James Wattana

Born: January 17th, 1970  
Country: Thailand
Highest Ranking: 3 (1994/95)   Current Ranking: 25  
Nickname: Thai-Phoon

Early Years

James' original name was Ratchapol Pu-Ob-Orm and he was a young prodigy, winning his first major tournament, the Camus Thailand Masters, in 1986, aged only 16 and turning professional in 1989, after he won the 1988 World Amateur Championship. James' career peaked in the mid-1990s, when he twice won the Thailand Open and rose to number three in the world rankings.

Professional Career

Wattana's Career highlights include being the eighth professional player to earn more than £1m in prize money, and is one of only four to have scored more than two 147 breaks in competition - the others to achieve this have all been world champions. He scored his first maximum break in 1991 .

After a strong 2004/2005 season he returned to the top 32 of the world rankings, despite being the first player since 1991 to lose a World Championship match 10-0 – he did this in the final qualifying round against Allister Carter .

Wattana also reached the Semi Finals of the World Snooker Championship in 1993 and 1997. Wattana has also compiled 139 competitive centuries during his career .

Personal Life

Wattana's success caught the imagination of the Thai public, and he became the most popular sportsman in his home country. He helped raise the profile of the game in the Far East, and has been followed into the game by many players from Thailand, Hong Kong and China, the most successful being Marco Fu and Ding Junhui. He is a Commander third class of the Most Noble Order of the Crown of Thailand, only the second sportsman to get the country's most prestigious civilian honor .

Tournaments Won

Thailand Open – 1994, 1995
Strachan Open – 1992