Alex Higgins

Uncommon card · No. 89355

Alexander Gordon Higgins (18 March 1949 – 24 July 2010) was a Northern Irish professional snooker player and two-time World Champion. Nicknamed "The Hurricane" for his rapid play and known as "The People's Champion" for his popularity and charisma, he is remembered as one of the sport's most iconic figures and is often credited with helping to make snooker a mainstream televised sport in the 1980s. Higgins won the World Snooker Championship on his first attempt in 1972, beating the defending champion John Spencer 37–31 in the final. Aged 22, he was then the sport's youngest World Champion, a record he held until 21-year-old Stephen Hendry won the title in 1990. He was runner-up to Ray Reardon in 1976 and Cliff Thorburn in 1980. At the 1982 tournament, he defeated Jimmy White 16–15 in the semi-finals, making a 69 clearance in the penultimate frame that is regarded as one of the finest breaks in the sport's history, and then beat Reardon 18–15 in the final to secure his second world title...

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