Joe Perry Ends 33-Year Professional Snooker Career
Joe Perry’s 33-year professional snooker career has come to an end after ‘The Gentleman’ was defeated in the 2025 Halo World Snooker Championship qualifiers last week.
The two-time ranking event winner confirmed his impending retirement heading into the sport’s most prestigious event and a 10-5 loss to Yuan Sijun at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield saw the curtain fall on Perry’s memorable career.
Prior to his final match, Perry said: “I’ve officially retired. As soon as my participation in this event is over, my time as a professional snooker player is up.
“I’m just trying to enjoy it. That isn’t easy when you play like I have done recently. I’ve taken a long time to come to the decision. It isn’t a rash one.” he added.
The 50-year-old from Wisbech in England turned professional in 1992, the same year as the iconic trio of Ronnie O’Sullivan, John Higgins and Mark Williams, and won both the Players Tour Championship and Welsh Open titles during his career.
The defeat of Williams in the final of the Players Tour Championship Grand Finals saw Perry end a 23-year wait for a ranking title and, seven years later, he notably upset the odds to overcome Judd Trump 9-5 in the final of the 2022 Welsh Open.
A former world number eight, ‘The Gentleman’ played in the televised stages of 17 World Championships and reached the one-table setup at the Crucible Theatre in 2008.
“My debut at the Crucible was very memorable, to win 10-9 on the black against a legend like Steve Davis. Getting to the one table setup in 2008 was good. I also beat Mark Selby when he was defending champion. The orange powder protest is one that springs to mind, but that was a bad memory. I’ve seen a lot at the Crucible and I’ve enjoyed my time.” said Perry.
Perry also made it to back-to-back UK Championship semi-finals in 2004 and 2005 but his finest run in a triple crown event came at the 2017 Masters, where he beat Stuart Bingham, Ding Junhui and Barry Hawkins to reach the title match before he succumbed 10-7 to O’Sullivan.
In more recent years, Perry has been a regular part of the BBC’s television coverage of snooker in the UK.
While the defeat to Yuan has brought Perry’s professional career to an end, he will continue to compete on the World Seniors Snooker Tour and will make his debut in the World Seniors Snooker Championship at the Crucible next month with an opening round match against Brazil’s Fabio Anderson Luersen.
Listen to a special episode of the WPBSA Snooker Podcast recorded in 2024 in which Perry reflected on his breakthrough Crucible win against Steve Davis in 1999.
