World ranking: 13
Last five seasons: 22-14-16-20-39
Date of birth: 28-03-74
Lives: Romford, Essex
Turned professional: 1991
Ranking tournament victories: 0
Last season’s prize money: £53,600
Career prize money: £335,260
Highest tournament break: 143

Mark King is still waiting to fulfill his lifelong ambition of winning a major tournament, although he came pretty close at the 1997 Regal Welsh.

Victories over Steve Davis, Michael Judge, Tony Chappel, Fergal O’Brien and Mark Williams took him through to his first major final, where he found Stephen Hendry too strong, going down 9-2.

That performance propelled the Essex professional up the world ranking list, but he had to wait another season before claiming his place among the world’s elite top 16.

He reached the second round of the Embassy World Championship in 1998, 1999 and 2001.

A more than useful footballer, King used to rush back from tournaments to turn out for Gidea Park Rangers in the Romford Sunday League but hung up his boots because of the risk of injury.

His main ambition however remains the same.

“I would love to win a tournament - any tournament, I’m not greedy,” he says.