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Best Ranking
Performance: |
Quarter-finals - UK Championship 1999, LG Cup 2003, Grand Prix 2005 |
Runner-up - Malta Cup 2007; 2007 World Snooker Roewe Shanghai Masters |
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General Info: |
He’s one of snooker’s most charismatic players and the last season was another incident packed one for Hitman Holt. Read more...
The highlight of Michael Holt’s 2006/07 season was a run to the last 16 of the Malta Cup, including one of the best wins of his career, a 5-3 defeat of Ronnie O’Sullivan.
"Ronnie is a great player so it’s good to beat him any time," said the Hitman, at the Hilton in Portomaso. "I’ve been working on the mental side of the game and trying to handle things better because I’m not achieving what I can.
I’m not afraid of winning and I’ve always said that I can beat anyone if I’m playing well. In the past there have been times when it has looked like I can’t get over the winning line, but that’s because I’ve got wrapped up in myself. Without meaning to sound like Rocky, I just want to be the best that I can."
But Holt was not able to make his fourth career quarter-final as he lost 5-4 to Mark King after a battle on the colours in the deciding frame.
He also qualified for the televised stages of the World Snooker Championship, beating Adrian Gunnell 10-7, before losing 10-4 to eventual champion John Higgins in the first round at the Crucible.
He finished the season three places down in the ranking at No 24 and is now among the top 32 for the fourth consecutive season.
Holt’s chief passion away from snooker is music and his idol is Stone Roses frontman Ian Brown. His brother Matt plays bass guitar in a popular rock band called The Kull.
He is a qualified fitness instructor and enjoys travelling in Europe during the summer, often supplementing his income by working on Greek islands, “dragging people into discos”.
The charismatic Nottingham Forest fan is also a qualified fitness instructor and an accomplished cook.
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Day made major strides during the 2006/07 season, reaching his first ranking final and gaining a place in the top 16 for the first time.
Read more... It was at the Malta Cup in the Portomaso Hilton that he enjoyed the finest run of his career, beating Matthew Stevens, Fergal O’Brien, Mark King and Peter Ebdon to reach the final. "Lots of people back home and people in the press have said that I’ve got the game to win tournaments so it’s nice to finally get to a final," he said.
Ebdon was complimentary about his conqueror, saying: "He’s a very good player, I think he’s good enough to get into the top eight. He’s very attacking and exciting to watch, although I think he goes for balls now that with more experience he will turn down."
Day did not produce his best in the final against Shaun Murphy, falling 6-1 behind and eventually losing 9-4. "I was disappointed by the way I played in the first session, I had chances in virtually every frame," said the Welshman. "But I’ve had a good week and won some good matches."
He also appeared in the quarter-finals of the Northern Ireland Trophy and secured his top 16 spot by beating Marcus Campbell in the World Snooker Championship qualifiers, despite defeat to Neil Robertson in the first round at the Sheffield. Day had demonstrated his undoubted talent to the snooker public on both of his previous visits to the Crucible – but on each occasion left Sheffield with a bitter taste in his mouth.
He lost 10-9 to John Higgins in 2004, despite becoming the only player to make three centuries on his Crucible debut, then went down 13-10 to Ronnie O’Sullivan in 2006. Day’s biggest title to date was the 2001 B&H Championship when he beat Hugh Abernethy in the final to earn a wild card entry to the Masters. He beat Dave Harold 6-3 in the first round at Wembley before losing 6-0 to Stephen Hendry. At the end of that season he was awarded the WPBSA Newcomer of the Year award.
His girlfriend Lynsey gave birth to their first child in August 2006. Younger brother Rhys has played football for Manchester City and Mansfield and captained the Welsh under-21 side.
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