Jackie Rea

John Joseph Rea (6 April 1921 – 20 October 2013), better known as Jackie Rea was a Northern Irish snooker player. He turned professional in 1947 and was the leading Irish snooker player until the emergence of Alex Higgins and held the Irish Professional Championship almost continuously from 1952 to 1972.

Rea reached the semi-final of the 1952 World Professional Match-play Championship, losing to Fred Davis. At the 1957 World Championships he lost to John Pulman in the final despite being ahead in the early stages. With interest in professional snooker in decline, he was one of four entries for the 1957 tournament.

He won the 1954/1955 News of the World Snooker Tournament, winning all his eight matches and taking the first prize of £500. He continued playing professional snooker until 1990. He was placed 48th in the 1983–84 snooker world rankings, which was the highest ranking he attained after rankings were introduced in 1976. Outside of competition, he was known for his entertaining exhibition matches. Provided by Wikipedia