World Snooker Championship successive title. There were 48 century breaks during the final stages, a new record. In the first round of 1997 championship Ronnie O'Sullivan made the fastest maximum break in snooker history, taking just 5 minutes and 20 seconds. The final was between Stephen Hendry and Irishman Ken Doherty. Doherty led 15–7 before Hendry won 5 frames in a row. Doherty then won the next three frames to win 18–12, ending Hendry's winning run of 29 consecutive matches. Stephen Hendry lost to Jimmy White in the first round of the 1998 championship. Doherty reached the final again meeting 22-year-old John Higgins.
1996 IBSF World Snooker Championship seasons as a journeyman professional before eventually improving his form towards the end of the 2000's to become a top-ranked player and winning his first professional ranking event 16 years later, before finally winning the World Snooker Championship in 2015, becoming only the second player after Ken Doherty to win both the world amateur and professional championships. 1996 IBSF World Snooker Championship The 1996 IBSF World Snooker Championship was an amateur snooker tournament that took place from 15 November to 30 November 1996 in New Plymouth, New Zealand It was the 23rd edition of the IBSF World Snooker Championship and