Retrieved 29 December 2012.
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 "WPBSA Statement". World Snooker. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 14 September 2011. Retrieved 29 December 2012.
  27. ↑ "Joe Jogia banned after suspicious betting patterns investigation". BBC Sport. 25 July 2012. Retrieved 12 October 2012.
  28. ↑ "Steve Davis v Thepchaiya Un-Nooh match cleared by WPBSA". BBC Sport. 9 November 2012. Retrieved 9 November 2012.
  29. ↑ "WPBSA Statement". World Snooker. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 9 November 2012. Retrieved 9 November 2012.
  30. ↑ Keogh, Frank (10 April 2013). "Snooker: WPBSA drops separate Stephen Lee 'match-fixing' inquiry". BBC Sport. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
  31. ↑ 31.0 31.1 "Thai Case Conclusion". World Snooker. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 29 January 2014. Retrieved 1 April 2014.
  32. ↑ 32.0 32.1 Keogh, Frank (29 January 2014). "Snooker betting: Shanghai Masters inquiry closes with no charges". BBC Sport. Retrieved 1 April 2014.
  33. ↑ Keogh, Frank (2 April 2015). "Snooker: Amateur John Sutton found guilty of match-fixing". BBC Sport. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
  34. ↑ "WPBSA Statement - John Sutton". World Snooker. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 2 April 2015. Retrieved 6 April 2015.