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.
2009 World Snooker Championship in both the qualifying and the televised stages. There were 83 century breaks in the televised stage of the World Championship, a new record beating 2002's and 2007's 68; this record was surpassed in 2015. There were 69 century breaks in the qualifying stage of the World Championship: 2009 World Snooker Championship The 2009 World Snooker Championship (also referred to as the 2009 Betfred.com World Snooker Championship for the purposes of sponsorship) was a professional ranking snooker tournament that took place between 18 April and 4 May at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England. This was the first time that