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Mark Joyce

Joyce at the 2016 Paul Hunter Classic
Born	(1983-08-11) 11 August 1983 (age 41) Walsall, West Midlands, England
Sport country	England
Professional	2006–2024
Highest ranking	29 (November 2014)
Century breaks	122 (as of 15 December 2024)
Best ranking finish	Runner-up (x1)

Mark Joyce (born 11 August 1983) is an English former professional snooker player who lives in Walsall. He began his professional career by playing on the Challenge Tour in 2003. Joyce enjoyed an outstanding amateur career, winning the European Under-19 Championship in 2001, the English Open in 2005 and the English Amateur Championship in 2006, beating Martin O'Donnell 8–3 in the final. Joyce also finished fifth in the 2005/06 Pontin's International Open Series, winning the second of eight events, to book a place on Main Tour.

Career

2006/07 season

Joyce had a very uneventful first season on Main Tour, failing to qualify for any of the major events. He ended the season losing in the penultimate qualifying round of the World Championship to Fergal O'Brien 10–4. He also recorded his highest break of 130 in professional play during the qualifiers. This would remain his highest break until the qualifying stages of the 2010 World Championship. He ended the season ranked 73rd.

2007/08 season

Joyce started the season with 2 wins in qualifying for the Shanghai Masters before narrowly losing 5–4 to veteran John Parrott in the penultimate qualifying round. The Grand Prix would be the first tournament that Joyce would qualify for after finishing 2nd in his qualifying group. However, he would go on to lose all 5 matches in the group stage of the tournament. After failing to qualify for the Northern Ireland Trophy, Joyce won 3 matches to reach the final qualifying round of the UK Championship before being ousted 9–2 by Ian McCulloch. The remainder of the season was fairly uneventful as he failed to qualify for the Malta Cup, Welsh Open and the China Open. He finished the season off by losing in the third qualifying round of the World Championship. His exploits in the season resulted in his ranking going up 14 places to number 59. This will mean he would have 1 less qualifying match to play in the following season.

2008/09 season

The season started with a 5–0 victory against Patrick Wallace and then a 5–0 defeat to Judd Trump in the first ranking event of the season, the Northern Ireland Trophy. He followed this up with a run to the final qualifying round of the Shanghai Masters in the next event. Another win and a defeat in the Grand Prix after being reverted to a knockout competition and the same result in the Bahrain Championship. Joyce only recorded 1 win from the next three ranking tournaments, the UK Championship, the Welsh Open and the China Open. His best performance of the season was in the qualifying tournament for the Masters, where he reached final, only to lose 1–6 to Judd Trump. The season ended poorly for Joyce with a 10–6 defeat to Patrick Wallace in his first match of the World Championship qualifiers. Despite this, he ended the season up 2 places to number 57 in the rankings.

2009/10 season

Joyce's fourth season on the tour got off to a bad start with a 5–2 defeat to Joe Jogia in the qualifying for the Shanghai Masters. He followed this up with victories over Andrew Norman, Michael Judge and Barry Hawkins to qualify for the Grand Prix. He was drawn against the defending champion John Higgins and was defeated 5–1. The remainder of the season up to the World Championship was uneventful with only 2 wins in 3 ranking tournaments. In qualifying for the World Championship, he recorded a 139 break (his highest so far in professional snooker) against Jimmy Robertson in the 3rd qualifying round. He won this match 10–9 and then defeated Michael Judge 10–8 to set up a meeting with Jamie Cope for a place at The Crucible. Cope was to prove too strong for Joyce as he ran away a 10–5 winner.

2010/11 season

Despite starting from the first round of qualification, Joyce managed to qualify for the televised stages of the UK Championship for the first time in his career, beating six-time World Champion Steve Davis 9–2 in the final qualifying round. He reached the quarter-finals of a ranking tournament for the first time in his career by defeating Ali Carter 9–6 in the last 32 and Judd Trump 9–7 in the last 16. In quarter-finals, he lost 7–9 to Mark Williams. He ended the season with the highest ranking of his career so far at world number 42, which meant he had climbed 16 places during the year.

2011/12 season

Joyce began the season by winning the Pink Ribbon Pro-Am charity tournament, where he whitewashed Michael Holt 4–0 in the final. Due to his new ranking he would need to win two qualifying matches to reach the main stage of the ranking events on the snooker calendar. However, he started the season poorly and saw his ranking slip to number 51 in January, meaning he would now need to win three matches. He achieved this at the Welsh Open as he saw off Daniel Wells, Joe Jogia and held his nerve against Andrew Higginson in a final frame decider to book his place in the main draw, where he played Shaun Murphy. A huge shock appeared to be in the offing as Joyce raced into a 2–0 lead, but Murphy found his form and four frames in a row to triumph. Joyce failed to win another qualifying match in the remaining three tournaments, concluding with a 4–10 loss to David Morris in the World Championship. He finished the season ranked world number 59, dropping 17 places from his starting point, but still inside the top 64 who retain their places for the 2012–13 season.

2012/13 season

Joyce failed to qualify for any of the first four ranking events of the season, but then defeated Andy Hicks and Jamie Cope to reach the UK Championship. At the event in York, the world number 50 Joyce pulled off a major shock by coming back from 2–5 down to knock out the world number one Judd Trump 6–5. In the second round he was beaten 2–6 by Ali Carter. After this, he won three matches to qualify for both the World Open and the China Open. Trump exacted his revenge in the first round of the World Open by whitewashing him 0–5, and he withdrew from the China Open as his partner was due to give birth. Joyce had a very consistent season in the minor-ranking Players Tour Championship events, with his best results coming in Event 4 and European Tour Event 5, where he lost in the quarter-finals to Trump and Ken Doherty respectively. He finished 26th on the PTC Order of Merit, claiming the final spot to qualify for the Finals, where Marco Fu beat him 4–2. Joyce's season ended when he was beaten 7–10 by Michael Holt in the final round of World Championship Qualifying. He climbed 17 places in the rankings during the year to end it placed at world number 42.

2013/14 season

The 2013–14 season proved to be a successful one as he played at the venue stage of six ranking events, three more than his previous best. His deepest run out of these came at the World Open which he qualified for by beating Fraser Patrick 5–2. Once at the venue in Haikou, China, Joyce defeated David Morris 5–2 and came back from 4–2 down against last year's World Championship runner-up Barry Hawkins to hit breaks of 65, 68 and 72 to edge him out 5–4. He also fought back in the last 16 as he lost the opening two frames against Kurt Maflin to earn a 5–3 victory. In Joyce's second career ranking event quarter-final he played Marco Fu and was defeated 5–3.

2014/15 season

Joyce played in seven ranking events this season, the most in a single year in his career to date. He was knocked out in the first round of the 2014 Wuxi Classic 5–1 by Mark Williams and at the Australian Goldfields Open he beat Ryan Day 5–3, before losing 5–2 to Stuart Bingham in the second round. This last 16 exit proved to be Joyce's deepest run in an event this season. He also reached the last 32 of the Indian Open, losing 4–1 to Tian Pengfei.

2015/16 season

Joyce opened the season with three wins to qualify for the Australian Goldfields Open and beat Mark Allen 5–2, before losing 5–4 to Matthew Selt. A first round defeat to Ryan Day in the International Championship was followed by defeating Barry Pinches and Sydney Wilson at the UK Championship. Joyce built a 5–0 lead over Dechawat Poomjaeng, but lost six frames in a row to be eliminated in the third round. He bounced back to win two matches and qualify for the German Masters and recorded his second 5–2 first round triumph of the season over Allen. Joyce reached his third career quarter-final after overcoming Mark King 5–2 and led Luca Brecel 4–2, but would lose 5–4. He lost in the second round of the Welsh Open and China Open 4–1 to Alan McManus and 5–1 to John Higgins respectively.

2016/17 season

At the International Championship, Joyce overcame Martin Gould 6–3, before losing 6–4 to Zhou Yuelong. He also lost in the second round of the UK Championship 6–2 against David Gilbert. The highlight of Joyce's season came at the China Open where, after narrowly seeing off Fraser Patrick 5–4, he was never behind against Ronnie O'Sullivan in another 5–4 win. It was the only time Joyce played in the last 16 of a ranking event this season and he was defeated 5–3 by Ding Junhui.

2017/18 season

At the UK Championship, Joyce reached the quarter final for the second time after beating the likes of David Gilbert and Neil Robertson. In particular, Joyce said that his 6–5 win over Robertson was one of the best wins of his career. He faced Ryan Day in the quarter final and narrowly lost in the decider.

2019/20 season

Joyce reached his first ever ranking final in the Riga Masters after beating Sam Baird, Scott Donaldson, Liam Highfield, Jack Lisowski, Stuart Carrington, and Kurt Maflin. He lost 5–2 to Yan Bingtao in the final.

2020/21 season

Joyce qualified for the World Snooker Championship for the first time after beating Anthony Hamilton and Igor Figueiredo in the qualifying rounds. He drew the reigning champion Ronnie O'Sullivan in the first round. During the match, Joyce closed the gap to 4-3 and had a chance to steal the eighth frame to level the match, but O'Sullivan stole the frame with the final black to lead 5–3. Joyce ultimately lost 10–4 to O'Sullivan.

Personal life

Joyce practises mainly at the Qbar snooker club in Walsall Wood although he has said in an interview that he travels out at least once a week to practise with other players, to keep himself sharp. He is a Manchester United fan and is a keen golfer.

In 2010, Joyce was the victim of an attack outside a nightclub in Birmingham, after an argument in a bar over whose turn it was to get served. He suffered a fractured elbow and problems with his eyesight which led to a reduction in playing time during the first six months of 2011.

Performance and rankings timeline

1. From the 2010/2011 season it shows the ranking at the beginning of the season
2. ^ He was an amateur
3. New players don't have a ranking
4. The event was called the Players Championship (2003/2004)
5. The event was called the LG Cup (2002/2003–2003/2004) and the Grand Prix (2004/2005, 2006/2007–2009/2010)
6. The event was called the Players Tour Championship Grand Final (2010/2011–2015/2016)
7. The event was called the Jiangsu Classic (2008/2009–2009/2010)
8. The event was called the Grand Prix Fürth (2004/2005) and the Fürth German Open (2006/2007)
9. The event was called the Riga Open (2014/2015–2015/2016)
10. The event was called the European Open (2002/2003–2003/2004) and the Malta Cup (2004/2005 and 2006/2007–2007/2008)
11. The event was called the Six-red Snooker International (2008/2009) and the Six-red World Grand Prix (2009/2010)

Career finals

Ranking finals: 1

Outcome	No.	Year	Championship	Opponent in the final	Score
Runner-up	1.	2019	Riga Masters	Yan Bingtao	2–5

Non-ranking finals: 1

Outcome	No.	Year	Championship	Opponent in the final	Score
Runner-up	1.	2008	Masters Qualifying Event	Judd Trump	1–6

Pro-am finals: 2 (2 titles)

Outcome	No.	Year	Championship	Opponent in the final	Score
Winner	1.	2011	Pink Ribbon	Michael Holt	4–0
Winner	2.	2019	Vienna Snooker Open	Mark King	5–4

Amateur finals: 6 (4 titles)

Outcome	No.	Year	Championship	Opponent in the final	Score
Winner	1.	2001	EBSA European Under-19 Snooker Championships	David Donovan	6–3
Runner-up	1.	2002	EBSA European Under-19 Snooker Championships	Robert Shanks	3–6
Winner	2.	2005	English Open	Andy Lee	8–3
Winner	3.	2005	PIOS – Event 2	James Leadbetter	6–3
Runner-up	2.	2005	PIOS – Event 4	Colm Gilcreest	3–6
Winner	4.	2006	English Amateur Championship	Martin O'Donnell	8–3

References

1. "Mark Joyce – Season 2003/2004". Retrieved 5 January 2013.
2. "Rankings after 2011 World Championship" (PDF). worldsnooker.com. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 June 2012. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
3. "2011 Pink Ribbon Champion – MARK JOYCE". South West Snooker Academy. Archived from the original on 25 March 2012. Retrieved 15 January 2012.
4. "Rankings after PTC12 (2012 FFB Snooker Open)" (PDF). worldsnooker.com. WPBSA. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 February 2012. Retrieved 11 May 2012.
5. ^ "Mark Joyce 2011/2012 season". Snooker.org. Retrieved 11 May 2012.
6. "Winning in Wales". 13 February 2012. Archived from the original on 10 September 2012. Retrieved 11 May 2012.
7. "Official World Ranking List for the 2012/2013 Season" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 June 2013. Retrieved 11 May 2012.
8. ^ "Mark Joyce 2012/2013". Snooker.org.
9. "UK Snooker Championship 2012: Judd Trump loses to Mark Joyce". BBC Sport. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
10. "UK Snooker Championship 2012: Ali Carter beats Mark Joyce". BBC Sport. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
11. "Haikou World Open: Judd Trump whitewashes Mark Joyce in first round". Sky Sports. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
12. "Joyce Withdraws From China Open". World Snooker. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
13. "Order of Merit 2012/2013". Snooker.org. Archived from the original on 28 April 2013. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
14. "Betfair World Championship Qualifiers". Snooker.org. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
15. "Official World Snooker Ranking List for the 2013/2014 Season" (PDF). World Snooker. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 June 2013. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
16. ^ "Mark Joyce 2013/2014". Snooker.org. Retrieved 3 May 2014.
17. ^ "Jubilant Joyce sets up Marco Fu quarter-final clash in China Read". Walsall Advertiser. Archived from the original on 3 May 2014. Retrieved 3 May 2014.
18. "Haikou World Open: Mark Selby beats Alan McManus, will face Marco Fu in semi-finals". Sky Sports. Retrieved 3 May 2014.
19. ^ "Mark Joyce 2014/2015". Snooker.org. Retrieved 23 April 2015.
20. "Jones Stuns Selby in Bendigo". World Snooker. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
21. "Favourite Judd Trump describes UK collapse as 'worst moment of career'". Eurosport. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
22. "Mark Joyce 2015/2016". Snooker.org. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
23. ^ "Mark Joyce 2016/2017". Snooker.org. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
24. "Joyce Shocks Rocket in Beijing". World Snooker. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
25. "Win was up there with my best - Joyce". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
26. "Mark Joyce". WPBSA. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
27. "Catch-up: UK Snooker Championship - Day defeats Joyce to reach semi-finals". BBC Sport. 30 November 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
28. "Yan, 19, wins first ranking title in Riga". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
29. "Craigie And Joyce Earn Crucible Debuts". World Snooker. 14 April 2021. Archived from the original on 14 April 2021. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
30. "2021 Betfred World Championship - The Draw". World Snooker. 15 April 2021. Retrieved 15 April 2021.Archived 2021-06-20 at the Wayback Machine
31. "O'Sullivan: Fans Spur Me On". World Snooker. 17 April 2021. Archived from the original on 17 April 2021. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
32. "Defending Champion O'Sullivan Leads Joyce". World Snooker. 17 April 2021. Archived from the original on 17 April 2021. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
33. "Mark Joyce – A Chat with Mark Joyce – Pro Snooker Blog".
34. "Mark Joyce progress is eye-catching". 4 December 2012.
35. "Ranking History". Snooker.org. Retrieved 6 February 2011.
36. "Other Tournaments Until 2020". bgsnooker.com. Archived from the original on 3 January 2018. Retrieved 3 January 2018.

External links

• Mark Joyce at the World Snooker Tour (archived)
• Mark Joyce at snooker.org

• 1983 births
• Living people
• English snooker players
• Sportspeople from Walsall
• 21st-century English sportsmen