# Barry Hawkins
**Barry Hawkins** (born 1979) is an English professional snooker player who has won five ranking titles, reached the 2013 World Championship final, and climbed to a career-high world ranking of number four.[1](https://www.wpbsa.com/player/barry-hawkins/) • [2](https://snookerhq.com/player-profiles/barry-hawkins/) Known by the nickname "The Hawk", he turned professional in 1996 and has been a mainstay of the World Snooker Tour since.[3](https://www.snooker.org/res/index.asp?player=16)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1979, England; plays left-handed[1](https://www.wpbsa.com/player/barry-hawkins/) |
| Turned professional | 1996[3](https://www.snooker.org/res/index.asp?player=16) |
| Ranking titles | 5: Australian Goldfields Open 2012, PTC Grand Finals 2014, World Grand Prix 2017, European Masters 2023, Welsh Open 2026[1](https://www.wpbsa.com/player/barry-hawkins/) |
| Highest world ranking | No. 4[2](https://snookerhq.com/player-profiles/barry-hawkins/) |
| World Championship | Runner-up 2013, losing 18-12 to Ronnie O'Sullivan; four further semi-finals in the following five years[1](https://www.wpbsa.com/player/barry-hawkins/) |
| Maximum breaks | Three career 147s[3](https://www.snooker.org/res/index.asp?player=16) |
| Triple Crown | Runner-up at all three events (World Championship, UK Championship, Masters) without winning one[2](https://snookerhq.com/player-profiles/barry-hawkins/) |
## Early career and breakthrough
Hawkins' early years on tour were marked by underachievement, and his World Championship record included five consecutive first-round defeats at the [Crucible Theatre](https://www.edgepedia.org/crucible-theatre) in [Sheffield](https://www.edgepedia.org/sheffield).[2](https://snookerhq.com/player-profiles/barry-hawkins/) The WPBSA profile records that he lost his first six matches at the venue before overcoming [Stephen Maguire](https://www.edgepedia.org/stephen-maguire) 10-9 in the opening round in 2011.[1](https://www.wpbsa.com/player/barry-hawkins/)
His trajectory changed following the expansion of the professional tour around 2010, when increased playing opportunities allowed him to build consistency at the highest level. He won the non-ranking [Snooker Shoot Out](https://www.edgepedia.org/snooker-shoot-out) in 2012, and later that year claimed his first ranking title at the Australian Goldfields Open, beating [Peter Ebdon](https://www.edgepedia.org/peter-ebdon) 9-3 in the final after 16 years as a professional.[1](https://www.wpbsa.com/player/barry-hawkins/) • [2](https://snookerhq.com/player-profiles/barry-hawkins/)
## The 2013 World Championship and Crucible record
At the 2013 World Championship, Hawkins beat Ricky Walden 17-14 in the semi-final to set up a final against [Ronnie O'Sullivan](https://www.edgepedia.org/ronnie-osullivan) at the Crucible.[4](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/snooker/22386595) O'Sullivan won 18-12, in a final the WPBSA describes as widely regarded as one of the highest quality of all time.[1](https://www.wpbsa.com/player/barry-hawkins/)
That final began a sustained run at snooker's biggest event. Over the next five editions of the World Championship, Hawkins returned to the semi-finals on four occasions, establishing himself as one of the most consistent performers of the 2010s at the tournament.[1](https://www.wpbsa.com/player/barry-hawkins/) • [2](https://snookerhq.com/player-profiles/barry-hawkins/) His Crucible form then cooled: he did not win a match at the venue between 2021 and 2026, when he ended the drought by beating Matthew Stevens 10-4 in the first round of the 2026 World Championship.[5](https://www.wst.tv/news/2026/april/19/hawkins/)
## Ranking titles and major finals
Hawkins' five ranking titles span more than a decade:[1](https://www.wpbsa.com/player/barry-hawkins/)
- **2012 Australian Goldfields Open**, his first, won 9-3 against Peter Ebdon.
- **2014 Players Tour Championship Finals**, held at Preston's Guild Hall.
- **2017 World Grand Prix**, also at Preston's Guild Hall.
- **2023 European Masters**, where he beat [Judd Trump](https://www.edgepedia.org/judd-trump) 8-6 to end a six-year wait for a ranking title, a year after finishing runner-up in the same event.
- **2026 Welsh Open**, where he beat [Jack Lisowski](https://www.edgepedia.org/jack-lisowski) 9-5 in the final in [Llandudno](https://www.edgepedia.org/llandudno).[1](https://www.wpbsa.com/player/barry-hawkins/) • [6](https://www.wst.tv/news/2026/march/01/Hawkins-Beats-Lisowski-To-Land-Fifth-Ranking-Title/)
The Welsh Open victory made him the 23rd player to reach five ranking crowns, moving him level with [Zhao Xintong](https://www.edgepedia.org/zhao-xintong), Stephen Lee, and [Ray Reardon](https://www.edgepedia.org/ray-reardon) on the all-time list.[6](https://www.wst.tv/news/2026/march/01/Hawkins-Beats-Lisowski-To-Land-Fifth-Ranking-Title/) He also won the Shoot Out in 2012 before the event was reclassified as a ranking tournament, along with other non-ranking titles including the 2019 Paul Hunter Classic and the 2018 Macau Masters.[1](https://www.wpbsa.com/player/barry-hawkins/) • [2](https://snookerhq.com/player-profiles/barry-hawkins/)
**Triple Crown near misses.** Hawkins has twice reached the Masters final, losing 10-1 to Ronnie O'Sullivan in 2016 and 10-4 to [Neil Robertson](https://www.edgepedia.org/neil-robertson) in 2022, both at [Alexandra Palace](https://www.edgepedia.org/alexandra-palace).[1](https://www.wpbsa.com/player/barry-hawkins/) • [7](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/snooker/articles/c1dz2z6gkepo) By finishing runner-up to Judd Trump at the 2024 [UK Championship](https://www.edgepedia.org/uk-championship), he became the only player to have lost in all three Triple Crown finals without winning one of the trophies.[2](https://snookerhq.com/player-profiles/barry-hawkins/) He lost another close final at the German Masters a few months later.[2](https://snookerhq.com/player-profiles/barry-hawkins/)
## Playing style and reputation
Hawkins is regarded as an all-round player with strong break building, and his consistency in reaching the latter stages of tournaments has continued for more than a decade.[2](https://snookerhq.com/player-profiles/barry-hawkins/) • [8](https://s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/gc-media-assets-v2.gc.wstservices.co.uk/saudi_masters.pdf) His 2026 Welsh Open run illustrated both resilience and durability: he struggled through his opening match, a narrow 4-3 win over David Lilley, before growing in confidence as the event progressed.[6](https://www.wst.tv/news/2026/march/01/Hawkins-Beats-Lisowski-To-Land-Fifth-Ranking-Title/) At 46, he was described by World Snooker Tour as arriving at the 2026 World Championship still feeling the satisfaction of that Welsh Open triumph.[5](https://www.wst.tv/news/2026/april/19/hawkins/)
## Recent seasons
Hawkins has remained competitive in the mid-2020s. In the 2025/26 season he reached the quarter-finals of the World Championship, where Mark Allen beat him 13-11, after earlier defeating Mark Williams 13-9 in the second round.[9](https://rankings.snooker.org/res/index.asp?player=16&season=2017) He also reached the quarter-finals of the [Tour Championship](https://www.edgepedia.org/tour-championship), losing 10-8 to Neil Robertson.[9](https://rankings.snooker.org/res/index.asp?player=16&season=2017) His world ranking stood at number 10, with career prize earnings of £685,350 on the official two-year list.[3](https://www.snooker.org/res/index.asp?player=16) • [10](https://results.snooker.org/res/index.asp?season=2025&template=31)
## References
1. [Barry Hawkins, WPBSA player profile](https://www.wpbsa.com/player/barry-hawkins/)
2. [Barry Hawkins – Player Profile, SnookerHQ](https://snookerhq.com/player-profiles/barry-hawkins/)
3. [Barry Hawkins, snooker.org player page](https://www.snooker.org/res/index.asp?player=16)
4. [World Snooker Championship 2013: Hawkins beats Walden, BBC Sport](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/snooker/22386595)
5. [Hawkins Ends Five-Year Crucible Drought, World Snooker Tour](https://www.wst.tv/news/2026/april/19/hawkins/)
6. [Hawkins Beats Lisowski To Land Fifth Ranking Title, World Snooker Tour](https://www.wst.tv/news/2026/march/01/Hawkins-Beats-Lisowski-To-Land-Fifth-Ranking-Title/)
7. [Masters snooker final 2026: Results, prize money, previous winners, BBC Sport](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/snooker/articles/c1dz2z6gkepo)
8. [Saudi Masters player profile cards, World Snooker Tour](https://s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/gc-media-assets-v2.gc.wstservices.co.uk/saudi_masters.pdf)
9. [Barry Hawkins results 2025/2026, snooker.org rankings](https://rankings.snooker.org/res/index.asp?player=16&season=2017)
10. [Rankings 2025/2026, snooker.org](https://results.snooker.org/res/index.asp?season=2025&template=31)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Individual sports and outdoor recreation › Other individual sports and outdoor recreation › Cue sports (billiards, snooker, darts) › Snooker › Snooker overview and people*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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