Meadowcroft reached the last 16 of the World Championship in 1974, however he lost 10–16 to 6 times world champion Ray Reardon.
He also progressed to the quarter-final of the 1977 UK Championship (The inaugural edition of the tournament), beating Pat Houlihan and Ray Reardon both by 5–4 scoreline, before being beaten by eventual winner Patsy Fagan, once again by a 5–4 score.