Lesley McIlrath
BornAustralia
Sport country Australia

Lesley McIlrath is an Australian former snooker player. She won the Women's World Open Championship in 1980.[1]

Career

McIlrath was, with Fran Lovis, one of two of the dominant players in Australian snooker in the 1970s and 1980s.[2]

The 1980 Women's World Open, recognised as the world championship for women was sponsored by Guinness, and held at Hayling Island.[3] There were 45 entrants, and a record winner's prize for women's snooker, £700. In the last 16, McIlrath defeated Sue LeMaich 3–1; in the quarter-final she won 3–1 against Maryann McConnell 3–1; and she reached the final by defeating Ann Johnson 3–1 in the semi-final.[4] Her opponent in the final, Agnes Davies, was aged 60 at the time, and went on to have a playing career spanning a total of 64 years. McIrath won the match 4–2 to capture the title.[3][4]

The victory, in only the second Women's World Open Championship (following the first held in 1976), made McIlrath the first non-UK player to win. Coincidentally, Cliff Thorburn became the first non-UK winner of the men's World Snooker Championship the same year. McIllrath remains one of only two non-UK World Women's Snooker Championship winners. Ng On-yee, who won her first title in 2015, is the other.[5]

At the 1981 world championships, McIrath lost in the quarter-finals to Sue Foster, and in 1983 she lost 5–6 in the semi-final, again to Foster.

Achievements

Source: Hamlyn Encyclopedia of Snooker[2]

  • 1976 Australian Championship - runner-up to Fran Lovis
  • 1977 Australian Championship - runner-up to Fran Lovis
  • 1979 Australian Championship - runner-up to Fran Lovis
  • 1980 Australian Championship winner - beat Fran Lovis in the final
  • 1980 Women's World Open champion - defeated Agnes Davies 4–2 in the final.
  • 1981 Australian Championship winner – beat Ann Green in the final
  • 1981 Pontins Champion
  • 1982 Australian Championship – runner-up

References

  1. ↑ World Champions Archived 18 August 2019 at the Wayback Machine Women's World Snooker. Retrieved 22 July 2019.
  2. 1 2 Morrison, Ian (1987). The Hamlyn Encyclopedia of Snooker. Twickenham: Hamlyn Publishing Group. pp. 73–74. ISBN 0600556042.
  3. 1 2 Everton, Clive (2 March 2011). "Obituary: Agnes Davies: Pioneer of women's snooker with a playing career of 64 years". The Guardian.
  4. 1 2 Everton, Clive (1985). Guinness Snooker: The Records. Enfield: Guinness Superlatives Ltd. pp. 155–156. ISBN 0851124488.
  5. ↑ Australia to Host First World Women’s Ranking Event Archived 22 July 2019 at the Wayback Machine Huart, Matt, Women's World Snooker. Retrieved 22 July 2019.
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