Willie Thorne

William Joseph Thorne ( born March 4, 1954 in Wigston in Leicester) is a former English professional snooker.

Career

Willie Thorne learned the Snooker games in the pub his parents where a snooker table stood. His first major success as a professional Thorne celebrated by reaching the quarter-finals at the World Championships in 1982. A year later he moved into the top 16 in the world rankings. When Classic 1985 Thorne took his only victory in a ranking tournament. In the 1985/86 season he moved on into the finals of the UK Championship and the British Open. After these successes he achieved 7th place in the world rankings its highest placement.

Thorne is one of the few players who have a hundred or more managed Century Breaks. He is also the oldest player to have managed this. This is a remarkable achievement, since high Breaks to Thornes time were less common than today. Overall Thorne 129 Century Breaks managed in 19 seasons.

According to information he scored in training games a total of 198 maximum breaks, but only one in an official professional tournament.

Private

Willie Thorne is with Jill Saxby, the Miss Great Britain 1985, married.

In 2011 he published his biography Taking A Punt On My Life. In it, he describes how he - because of gambling debts and depression - 2002 tried to take the life.

Tournament Win

• Classic 1985