Alain Robidoux
| Born |
July 25, 1960 Saint-Jérôme, Quebec |
|---|---|
| Sport country |
 Canada |
| Professional | 1987–2004 |
| Highest ranking | 9 (1996–1998) |
| Career winnings | £636,999;[1] CN$1.31 million |
| Highest break | 147 (1988 European Open) |
| Century breaks | 37[1] |
| Best ranking finish | Runner-up (1996 German Open) |
| Tournament wins | |
| Non-ranking | 1 |
Alain Robidoux (born July 25, 1960) is a Canadian snooker player; he played on the World Snooker tour from 1988 to 2005 and continues to play in events in Canada.
Career
Born in Saint-Jérôme, Quebec, Robidoux joined the pro circuit in the late 1980s, playing as a "non-tournament" professional. This entitled him to be listed on official rankings, although he could not play in most competitions. In 1988, Robidoux amassed enough points in the World Championship qualifiers to finish in the top 128 players, and thus allowing him to join the tour full-time.
In September 1988, he became only the sixth player ever to record an officially ratified 147 maximum break in the qualifiers for the European Open.
Robidoux's best ranking event performance was reaching the final of the German Open in 1996 when he lost 7–9 to Ronnie O'Sullivan. In the first round of the 1996 World Championship, Robidoux was beaten 3–10 by O'Sullivan again, who played some shots, including a number of them in series, left-handed (O'Sullivan plays predominantly right-handed). This behaviour was described by one commentator as O'Sullivan "taking the mick". The matter came to a crux in the eleventh frame, with a peeved Robidoux, at this point 2–8 down, declining to concede the frame as is usual by custom, instead continuing to play for snookers despite a 43-point deficit with only the pink and black on the table. Robidoux refused to shake O'Sullivan's hand at the end of the match. The latter responded that he played better with his left hand than the former could with his right.
Robidoux reached the semi-finals of the 1997 World Snooker Championship, but subsequently slid rapidly down the rankings.[2] He blamed his decline on the destruction of his favourite cue,[2] which he referred to as "the Eel". The incident occurred after Robidoux returned the handmade cue to its maker – an elderly craftsman in Canada – for repairs. But when the cuemaker saw that the cue's butt had been adorned with the logo of Riley, a leading UK cue manufacturer, he took such grave offence he smashed the cue into pieces and sent the remains back to Robidoux.[2] Several years later, Robidoux was asked whether the passage of time may have eased his anger towards the cue maker; "I want to kill him," was his heartfelt response.
Off the table, Robidoux is well known for his impressions of fellow snooker professionals, such as Alex Higgins and Steve Davis.
In 2011-12 Robidoux toured French-speaking Canada with his hastily written one-man show 'merci beau cue'. Its reception was mixed and a proposed European tour for the following year had to be cancelled.
References
- 1 2 http://cuetracker.net/Players/Alain-Robidoux/Career-Total-Statistics
- 1 2 3 Hendon, David (26 May 2009). "Past Masters #2". Snooker Scene Blog: News, Opinion and Insight from the Green Baize. Halesowen, England: Snooker Scene Magazine. Retrieved 2010-01-17.
External links
- Alain Robidoux at CueTracker.net: Snooker Results and Statistic Database
- Snooker.org profile of Robidoux