Mick Price (snooker player)
{{short description|English snooker player}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2019}}
{{Use British English|date=February 2019}}
{{Infobox snooker player
| name = Mick Price
| image =
| caption =
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1966|6|2}}
| birth_place = Nuneaton, Warwickshire, England
| Sport country = {{ENG}}
| Professional = 1988–2001
| High ranking = 21 (1995/1996)
| Best finish = Semi-final (x1)
| Official maximums =
}}
Michael Price (born 2 June 1966) is a retired English professional snooker player. He turned professional in 1988.Snooker Scene Blog. 2009. Past Masters #3. [Online] (Updated 2009) Available at: [http://snookerscene.blogspot.com/2009/06/past-masters3.html] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110111101415/http://snookerscene.blogspot.com/2009/06/past-masters3.html |date=11 January 2011}} He was Ronnie O'Sullivan's opponent when O'Sullivan scored the fastest 147 break in the game's history, at the 1997 World Championship.
Career
From Nuneaton, he started playing snooker at the age of five years-old. He turned professional ahead of the 1988-1989 season having finished fourth in the pro-ticket series and winning a play-off 10-4 against David Greaves.{{cite book |last=Smith |first=Terry|author-link= |date=1988 |title=Benson and Hedges Snooker Year |url= |location= |publisher= Pelham Books |page= 29 |isbn=0-7207-1830-9}}
At the 1990 Benson & Hedges Satellite Championships, Price became only the third player to compile three consecutive century breaks in professional competition, when making contributions of 139, 137, 100 in beating former World number 2 Tony Knowles 5–4. Along with 1997, he also qualified for the World Championships in 1992 and 1996, reaching the second round in 1992 by beating Dennis Taylor 10–6 in the first round before losing in the second round, 10–13, to Alan McManus.{{cite news|title=Price makes sure Taylor pays for a ragged display|date=1992-04-02|newspaper=The Times|pages=25}} In 1996, he lost to McManus again in the first round, 8–10. He peaked at #17 in the world rankings and remained in the top 32 until 1999.{{cite web|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-60488380.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121019171609/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-60488380.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2012-10-19|title=Time's is running out for me, admits Price|date=1999-01-11|newspaper=Coventry Evening Telegraph|accessdate=2008-04-30}} Price's best performance at a ranking event came at the 1993 European Open, where he beat Dave Harold, Willie Thorne, Joe Johnson and Mark Johnston-Allen to reach the semi-finals, where he lost 3–6 against reigning World Champion Stephen Hendry. He was Ronnie O'Sullivan's opponent when O'Sullivan scored the fastest 147 break in the game's history, at the 1997 World Championship.{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/in_depth/2001/world_snooker_championship/1307439.stm|title=That sinking feeling|date=2001-05-01|publisher=BBC Sport|access-date=2008-04-30}}
He retired from Snooker in 2004.Snooker Scene Blog (2005, Mick Price)
Personal life
Whilst playing snooker Price sported distinctive "Dennis Taylor" style spectacles. He later became a maths teacher, and continued to play local league snooker in the Midlands.{{Cite news|url=http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/potted-history-mick-price-meets-6341244|title=Potted history! Mick Price meets up with Ronnie O'Sullivan 16 years on from Rocket's super 147|last=Malyon|first=Mike|date=2013-11-26|newspaper=coventrytelegraph|access-date=2017-01-18}}