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.
2018 World Snooker Championship he commented, "It's not been the best of seasons in general, but on the table I've been pretty good." Following the second round match between Ronnie O'Sullivan and Ali Carter, O'Sullivan referred to Carter as "Mr Angry". The pair had brushed shoulders, in an incident the "Independent" described as a "barge". Following the match, O'Sullivan described it as being "overplayed" by the media. 2018 World Snooker Championship The 2018 World Snooker Championship (also referred to as the 2018 Betfred World Snooker Championship for the purposes of sponsorship) was a professional snooker tournament, held from 21 April to 7 May 2018