2023 Shoot Out Champion
15
£400,000
£179,000
Chris Wakelin captured his first world ranking event title at the 2023 Shoot Out following a stunning 119 century break against Julien Leclercq in the single frame final.
From Rugby, the English player defeated Farakh Ajaib, Alfie Burden, Joe Perry, Jak Jones, Michael White and Daniel Wells to reach the title match, before going on to lift the trophy in Leicester.
Having never previously gone beyond the quarter-finals of a ranking event, the victory helped Wakelin into the world’s top 32 ranked players.
A year later, Wakelin reached a second ranking event final at the 2023 Northern Ireland Open – overcoming former world champion Shaun Murphy and Jack Lisowski en route to the final before losing to Judd Trump. He would repeat the feat a year later, reaching the final of the 2024 International Championship before losing to Ding Junhui in the title match.
Wakelin qualified for the televised stages of the World Championship for the first time in 2018, narrowly losing 10-9 to Trump. He has qualified on two further occasions in 2021 and 2022 but is yet to win a match at the Crucible Theatre.
Wakelin successfully qualified through Q School to turn professional for the first time in 2013. Away from the baize, Wakelin worked full-time as a deliver driver for ASDA prior to joining the main tour.