Alex Higgins
| Alex Higgins | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Higgins in 2008 | |
| birthday | March 18, 1949 |
| place of birth | Belfast |
| date of death | approx. July 24, 2010 (age 61) |
| Place of death | Belfast |
| nationality |
 Northern Ireland
|
| Nickname (s) | Hurricane Higgins |
| professional | 1971-1997; 2005-2006 |
| Main tour successes | |
| World championships | 2 |
| Ranking tournament victories | 1 |
| Minor tournament victories | - |
| World rankings | |
| Highest WRL place | 2 ( 76/77 , 82/83 ) |
Alexander Gordon Higgins (born March 18, 1949 in Belfast , † around July 24, 2010 there ) was a Northern Irish snooker player .
Career
Higgins began playing snooker at a young age and won the Irish and Northern Irish Amateur Snooker Championships in 1968. He turned professional at the age of 22 and only a year later, in 1972, he won the World Snooker Championship . At that time he was the youngest ever winner of the World Cup; In 1990, this record was broken by Stephen Hendry .
The world snooker ranking had not yet been introduced; when this happened in 1976/77, he was initially placed in second place (as reigning vice world champion). In 1978 and 1981 he won the prestigious Masters , which is traditionally not a world ranking tournament. During this time he slipped a bit in the world rankings until he won the world championship again in 1982 (18:15 in the final against Ray Reardon ) and thus climbed to second place again.
In 1989 he won another major tournament with the Irish Masters . In 1983 he won the UK Championship in a thrilling final . He was 7-0 down against Steve Davis , but then won by 16:15. At that time, however, both tournaments did not yet have world ranking status, which means that his 1982 World Cup title was his only victory in a world ranking tournament.
His flashy playing methods earned him his nickname "Hurricane Higgins" and increased his popularity. He drank and smoked a lot during his games. Like many of his colleagues, he also promoted cigarette brands. He later suffered from throat cancer .
It is noticeable that Higgins always played with an open collar during his playing days, while the other players wore the obligatory tie that was favored at the time. He had registered a medical exemption for this.
His unorthodox style of play is best seen in his 69 break against Jimmy White in the penultimate frame of the 1982 World Cup semi-finals. Experts, players and fans often describe it as one of the greatest breaks ever played under such pressure. At 14:15 frames, Higgins was 59 points behind in the current frame, so that White would have enough a single red to secure the 16:14 and thus the final. Several red balls were on the bands, making clearance difficult.
He also managed a maximum break of 147 points, which was played before the now recognized list was introduced.
Higgins was found dead on July 24, 2010; he died, presumably several days earlier, of complications from his cancer.
In 2011 he was inducted into the Snooker Hall of Fame .
Web links
- Fred Davis vs. Alex Higgins Blue Arrow Masters 1985 (English Billiards). On YouTube (35:57 min.)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Simon Pausch: Snooker legend Alex "Hurricane" Higgins is dead . In: THE WORLD . July 26, 2010 ( welt.de [accessed August 8, 2020]).
- ↑ Message on Eurosport ; last checked on July 26, 2010
- ↑ online article of the Daily Telegraph ; last checked on July 25, 2010
- ↑ Info in The Irish Times of July 28, 2010
| 2011 |
|
| 2012 |
|
| 2013 |
|
| 2014 | |
| 2015 | |
| 2016 | |
| 2017 | |
| 2018 |
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Higgins, Alex |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Higgins, Alexander Gordon |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Northern Irish snooker player |
| DATE OF BIRTH | March 18, 1949 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Belfast , Northern Ireland |
| DATE OF DEATH | on July 24, 2010 |
| Place of death | Belfast , Northern Ireland |