James Wattana

Infobox Snooker player
Name = James Wattana


Caption =
Born = Birth date and age|1970|1|17|mf=y
Birthplace =
Nationality = Flagicon|Thailand Thai
Nickname = The Thai-Phoon
Professional = 1989–
High ranking = #3 (1994/95)
Current rank = #66
Prize money = £1,757,635
High break = 147 (3 times: in 1991, 1992 and 1997)
World champ =
Ranking wins = 3
Other wins = 1

James Wattana (born January 17, 1970) as Wattana Pu-Ob-Orm, then renamed to Ratchapol Pu-Ob-Orm in 2003) is a Thai professional snooker player.

Career

Wattana won his first major tournament, the Camus Thailand Masters, in 1986, aged only 16. He turned professional in 1989, after winning the 1988 World Amateur Championship. His career peaked in the mid-1990s, when he twice won the Thailand Open and rose to number three in the world rankings. Prior to Wattana becoming a professional, snooker had been dominated by British (and to a lesser extent Irish, Canadian and Australian) players.

He was the eighth professional player to earn more than £1 million in prize money, and is one of only four players to have scored more than two 147 breaks in competition; the others to achieve this have all been world champions. He scored his first one in 1991, which was then the fastest ever made, however his break was bitter-sweet as just afterwards he received the news that his father had been shot, and died from his wounds. Still it didn't seem to affect his form, and the early nineties were perhaps the time where he produced his best form. In 2007, he had earned career prize money of £1.75 million.

After a strong 2004/2005 season he returned to the top 32 of the world rankings, despite being the first player since 1991 to lose a World Championship match 10-0 — he did this in the final qualifying round against Allister Carter.

Wattana's success caught the imagination of the Thai public, and he became the most popular sportsman in his home country.Fact|date=May 2007 He helped raise the profile of the game in the Far East, and has been followed into the game by many players from Thailand, Hong Kong and China, the most successful ones being Marco Fu and Ding Junhui. He is a Commander Third Class of the Most Noble Order of the Crown of Thailand, only the second sportsman to get the country's most prestigious civilian honour.

He reached the semi-finals of the World Snooker Championship in 1993 and 1997, in the latter losing narrowly to Stephen Hendry. Wattana has also compiled 140 competitive centuries during his career.Cite web|url=http://www.cajt.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/Centuries.htm|title=Chris Turner's Snooker Archive: Snooker's Top Century Makers|accessdate=2007-05-06|year=2007] Poor form in recent years, however, meant that he was in danger of dropping off the main tour, and he decided not to compete in 2008/2009.

Tournament wins

Ranking tournaments

* Thailand Open – 1994, 1995
* Strachan Open – 1992

Non-ranking

* World Matchplay – 1992

ee also

* World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association

References

External links

* [http://www.billiardindex.com/JamesWattana.html Player Profile on billiardindex.com]