John Higgins, a Scottish professional snooker player, has won 19 titles over a career that spans 19 years. His career also netted him a large fortune.
Higgins started his professional career as an amateur snooker player. He had won a number of amateur tournaments before deciding to turn professional. Higgins became a professional and began winning ranking tournaments. He was also the first participant to win three ranking tournaments in a single season.
Higgins continued his success in 1994/95. He won two more ranking finals and one more tournament. Then, he became the World number one. 1998 marked his first major title. In 2001, he lost to Ronnie O'Sullivan in the final of the World Championship. He was also in the Grand Prix final. He finished the season at World number 1.
Higgins was the one who batting Ronnie O'Sullivan at the final of The Masters during 2006. He also won the Welsh Open and Scottish Masters. His fourth British Open title was won in 2004. He reached the finals of the European Championship in 2005. He was also a finalist of the Championship du monde. In 2011, he was awarded his second World Championship. He was also a finalist for the Shanghai Masters and Chinese Open. He reached the final of both the International Open as well as the World Championship in 2009. He also won the Ruhr Championship. He was World number 1 in the 2009 season.
Higgins has also been a finalist in a number of non-ranking tournaments. Higgins reached the finals of many pro-am and variant tournaments. He was also the first to win three opening tournaments during a single season.
During his career, John Higgins has reached the final of eight World Championship tournaments. He has reached the finals at two Masters tournaments including a UK Championship, Welsh Open, and Grand Prix. He has been an 18-time runner-up.
Higgins's career was not without controversy. An undercover operation conducted by News of the World in May 2010 alleged that John Higgins had arranged matches for a tournament with his manager. David Douglas (ex-detailed chief superintendent of Metropolitan Police) investigated the allegations. Investigation revealed that Higgins had not been involved in the scandal. Nonetheless, Higgins was suspended from professional competition for six months. He was also fined PS75,000.
Higgins returned to work in November 2010 after being suspended. He reached the finals at the Shanghai Masters and Ruhr Championship. He also reached the finals of two other championships during 2005/06. He was fifth in the World at the conclusion of the season. He was then replaced as World number one by Welshman Mark Williams. In 2013, he was fifth in the world, but he dropped to 12th in the rankings in the next season.