After Dinner Speakers: Peter Ebdon, The Carpenters, John Virgo

THERE are not too many names on the world championship trophy …. But Peter Ebdon’s is one of them. Ebdon achieved his moment of glory in May, 2002, when he defeated the legendary Stephen Hendry 18-17 in one of the greatest finals of all time. All of Peter’s hard work had paid off, although he did have time to joke that after 19 years, he must be ‘a slow learner!’ A young Peter was introduced to snooker by watching his heroes Steve Davis and Jimmy White on the TV. A relatively late starter, by today's standards, Peter played his first game aged 14, when a friend of his dad's took him to the local snooker club. The club was one of London's best-known snooker hotbeds, Kings Cross, and soon Ebbo was going straight from school to practise with his friend (and former pro) Frank Maskall. He served his apprenticeship playing in strong local league snooker, the Greene King League. From there he embarked on a highly successful career on the pro-am circuit, which included a large number of both high-class players and tournaments in the boom days of the late 1980s. Ebdon didn't remain an unknown face for very long when he turned professional in 1991. On his Crucible debut he defeated Steve Davis 10-4, and soon the unknown quantity was famous for his ponytail and for his off-table hobby of playing the oboe. At the end of his first professional season Ebdon had established himself at No.47 on the ranking list, the best rookie of his year. Ebdon became the first player to compile four century breaks in five frames, during the European Open qualifying competition at Blackpool on 6th September 1992. He is also one of snooker's maximum men, with two to his name in major events - the 1991 Strachan Professional and in the 1992 UK Championship. Victory in the 1993 Skoda Grand Prix confirmed his class and further wins followed in Ireland, Scotland and Thailand. Known for his intense approach to the game, Ebdon can often be heard to shout out in celebration at the end of a frame or match. On one occasion, on the way to the final of the world championship in 1996, he dropped to the floor in exhaustion and celebration at the end of a match. Ebdon started the 1999/2000 season with a bang, reaching the final of the British Open, but failed to recapture that form in the subsequent events during 1999. He started wearing contact lenses to play during the January 2000 qualifiers for Thailand and Malta and with the aid of his "new eyes" reached the semi-final of the 2000 Regal Welsh before losing a close encounter to eventual winner John Higgins. Ebdon claimed two ranking events during the 2000-01 term: the British Open and the Scottish Open. But those successes would pale by May 2002, when he was crowned Embassy World Champion, after beating Stephen Hendry in an epic final encounter. Away from the table his hobbies include racing. He owns and breeds racehorses, and in 1996 he released a record about being a clown. A happy family man, he relaxes from the stresses of the snooker circuit with wife Deborah and their children.