The Most Famous
SNOOKERS from China
Top 5
The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Chinese Snookers of all time. This list of famous Chinese Snookers is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.
1. Ding Junhui (b. 1987)
With an HPI of 38.94, Ding Junhui is the most famous Chinese Snooker. His biography has been translated into 30 different languages on wikipedia.
Ding Junhui (Chinese: 丁俊晖; born 1 April 1987) is a Chinese professional snooker player. He is the most successful Asian player in the history of the sport and widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time. Throughout his career, he has won 15 major ranking titles, including three UK Championships (2005, 2009, 2019). He has twice reached the final of the Masters, winning once in 2011. In 2016, he became the first Asian player to reach the final of the World Championship. Ding began playing snooker at age nine and rose to international prominence in 2002 after winning the Asian Under-21 Championship and the Asian Championship. At age 15, he became the youngest winner of the IBSF World Under-21 Championship. In 2003, Ding turned professional at the age of 16. His first major professional successes came in 2005 when he won the China Open and the UK Championship, becoming the first player from outside Great Britain and Ireland to win the title. During his career, he has compiled more than 600 century breaks, including seven maximum breaks, in professional play. He is the only Asian player to be ranked world number one, which he first achieved in 2014 to become the 11th player to reach the top spot. He is a long-time resident of Sheffield, England, and owns the Ding Junhui Snooker Academy in the same city.
2. Liang Wenbo (b. 1987)
With an HPI of 31.70, Liang Wenbo is the 2nd most famous Chinese Snooker. His biography has been translated into 21 different languages.
Liang Wenbo (Chinese: 梁文博; born 5 March 1987) is a Chinese former professional snooker player. During his playing career, he won one ranking title at the 2016 English Open, twice won the World Cup for China in 2011 and 2017 with teammate Ding Junhui, and was runner-up at the 2009 Shanghai Masters and the 2015 UK Championship. He made 292 century breaks in professional competition, including three maximum breaks, and reached a career high of 11th in the snooker world rankings. In April 2022, Liang was convicted of domestic assault, after which the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) suspended him for four months. It suspended him again in October 2022 while investigating match-fixing allegations that later widened to implicate nine other Chinese players. A disciplinary tribunal found Liang guilty of multiple match-fixing offences as well as destroying evidence and not cooperating with the investigation. In June 2023, the WPBSA permanently banned Liang and compatriot Li Hang from the sport, the only two lifetime bans ever handed down in professional snooker. The Chinese Billiards and Snooker Association (CBSA) upheld the WPBSA's decision.
3. Zhang Anda (b. 1991)
With an HPI of 28.33, Zhang Anda is the 3rd most famous Chinese Snooker. His biography has been translated into 18 different languages.
Zhang Anda (Chinese: 张安达; born 25 December 1991) is a Chinese professional snooker player, who made his debut on the Main Tour for the 2009–10 season. He qualified by winning the ACBS Asian Under-21 Championship. In November 2023 he won his first world ranking title by winning the International Championship. Standing at 5 ft. 3 in. (160 cm) tall, he is nicknamed "Mighty Mouse". Zhang lives in Sheffield, England, during the snooker season and practises at the Victoria Snooker Academy.
4. Yan Bingtao (b. 2000)
With an HPI of 24.47, Yan Bingtao is the 4th most famous Chinese Snooker. His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.
Yan Bingtao (Chinese: 颜丙涛; born 16 February 2000) is a Chinese former professional snooker player who is currently serving a five-year ban from professional competition after committing a range of match-fixing offences. He rose to prominence by winning the ISBF World Snooker Championship, the sport's world amateur title, in 2014 at age 14, which made him the tournament's youngest ever winner. He turned professional in 2016. Aged 17 years and 284 days, Yan became the youngest player ever to contest a ranking final when he faced Mark Williams at the 2017 Northern Ireland Open, but lost in a deciding frame. Yan claimed his first ranking title at the 2019 Riga Masters, becoming the third Chinese player, after Ding Junhui and Liang Wenbo, to win a ranking event. He made his Masters debut at the 2021 event, where he defeated John Higgins 10–8 in the final to win his first Triple Crown title. Aged 20, Yan became the youngest Masters winner since then-19-year-old Ronnie O'Sullivan won it in 1995. In December 2022, the WPBSA suspended Yan from the professional tour amid a match-fixing investigation. Following an independent disciplinary tribunal, he was banned from competing professionally until 11 December 2027.
5. Xiao Guodong (b. 1989)
With an HPI of 23.67, Xiao Guodong is the 5th most famous Chinese Snooker. His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.
Xiao Guodong (Chinese: 肖国栋; born 10 February 1989) is a Chinese professional snooker player. He turned professional in 2007 after winning the Asian Under-21 Championships. He won his first ranking event 17 years after first turning professional at the 2024 Wuhan Open, beating Si Jiahui 10–7 in only the third all-Chinese ranking event final. He also took part in the first ever all-Chinese ranking event final, when he lost 6–10 to Ding Junhui in the 2013 Shanghai Masters.
People
Pantheon has 5 people classified as Chinese snookers born between 1987 and 2000. Of these 5, 5 (100.00%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Chinese snookers include Ding Junhui, Liang Wenbo, and Zhang Anda. As of April 2024, 2 new Chinese snookers have been added to Pantheon including Zhang Anda, and Xiao Guodong.
Living Chinese Snookers
Go to all Rankings
Ding Junhui
1987 - Present
HPI: 38.94
Liang Wenbo
1987 - Present
HPI: 31.70
Zhang Anda
1991 - Present
HPI: 28.33
Yan Bingtao
2000 - Present
HPI: 24.47
Xiao Guodong
1989 - Present
HPI: 23.67
