Joe Johnson (snooker player)
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| Joe Johnson | ||
|---|---|---|
| Born | June 29, 1952 | |
| Nationality | English | |
| Professional | 1979–2004 | |
| Highest ranking | #5 (1987/88) | |
| Highest break | 141 (1992) | |
| Tournament wins | ||
| Non-ranking events | Langs Scottish Masters (1987) Seniors Pot Black (1997) |
|
| World Champion | 1986 | |
Joe Johnson (born 29 June 1952) is an English former professional snooker player.
A professional since 1979, much of Johnson's snooker career was fairly inauspicious, with a 9-8 loss to Tony Knowles in the final of the untelevised Professional Players Tournament in 1983 his most notable early impact. Indeed, he would be a relative unknown had he not been the surprise winner of the 1986 World Championship. Johnson also reached the final of the World Amateur Snooker Championship.
Johnson arrived at the Championship that year having never won a match at the Crucible and as a 150-1 outsider. He beat Terry Griffiths 13-12 in the quarter-finals after trailing 12-9 and then Knowles in the semis, to meet world number one Steve Davis, then at the peak of his ability, in the final. Johnson defied all odds and won 18-12. A passionate fan of Bradford City, he wore a t-shirt with the slogan "Bradford's Bouncing Back" (a reference to the Bradford City disaster a year earlier) whenever he wasn't playing during the tournament.
Johnson's best showing during his season as world champion was a solitary semi-final, but he defied expectations at the 1987 World Championship and reached the final again, where he again met Davis, but this time lost 18-14. He reached number 5 in the world rankings in the 1987-88 season, largely as a result of his success at the Crucible.
Johnson won the Langs Scottish Masters in 1987, beating Griffiths 9-7 in the final - his only other major snooker title - but thereafter rarely came close to repeating his world success and rapidly descended the rankings, dropping out of the top 16 by 1991 and the top 32 by the mid-1990s. His last appearance at the World Championship came in 1991. He suffered heart and eye problems during the 1990s. He retired from professional snooker at the end of the 2003/2004 season.
Johnson remains the player who came closest to beating the "Crucible Curse"; namely that a first time winner never successfully defends his title. Johnson's defence saw him both reach the final and come within 4 frames of victory. Ken Doherty also reached the final the following year, but lost by a greater margin. No other first-time champion has reached the final.
Johnson also won the 'Seniors Pot Black Trophy' in 1997, beating Terry Griffiths in the final. Joe was also an early influence and friend of the snooker player Paul Hunter.
