Tai Pichit
| Born | 10 January 1963 Thailand |
|---|---|
| Sport country |  Thailand |
| Professional | 1994–1997, 1998/1999 |
| Highest ranking | 124 (1998/1999) |
| Best ranking finish | Last 16 (x1) |
Chuchart Trairatanapradit (Thai: ชูชาติ ไตรรัตนประดิษฐ์), popularly known as Tai Pichit (Thai: ต่าย พิจิตร; born 10 January 1963) is a Thai former professional snooker player.
Pichit participated at the World Snooker Championship three times, reaching the first round in 1995. Pichit's best overall ranking finish was at the 1994 Thailand Open, where he reached the last 16 stage.
Career[edit]
Pichit turned professional in 1991. His first tournament was the 1991 Thailand Open, where he was eliminated 4–5 in the first round by Allison Fisher. Pichit's best run came in 1994, when he participated in the Thailand Open, beating Colin Morton and Stephen Hendry 5–2, before losing to Morgan 4–5 in the second round.
One year later, he participated at his first World Snooker Championship, qualifying for the 1995 edition of the tournament. In so doing, Pichit became the second Thai player, after James Wattana, to play at the Crucible Theatre. Pichit defeated Mark Whatley 5–3, Adrian Rosa 5–1, Mike Dunn 5–2, Warren King 10–0, Stuart Reardon 10–8, Alex Higgins 10–5, Euan Henderson 10–6 and Mike Hallett 10–8 to set up an encounter with Willie Thorne. In the event, Pichit led 2–0 and held Thorne to 4–4 and 6–7, but eventually lost 6–10.
He also participated in the 1996 UK Championship, defeating Jimmy White 9–7 in the first round, and advanced to the second round, where he was defeated by Joe Johnson 6–9.
In 1998–99, Pichit was ranked 124th, the highest ranking in his career, but ended the season at 150th, with his final tournament at the 1999 China International, where he lost 0–5 to John Giles. He lost his professional status immediately thereafter, aged 36.
Personal life[edit]
Pichit was a Buddhist monk(bhikkhu) before he became a professional snooker player.[1]
Performance and rankings timeline[edit]
| Tournament | 1990/ 91 |
1991/ 92 |
1993/ 94 |
1994/ 95 |
1995/ 96 |
1996/ 97 |
1998/ 99 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ranking[2][nb 1] | [nb 2] | [nb 2] | [nb 2] | [nb 3] | 171 | 140 | [nb 3] | |||||||||
| Ranking tournaments | ||||||||||||||||
| Grand Prix | A | A | A | LQ | LQ | LQ | LQ | |||||||||
| UK Championship | A | A | A | LQ | LQ | 2R | LQ | |||||||||
| Irish Open[nb 4] | A | A | A | LQ | LQ | LQ | LQ | |||||||||
| Welsh Open | A | A | A | LQ | LQ | LQ | LQ | |||||||||
| Scottish Open[nb 5] | Not Held | A | 1R | LQ | LQ | LQ | ||||||||||
| Thailand Masters[nb 6] | A | A | 2R | LQ | WD | LQ | LQ | |||||||||
| China International | Tournament Not Held | LQ | ||||||||||||||
| British Open | A | A | A | LQ | LQ | LQ | LQ | |||||||||
| World Championship | A | A | A | 1R | LQ | LQ | LQ | |||||||||
| Former ranking tournaments | ||||||||||||||||
| Asian Classic[nb 7] | A | A | A | LQ | WD | LQ | NH | |||||||||
| German Masters[nb 8] | Tournament Not Held | LQ | LQ | NR | ||||||||||||
| Former non-ranking tournaments | ||||||||||||||||
| Kent Cup | SF | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||||||
| Thailand Masters[nb 6] | R | 1R | Ranking Event | |||||||||||||
| Hong Kong Challenge | A | 1R | Tournament Not Held | |||||||||||||
| Indian Challenge | NH | 1R | Tournament Not Held | |||||||||||||
| Performance Table Legend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LQ | lost in the qualifying draw | #R | lost in the early rounds of the tournament (WR = Wildcard round, RR = Round robin) |
QF | lost in the quarter-finals |
| SF | lost in the semi-finals | F | lost in the final | W | won the tournament |
| DNQ | did not qualify for the tournament | A | did not participate in the tournament | WD | withdrew from the tournament |
| NH / Not Held | means an event was not held. | |||
| NR / Non-Ranking Event | means an event is/was no longer a ranking event. | |||
| R / Ranking Event | means an event is/was a ranking event. | |||
- ^ It shows the ranking at the beginning of the season.
- ^ a b c He was an amateur
- ^ a b New players on the Main Tour don't have a ranking
- ^ The event was called the European Open (1990/1991–1996/1997)
- ^ The event was called the International Open (1993/1994–1996/1997)
- ^ a b The event was called the Asian Open (1990/1991–1991/1992) and the Thailand Open (1993/1994–1996/1997)
- ^ The event was called the Dubai Classic (1990/1991–1994/1995) and the Thailand Classic (1995/1996)
- ^ The event was called the German Open (1995/1996–1996/1997)
Career finals[edit]
Pro-am finals: 2[edit]
| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runner-up | 1. | 1991 | Southeast Asian Games | Praput Chaithanasakun
|
1–5 | [3] |
| Runner-up | 2. | 1993 | Southeast Asian Games (2) | Praput Chaithanasakun
|
0–5 | [4] |
Amateur finals: 6 (2 titles)[edit]
| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runner-up | 1. | 1989 | Thailand Amateur Championship | Udon Khaimuk
|
5–8 | [5] |
| Winner | 1. | 1991 | ACBS Asian Snooker Championship |  Yasin Merchant
|
8–3 | [6] |
| Runner-up | 2. | 1992 | ACBS Asian Snooker Championship | Praput Chaithanasakun
|
7–8 | [6] |
| Runner-up | 3. | 1993 | ACBS Asian Snooker Championship (2) | Praput Chaithanasakun
|
5–8 | [6] |
| Winner | 2. | 1993 | IBSF World Snooker Championship | Praput Chaithanasakun
|
11–6 | [7] |
| Runner-up | 4. | 2010 | World Amateur Championship - Masters |  Philip Williams
|
4–6 | [8] |
References[edit]
- ^ "How genius Alex Higgins took snooker to all new level and inspired stars of the future - BelfastTelegraph.co.uk".
- ^ "Ranking History". Snooker.org. Archived from the original on 19 December 2018. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
- ^ "Scoreboard". Manila Standard. 5 December 1991. p. 21. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
- ^ "Yesterday's results". The Straits Times. 20 June 1993. p. 29. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
- ^ "Udon takes over in Wattana's absence". Pot Black. Brentwood: Pot Black Publishing. July 1989. pp. 28–29.
- ^ a b c "Asian Snooker Championship: Roll of Honour". Global Snooker. Archived from the original on 25 May 2014. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
- ^ "Past Champions". International Billiards and Snooker Federation. Archived from the original on 20 January 2013. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
- ^ "World Masters Snooker Championship". International Billiards and Snooker Federation. Archived from the original on 25 December 2010. Retrieved 2 December 2022.