The Welsh Professional Championship was a professional snooker

Snooker

Snooker is a cue sport that is played on a green baize-covered table with pockets in each of the four corners and in the middle of each of the long side cushions. A regular table is . It is played using a cue and snooker balls: one white , 15 worth one point each, and six balls of different :...

 tournament which was open only for Welsh players. It was the first of the four home countries to revive its national professional championship on a regular basis.

History

The championship was first played in the 1920s, but it was more than 50 years before Ray Reardon

Ray Reardon

Ray Reardon, MBE is a retired Welsh snooker player. He dominated the sport in the 1970s, winning six World Championships in that decade...

 and Doug Mountjoy

Doug Mountjoy

Doug Mountjoy is a retired Welsh snooker player. Although he only won two ranking titles, he did so in successive tournaments in 1988/1989 – and while in his mid 40s. In more recent years he was the coach to the United Arab Emirates snooker association between 1997 and 1999.- Early life...

 met, in 1977, for an 'unofficial' Welsh Professional title. Reardon won that encounter 12–8. Even though the event was sponsored by William Hill

William Hill (bookmaker)

William Hill plc is one of the largest bookmakers in the United Kingdom. Its headquarters is in the north London suburb of Wood Green and in Leeds, West Yorkshire. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.-History:...

 it wasn't a success and wasn't held again until 1980.

The Ebbw Vale

Ebbw Vale

Ebbw Vale is a town at the head of the valley formed by the Ebbw Fawr tributary of the Ebbw River, south Wales. It is the largest town and the administrative centre of Blaenau Gwent county borough...

 Leisure Centre staged the first official revived championship in 1980 and would host the championship until 1984. The event was sponsored by cider producers H. P. Bulmer

H. P. Bulmer

H.P. Bulmer is a brewing company founded in 1887 in Hereford, England. The founder was Percy Bulmer, the twenty-year-old son of the local rector at Credenhill...

, using their Woodpecker

Woodpecker

Woodpeckers are near passerine birds of the order Piciformes. They are one subfamily in the family Picidae, which also includes the piculets and wrynecks. They are found worldwide and include about 180 species....

 name from 1980 until 1983 and their Strongbrow brand in 1984. In 1985 and 1986 the event was held at the Abertillery

Abertillery

Abertillery is a town in the county borough of Blaenau Gwent in South Wales, north-west of Newport, originally on the Great Western Railway. Its population rose steeply during the period of mining development in South Wales, being 10,846 in the 1891 census and 21,945 ten years later...

 Leisure Centre. The sponsorship was taken over by BCE for 1985 and Zetters for 1986. The event moved to the Newport Centre

Newport Centre

The Newport Centre is the biggest leisure centre in the city of Newport in the United Kingdom. The Newport Centre is located in the city centre adjacent to the Kingsway Shopping Centre. It holds events such as concerts, conferences and exhibitions. The centre hosts the Welsh Open snooker...

 in 1985 and remained there until 2001. In the last five years the event had three different sponsors: Matchroom

Matchroom Sport

Matchroom Sport is a sport event promotions company founded by the English entrepreneur Barry Hearn. It first came to attention in the sports of snooker and boxing and is also involved in pool, bowling, golf , fishing, darts and poker...

 in 1987, Senator Windows between 1988 and 1990, and Regal

Regal (cigarette)

Regal or Embassy Regal as they are also known, is a brand of UK cigarette produced by Imperial Tobacco. Available at supermarkets for £6.81 per packet of 20, they are classed as a "premium" brand cigarette and one of the most expensive available in the United Kingdom...

 in 1991.

After the 1991 event Regal withdraw their sponsorship and began to sponsor the new Welsh Open

Welsh Open (snooker)

The Welsh Open is a professional ranking snooker tournament. It replaced the Welsh Professional Championship, which started in 1980 and was only open to Welsh players.- History :...

 ranking

Snooker world rankings

The snooker world rankings are the official system of ranking professional snooker players to determine automatic qualification and seeding for tournaments on the World Snooker Tour. They are maintained by the sport's governing body, the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association...

 event at the same venue, and the event wasn't held since than.

Winners

Year	Winner	Opponent	Final score	Season
1977	Ray Reardon Ray Reardon Ray Reardon, MBE is a retired Welsh snooker player. He dominated the sport in the 1970s, winning six World Championships in that decade...	Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy is a retired Welsh snooker player. Although he only won two ranking titles, he did so in successive tournaments in 1988/1989 – and while in his mid 40s. In more recent years he was the coach to the United Arab Emirates snooker association between 1997 and 1999.- Early life...	12–8	1976/77
1980	Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy is a retired Welsh snooker player. Although he only won two ranking titles, he did so in successive tournaments in 1988/1989 – and while in his mid 40s. In more recent years he was the coach to the United Arab Emirates snooker association between 1997 and 1999.- Early life...	Ray Reardon Ray Reardon Ray Reardon, MBE is a retired Welsh snooker player. He dominated the sport in the 1970s, winning six World Championships in that decade...	9–6	1979/80
1981	Ray Reardon Ray Reardon Ray Reardon, MBE is a retired Welsh snooker player. He dominated the sport in the 1970s, winning six World Championships in that decade...	Cliff Wilson Cliff Wilson Cliff Wilson was a Welsh professional snooker player. He managed to get to into the world's top 16 in 1988 at the age of 55; a remarkable feat for someone with very poor eyesight and a number of other ailments.- Amateur years :...	9–6	1980/81
1982	Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy is a retired Welsh snooker player. Although he only won two ranking titles, he did so in successive tournaments in 1988/1989 – and while in his mid 40s. In more recent years he was the coach to the United Arab Emirates snooker association between 1997 and 1999.- Early life...	Terry Griffiths Terry Griffiths Terrence "Terry" Griffiths OBE is a retired Welsh snooker player and current snooker coach and pundit. He won the World Championship in 1979 at the first attempt, and reached the 1988 final. He also won the Masters in 1980 and the UK Championship in 1982, making him one of seven players to have...	9–8	1981/82
1983	Ray Reardon Ray Reardon Ray Reardon, MBE is a retired Welsh snooker player. He dominated the sport in the 1970s, winning six World Championships in that decade...	Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy is a retired Welsh snooker player. Although he only won two ranking titles, he did so in successive tournaments in 1988/1989 – and while in his mid 40s. In more recent years he was the coach to the United Arab Emirates snooker association between 1997 and 1999.- Early life...	9–1	1982/83
1984	Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy is a retired Welsh snooker player. Although he only won two ranking titles, he did so in successive tournaments in 1988/1989 – and while in his mid 40s. In more recent years he was the coach to the United Arab Emirates snooker association between 1997 and 1999.- Early life...	Cliff Wilson Cliff Wilson Cliff Wilson was a Welsh professional snooker player. He managed to get to into the world's top 16 in 1988 at the age of 55; a remarkable feat for someone with very poor eyesight and a number of other ailments.- Amateur years :...	9–3	1983/84 Snooker season 1983/1984 The snooker season 1983/1984 was a series of snooker tournaments played during the years 1983 and 1984. The following table outlines the results for ranking events and the invitational events.-Calendar:...
1985	Terry Griffiths Terry Griffiths Terrence "Terry" Griffiths OBE is a retired Welsh snooker player and current snooker coach and pundit. He won the World Championship in 1979 at the first attempt, and reached the 1988 final. He also won the Masters in 1980 and the UK Championship in 1982, making him one of seven players to have...	Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy is a retired Welsh snooker player. Although he only won two ranking titles, he did so in successive tournaments in 1988/1989 – and while in his mid 40s. In more recent years he was the coach to the United Arab Emirates snooker association between 1997 and 1999.- Early life...	9–4	1984/85 Snooker season 1984/1985 The snooker season 1984/1985 was a series of snooker tournaments played during the years 1984 and 1985. The following table outlines the results for ranking events and the invitational events.-Calendar:...
1986	Terry Griffiths Terry Griffiths Terrence "Terry" Griffiths OBE is a retired Welsh snooker player and current snooker coach and pundit. He won the World Championship in 1979 at the first attempt, and reached the 1988 final. He also won the Masters in 1980 and the UK Championship in 1982, making him one of seven players to have...	Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy is a retired Welsh snooker player. Although he only won two ranking titles, he did so in successive tournaments in 1988/1989 – and while in his mid 40s. In more recent years he was the coach to the United Arab Emirates snooker association between 1997 and 1999.- Early life...	9–3	1985/86 Snooker season 1985/1986 The snooker season 1985/1986 was a series of snooker tournaments played during the years 1985 and 1986. The following table outlines the results for ranking events and the invitational events.-Calendar:...
1987	Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy is a retired Welsh snooker player. Although he only won two ranking titles, he did so in successive tournaments in 1988/1989 – and while in his mid 40s. In more recent years he was the coach to the United Arab Emirates snooker association between 1997 and 1999.- Early life...	Steve Newbury Steve Newbury Steve Newbury is a former Welsh professional snooker player from Neath.After a strong amateur record he turned professional in 1984. His best runs in professional ranking tournaments were a few quarter-final appearances as well as a semi-final run. He reached a highest ranking of 19 in...	9–7	1986/87 Snooker season 1986/1987 The snooker season 1986/1987 was a series of snooker tournaments played during the years 1986 and 1987. The following table outlines the results for ranking events and the invitational events.-Calendar:...
1988	Terry Griffiths Terry Griffiths Terrence "Terry" Griffiths OBE is a retired Welsh snooker player and current snooker coach and pundit. He won the World Championship in 1979 at the first attempt, and reached the 1988 final. He also won the Masters in 1980 and the UK Championship in 1982, making him one of seven players to have...	Wayne Jones Wayne Jones (snooker player) Wayne Jones is a former Welsh professional snooker player. Despite never breaking into the top 16, he reached the last 16 and quarter-finals of many ranking events. His most notable run was to the final of the Mercantile Credit Classic in 1989 with victories over the likes of Jimmy White, where he...	9–3	1987/88 Snooker season 1987/1988 The snooker season 1986/1987 was a series of snooker tournaments played during the years 1986 and 1987. The following table outlines the results for ranking events and the invitational events.-Calendar:...
1989	Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy is a retired Welsh snooker player. Although he only won two ranking titles, he did so in successive tournaments in 1988/1989 – and while in his mid 40s. In more recent years he was the coach to the United Arab Emirates snooker association between 1997 and 1999.- Early life...	Terry Griffiths Terry Griffiths Terrence "Terry" Griffiths OBE is a retired Welsh snooker player and current snooker coach and pundit. He won the World Championship in 1979 at the first attempt, and reached the 1988 final. He also won the Masters in 1980 and the UK Championship in 1982, making him one of seven players to have...	9–6	1988/89 Snooker season 1988/1989 The snooker season 1988/1989 was a series of snooker tournaments played during the years 1988 and 1989. The following table outlines the results for ranking events and the invitational events.-Calendar:...
1990	Darren Morgan Darren Morgan Darren Morgan is a Welsh snooker player, who won the World Amateur Championship in 1987, and played on the main World Snooker tour from 1988 through 2007. He earned just under £1 million in prize money, reached a high ranking of 8, and was ranked within the top 16 for many years despite never...	Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy Doug Mountjoy is a retired Welsh snooker player. Although he only won two ranking titles, he did so in successive tournaments in 1988/1989 – and while in his mid 40s. In more recent years he was the coach to the United Arab Emirates snooker association between 1997 and 1999.- Early life...	9–7	1989/90 Snooker season 1989/1990 The snooker season 1989/1990 was a series of snooker tournaments played during the years 1989 and 1990. The following table outlines the results for ranking events and the invitational events.-Calendar:...
1991	Darren Morgan Darren Morgan Darren Morgan is a Welsh snooker player, who won the World Amateur Championship in 1987, and played on the main World Snooker tour from 1988 through 2007. He earned just under £1 million in prize money, reached a high ranking of 8, and was ranked within the top 16 for many years despite never...	Mark Bennett Mark Bennett (snooker player) Mark Bennett is a former Welsh professional snooker player from Newport.After winning the Welsh amateur title in 1985, he turned professional the followiing year. He was ranked in the top 32 for four seasons between 1991 and 1995, reaching a high rank of 24 in 1993...	9–3	1990/91