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Ronald Antonio '''"Ronnie"''' '''O'Sullivan''' (born 2007 . is an English professional Snooker player, nicknamed "The Rocket" due to his rapid playing style, with other monikers including "The Essex Exocet" and "The Magician". He grew up and still lives in Chigwell , Essex , although he has several other houses in different places across England , one of which is situated in Sedgley , West Midlands. O'Sullivan is considered by many to be one of the most naturally-talented players in the history of the sport and is one of the most popular players on the circuit. He has won the World Snooker title on two occasions ( 2001 and 2004 ). O'Sullivan has been involved in a number of controversial incidents in his career. CAREER Early career O'Sullivan started his career at an early age. He first achieved a at the age of 10, scored a 147 2007 . – on his way to the 1993 World Championship , where he was the youngest-ever player to qualify. He lost in the first round 10-7 to Alan McManus and ended his debut season ranked 57. He was the youngest ever winner of a ranking tournament when he won the 1993 UK Championship aged 17, beating Stephen Hendry in the final, and starting one of the most prominent rivalries in the sport. In 1995, he won his first Masters title. O'Sullivan is right-handed, but can play to a high standard with his left hand. When he first displayed this ability in the 2007 . Retrieved on 22 June 2007 . He was given a two-year suspended sentence, a GB£ 20,000 fine, and he was advised to donate £10,000 to charity. On 21 April 1997 , in the first round of the World Championship against Mick Price , he made the fastest-recorded maximum break, 5 minutes and 20 seconds, an average of one shot every 9 seconds. His seven maximum breaks include the five fastest on record. In November, he won his second UK title, beating Hendry 10-6. After winning the 1998 2003 . URL accessed on 15 June 2006 . O'Sullivan made it to the semi-finals of the 1999 Embassy World Championship , losing 17-14 to Hendry, in a match featuring many century breaks between the two players. O'Sullivan's promising campaign in the 1999-2000 season (when he won three ranking titles) ended in disappointment, however — following his solid performance the previous year, he was a favourite for the 2000 World Title , especially after Hendry's unexpected 10-7 first-round loss to Stuart Bingham . However, O'Sullivan was also eliminated in the first round by David Gray , who came from 5-1 and 9-7 down to edge out O'Sullivan 10-9 for a place in the second round. In this particular match, O'Sullivan made five centuries (three in consecutive frames, equalling the record held by John Higgins ), all to no avail, and Gray recorded four. In 2001, O'Sullivan claimed his first World Championship title (dedicated to his father), with an 18-14 victory over John Higgins, and his third UK title, with a 10-1 victory over Ken Doherty. He began the 2002/2003 season ranked Number 1 . In 2002, before his 2004 . Retrieved on 16 July 2007 . In 2003, following a season that saw him win the Scottish Masters , the European Open and Irish Masters , O'Sullivan's season ended on another disappointing note when he was knocked out of the World Championship in the first round for the third time in his career, losing 10-6 to the unseeded Marco Fu , despite making another maximum 147 break in the match. This defeat saw him drop to number three in the rankings. In 2004, O'Sullivan's father telephoned 1970s six-time World Champion 2004 . Retrieved on 5 May 2007 . He was ranked number one for the next two seasons. 2004/2005 In the 2005 . Retrieved on 5 May 2007 . It transpired, however, that the IPT pool tournament in which O'Sullivan was to make his debut clashed with the defence of his Premier League Snooker title. Plans were changed accordingly, with O'Sullivan going on to beat Hendry 6-0 with four century breaks. O'Sullivan next won the season's Masters and Welsh Open titles. However, he missed the season's China Open on medical grounds; this was criticised by 2005 . Retrieved on 22 June 2007 . 2005/2006 After a comprehensive 9-2 loss to John Higgins in the final of the 2005 Grand Prix, O'Sullivan reached the final of the Masters only to lose again (10-9) to Higgins. In his 2005 first-round UK Championship match with 2005 . Retrieved on 5 May 2007 . The 2006 World Championship saw O'Sullivan's personal sponsor, 888.com, also become the event sponsor for the following 5 years. Following a 10-4 defeat of Dave Harold , he struggled through 13-11 in a surprising second-round match against Welshman Ryan Day . A similar quarter-final match ensued against Mark J. Williams . O'Sullivan led 10-6 going into the final session. A fightback from Williams saw him take the lead by winning the next 5 frames, but O'Sullivan held his nerve to take the match 13-11, and face Graeme Dott in the semi-finals. Dott took an early lead before O'Sullivan drew level at 8-8 at the end of the second session. Cue-tip problems which had dogged O'Sullivan throughout the event recurred, including an incident in which television footage appeared to show O'Sullivan deliberately removing the tip of his cue. This secured him a 15-minute break to re-tip the cue, before he returned and made a 124 break. Tournament Director Mike Ganley accepted the player's assurance that the tip had simply fallen off, and no censure was made." O'Sullivan avoids cue-tip censure ", BBC News, 2006 . Retrieved on 5 May 2007 .. BBC claims he had used as many as twenty-one different tips during the fortnight; O'Sullivan later stated he had used seven tips before arriving in Sheffield, and a further eight during the week, and that he would return next season with a new cue from cuemaker John Parris. O'Sullivan's decision to not enter the Malta Cup cost him the number one rank for the following season. 2006/2007 On his way to losing the 2006 2006 . Retrieved on 1 May 2007 . In December 2006, in his quarter-final match of the 2006 2006 . Retrieved on 5 May 2007 . O’Sullivan issued a statement later that day apologising and saying that he would be 'back on {Link without Title} feet fighting stronger and harder than ever very soon'. On 2007 . Retrieved on 31 May 2007 . O'Sullivan returned to action at the 2007 Saga Insurance Masters, to a mixed response from the audience (he was booed and clapped in equal measure). He won his first round match on 2007 . Retrieved on 5 May 2007 . O'Sullivan went on to win the tournament against Ding Junhui on 21 January , 2007 . In the match he was noted for his good sportsmanship by Davis for comforting Ding after the 12th frame. Ding had become visibly upset by an overly partisan member of the crowd who was later ejected. O'Sullivan was leading 9-3 at the time and won the next frame for a 10-3 victory. O'Sullivan went out of the Malta Cup with a 5-3 loss to Michael Holt in the first round. Later, during the Welsh Open , O'Sullivan announced that his technique would be undergoing major changes since he was unhappy with his recent performances. These included a 5-4 reverse against Neil Robertson in the quarter-finals. In his quarter-final match against Joe Swail at the Irish Masters , Ronnie knocked in a 147 on his way to a narrow 5-4 victory. Since the table used did not have officially ratified pockets O'Sullivan's 7th competitive maximum does not count towards his official total, so his official tally so far remains at six. The organisers had initially offered a car to any player who completed a maximum break, but were unable to keep their promise. He defeated John Higgins in another decider (6-5) later that evening, then easily overcame Barry Hawkins 9-1 in the final, becoming the first winner of the new Paul Hunter Trophy, awarded to him by Paul's widow Lyndsay. Just before the 2007 . Retrieved on 5 May 2007 . In the end, O'Sullivan won the tie easily, 10-2. He also won his second-round match against Neil Robertson 13-10, before losing his quarter-final match against eventual tounament winner John Higgins 13-9. To date, O'Sullivan has compiled 479 competitive centuries during his career, second only to Hendry's record 703, and has career earnings of £5,161,560." Player Profile - Ronnie O'Sullivan ", World Snooker. Retrieved on 2007 . Retrieved on 30 April 2007 . STYLE OF PLAY O'Sullivan plays a very fast, fluent and attacking game. He is a prolific 2005 . Retrieved on 1 May 2007 . When behind and needing , he tends to concede more often than other players. O'Sullivan is unique amongst the current ranks of top snooker professionals in that he can play at professional standard both right- and left-handed – frequently alternating between the two within the same . Whilst he lacks power in his left arm, the ambidextrous angle to his game has allowed him to take on shots with his left hand that would otherwise require awkward cueing with or ." Ronnie O'Sullivan - a troubled genius ", Sweeble, 2 February 2007 . Retrieved on 1 May 2007 . O'Sullivan sometimes plays with a variety of . STATUS He is considered by many to be one of the most naturally-talented players in the history of the sport," Player Profile: Ronnie O'Sullivan ", The Global Snooker Centre, revised August 2005. Retrieved on 2007 . Retrieved on 22 April 2007 . O'Sullivan is one of the most popular players on the circuit" White stuns O'Sullivan ", BBC Sport, 2006 . Retrieved on 3 May 2007 . O'Sullivan is often compared to 2007 . Retrieved on 22 June 2007 . TOURNAMENT WINS AND CAREER RANKINGS Ranking tournaments
Other tournaments
PERFORMANCE TIMELINE PERSONAL LIFE Considered a perfectionist," O'Sullivan admits he strives for perfection ", ''The Scotsman'', 2001 . Retrieved on 21 April 2007 . He has made several statements about his lack of enthusiasm and dislike for the sport, and has threatened to quit several times throughout his career. In 1995, O'Sullivan was caught speeding, and was banned from driving for a year and fined £1,200." Snooker: O'Sullivan throws off title shackles ", ''The Telegraph'', 8 May 2001 . Retrieved on 22 April 2007 . O'Sullivan's father, Ronald John O'Sullivan, who owns a chain of 2004 . Retrieved on 22 June 2007 . O'Sullivan broke up with former girlfriend Bianca Westwood in 2001." Ronnie's pot black moods ", ''The Sun'', 2007 . Retrieved on 13 June 2007 . In 2003, he was wrongly said to have converted to 2003 . Retrieved on 14 June 2007 . {Link without Title} In 2004, he appeared on was able to drive O'Sullivan's own Mercedes SL 500 around the track. His car has the registration plate "147" in reference to his holding of the five fastest ever 147 breaks. 2007/2008 SEASON Matches These are Ronnie O'Sullivan's results in all ranking events and major invitational tournaments for the current season. Tournament record This is Ronnie O'Sullivan's record in tournaments for this season. REFERENCES FURTHER READING 1 EXTERNAL LINKS
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