Graeme Dott

Graeme Dott (born 12 May 1977) is a Scottish former professional snooker player from Glasgow. After turning professional in 1994, he competed on the World Snooker Tour for over 30 years. He won the 2006 World Snooker Championship, defeating Peter Ebdon in the final, and was runner-up at two other World Championships, losing the 2004 final to Ronnie O'Sullivan and the 2010 final to Neil Robertson. He contested ten ranking finals during his career, winning two ranking titles, and achieved a highest world ranking of second in the 2007–08 rankings. He made 271 career century breaks, including two official maximum breaks.

In 2025, Dott was charged with historical child sex offences and was suspended from professional competition while awaiting trial. On 24 August 2026, he was found guilty of lewd and libidinous behaviour towards two children, who had been aged around 10 and 7 respectively when the abuse began. On the same day, the board of the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association voted unanimously to revoke his WPBSA membership, removing him permanently from the sport. He was also removed from the World Snooker Hall of Fame. He was remanded in custody and will be sentenced on 29 September.

Early life and amateur years Graeme Dott was born in Glasgow on 12 May 1977, the youngest of four sons born to John Dott and Susan Cartledge. Raised in Easterhouse, a suburb of eastern Glasgow, he was educated at Commonhead Primary School and Lochend Secondary School. His father, uncle, and grandfather all worked for Yarrows Shipbuilders and he described his background as "a traditional working-class Glasgow family."

Dott began playing snooker at age eight when he received a miniature snooker table for Christmas. His uncle began taking him to snooker clubs, where he practised on full-sized tables. When he was 13, his family moved to the Dennistoun area of Glasgow. Shortly afterwards, he made his first century break at Dee Bee's Snooker Club in Dennistoun and began playing in junior tournaments at Reardon's Snooker Centre on Stockwell Street. There, he met Alex Lambie, a businessman from Larkhall in Lanarkshire, whose son Alex Jr. played alongside Dott in junior events.

In 1992, Dott won the British Under-19 Championship at the age of 15. The following year, he won the Scottish Amateur Championship. His parents split up when he was 16, after which he lived with his mother. His father moved to a council house nearby. He reached his first ranking final at the 1999 Scottish Open, losing 1–9 to Stephen Hendry, and made his first maximum break in professional competition at the 1999 British Open. He reached his second ranking final at the 2001 British Open, losing 6–9 to John Higgins, and entered the top 16 for the first time in the 2001–02 rankings. The Guardian satirically named Dott its "Alternative Sports Personality of the Year 2002" over this episode. At the 2002 World Championship, Dott reached the second round of the tournament for the first time, but he lost heavily to Higgins, who won the first ten frames and went on to secure a 13–2 victory. Dott reached the second round again at the 2003 World Championship and took a 7–2 lead over Ken Doherty, but Doherty won the match 13–12 after a 42-minute .

Dott experienced a string of disappointing results the following season. After a 1–5 defeat to Dominic Dale at the 2004 Welsh Open, he deliberately broke his cue, a childhood gift from his parents, at a motorway service station on his way back to Scotland. Playing with a new cue, he began the 2004 World Championship as a 200–1 outsider, later commenting that he had packed only two shirts for the event, anticipating an early exit. O'Sullivan dominated the remainder of the match, winning 18 of the last 21 frames for an 18–8 victory. The following year, Dott lost a fourth successive ranking final after Hendry beat him 9–7 at the 2005 Malta Cup. He exited the 2005 World Championship in the first round, losing 9–10 to Ian McCulloch.

At the 2006 World Championship, Dott led Neil Robertson 10–6 and 12–8 in the quarter-finals and held off a comeback from Robertson to win 13–12. He faced O'Sullivan in the semi-finals. The scores were tied at 8–8 after the second session, but Dott won all eight frames in the third session to lead 16–8 and went on to win the match 17–11. Facing Peter Ebdon in the final, Dott led 11–5 and 15–7. Ebdon won six consecutive frames to reduce Dott's lead to two at 15–13, but Dott secured an 18–14 victory, claiming his first ranking title and only world title. The final was noted for its lengthy duration, slow pace of play, and low scoring, with Dott making a highest break in the match of just 68. The 27th frame was, at that time, the longest ever played at the Crucible, at 74 minutes. The first day's play ended at 12:45 a.m., and the second day's play finished at 12:53 a.m. At the 2007 China Open, he defeated O'Sullivan 6–2 in the semi-finals and Jamie Cope 9–5 in the final to win his second ranking title. he dedicated the title to his late father-in-law and manager Alex Lambie, who had recently died of cancer. At the 2007 World Championship, he again lost to McCulloch in the first round, becoming the 17th consecutive first-time champion to experience the so-called "Crucible curse," referring to the fact that no first-time winner at the Crucible has ever successfully defended the title. He reached his career highest ranking of second in the 2007–08 rankings.

Mid-career: Struggles with form and third world final (2007–20) In the 2007–08 season, Dott reached the semi-finals of the 2007 Shanghai Masters but did not win any further matches for the remainder of the season. He later disclosed that severe depression, brought on by his father-in-law's death, had affected his form. He lost in the first round of the 2007 UK Championship to qualifier Dave Harold and lost in the first round of the 2008 Masters to Stephen Lee. His first-round loss to Ebdon at the 2008 Malta Cup was his 11th consecutive professional defeat, after which he described his form as "hopeless". Following a first-round defeat at the 2008 Welsh Open, he announced that he was considering missing the 2008 World Championship. He did participate in the tournament but lost 7–10 to Joe Perry in the first round. In the 2008–09 rankings, he fell from second to 13th place. At the beginning of the 2008–09 season, he was forced to withdraw from the 2008 Shanghai Masters and the 2008 Grand Prix after breaking his left arm playing football. At the 2009 World Championship, he reached the second round for the first time since winning the title in 2006, but lost 10–13 to Mark Selby. He fell further to 28th place in the 2009–10 rankings.

In the 2009–10 season, Dott reached the last 16 of just one ranking event prior to the 2010 World Championship. However, he performed strongly at the Crucible, defeating Mark Allen 13–12 in the quarter-finals and Selby 17–14 in the semi-finals to reach his third world final. He lost 13–18 to Neil Robertson but regained his top-16 standing in the 2010–11 rankings. He reached the semi-finals of the 2011 German Masters but lost 4–6 to Selby. At the 2011 World Championship, he lost in the quarter-finals to eventual runner-up Judd Trump. That year marked the last time Dott advanced past the second round of the World Championship. At the 2012 World Championship, he lost 1–10 in the first round to Perry, his heaviest defeat at the Crucible, after which he called his performance the worst he had ever played as a professional. Perry, who made a highest break in the match of just 59, acknowledged that he had also played poorly, but said he felt sorry for Dott. thumb Dott at the 2014 German Masters.During the 2012–13 season, Dott reached the quarter-finals of the 2012 Wuxi Classic, where he was whitewashed 0–5 by Mark Davis, and the 2012 Shanghai Masters, where he lost 4–5 to Trump. At the 2013 Masters, he produced his career-best performance at the tournament, defeating Stephen Maguire 6–5 and Trump 6–1 to reach the semi-finals. Facing Selby, he led 4–1 before missing a pot on the black that would have given him a 5–1 lead, and Selby recovered to win 6–5. The 2013 World Championship was the last time Dott reached the Crucible as a top-16 seed. He defeated Ebdon 10–6 in a first-round match that lasted over seven hours; an extra session had to be added after the players failed to complete the match in the first two sessions. Afterwards, Dott criticised Ebdon's slow, deliberative style of play and called for a rule to limit the amount of time a player could spend over a shot. Facing Shaun Murphy in the second round, he recovered from 2–6 behind to tie the scores at 8–8, but Murphy won 11–13.

In the 2013–14 season, Dott reached the semi-finals of the 2013 International Championship but lost 7–9 to eventual winner Ding Junhui. He reached the quarter-finals of the 2014 World Open but lost 4–5 to Murphy, who fluked the final black in the deciding frame. At the 2014 China Open, he reached the quarter-finals but lost 3–5 to the world number one Neil Robertson. Having fallen out of the top 16 after the 2014 German Masters, he competed in the qualifiers for the 2014 World Championship but lost 7–10 to Kyren Wilson in the last qualifying round. It was the first time since 1999 that he had failed to reach the Crucible, following 14 consecutive appearances. He ended the season ranked 17th.

At the 2014 UK Championship, Dott defeated Neil Robertson in a deciding frame to reach the quarter-finals of the tournament for the first time since 2006. He commented afterwards that he was taking a more carefree approach to the game. He took a 4–1 lead over Stuart Bingham in their quarter-final match but lost 5–6. Ranked 16th after the UK Championship, Dott dropped to 17th after the 2015 German Masters and never again regained his top-16 standing. He qualified for the main stage of the 2015 World Championship and defeated Ricky Walden 10–8 in the first round, but lost 5–13 in the second round to the eventual champion Bingham. The following season, Dott reached his first ranking semi-final in over two years at the 2016 German Masters but lost 2–6 to Martin Gould. He qualified for the 2016 World Championship, but lost 4–10 to Mark Williams in the first round.

Dott did not reach the latter stages of a ranking event during the 2016–17 season. He qualified again for the 2017 World Championship and defeated Ali Carter 10–7 in the first round, but lost 6–13 to Barry Hawkins in the second round. The following season, he reached ranking finals at the 2018 German Masters, losing 1–9 to Williams, and the 2018 Snooker Shoot Out, losing to Michael Georgiou. He qualified for the 2018 World Championship, where he again faced Carter in the first round. Dott took a 6–2 lead, but Carter won eight of the last ten frames for a 10–8 victory. Dott made his last Crucible appearance at the 2019 World Championship, after qualifying for a fifth consecutive year. Facing Bingham in the first round, he trailed 1–8 but recovered to tie the scores at 9–9. Bingham won the deciding frame after Dott missed the black off its spot. During the 2019–20 season, he reached the quarter-finals of the 2019 International Championship, the semi-finals of the 2020 German Masters, the final of the non-ranking 2019–20 Championship League, and the final of the 2020 World Grand Prix. The latter was the last ranking final of his career. He lost 8–10 to Neil Robertson, who made five centuries in the match. It was Dott's eighth defeat in a ranking final, out of the ten he had contested.

Late career: Rankings decline, relegation, and removal from the sport (2020–26) Dott at one of his last professional events, the 2025 German Masters. Dott's career subsequently went into decline. He failed to qualify for the Crucible for five consecutive years, losing in the fourth and final qualifying round each year from 2020 to 2023 and in the third qualifying round in 2024. He reached his last ranking semi-final at the 2022 European Masters and his last ranking quarter-final at the 2022 Turkish Masters. He made his second and last professional maximum break in the 2022 World Championship qualifiers, 23 years after his first at the 1999 British Open. After ending the 2020–21 season ranked 18th, he fell down the world rankings, ending the 2021–22 season ranked 35th, the 2022–23 season ranked 41st, and the 2023–24 season ranked 54th.

Dott played his last professional match at the 2025 World Open in February 2025, losing 2–5 to Stan Moody in the last 64. On 9 April 2025, two days before he was scheduled to compete in the 2025 World Championship qualifiers, the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) announced that it had suspended him from competition due to ongoing court proceedings. He remained suspended throughout the 2025–26 season, which he ended outside the top 64 in the world rankings, resulting in his relegation from the professional tour. On 24 August 2026, Dott was convicted on child sex abuse charges. The board of the WPBSA voted unanimously the same day to revoke his WPBSA membership with immediate effect, permanently removing him from the sport. The following day, he was removed from the World Snooker Hall of Fame.

Personal life In 1997, Dott began a relationship with Elaine Lambie, the 16-year-old daughter of his mentor and manager Alex Lambie. The couple married in 2003 and had their first child, a son, the following year. In early 2007, doctors discovered potentially cancerous cysts on Elaine's ovaries. Although she did not have cancer, she suffered a miscarriage. Following his father-in-law's death and his wife's health issues, Dott suffered from depression, which affected his motivation to practise and his performances in tournaments. He was charged with abusing a girl between 1993 and 1996 in Glasgow, beginning when she was around 10 years old, and a boy between 2006 and 2010 in various locations in Lanarkshire, beginning when he was around 7 years old. The female victim had previously made a statement to police in 2001 but no charges were brought at that time. She made a further statement in 2025.

During the five-day trial, the jury heard details of multiple sexual offences committed by Dott. The female victim, then in her 40s, described how he had touched her inappropriately, exposed his genitals to her, and sexually assaulted her. The male victim, then in his 20s, described how Dott had begun sexually abusing him shortly after winning the World Championship in 2006. He stated that Dott had molested him in locations including a shower and a car, "rewarding" him with crisps, fizzy drinks, and money. Testifying in his defence, Dott called his victims' claims "disgusting" and denied "ever acting inappropriately with anyone". On 24 August, the jury found Dott guilty of lewd and libidinous behaviour towards both victims. Detective Inspector Gary Smillie, of Police Scotland, described Dott as a "dangerous individual". He was remanded in custody and will be sentenced on 29 September.

Performance and rankings timeline 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. MR / Minor-Ranking Event means an event is/was a minor-ranking event. PA / Pro-am Event means an event is/was a pro-am event.

Career finals

Ranking finals: 10 (2 titles)

Legend World Championship (1–2) Other (1–6)

Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final Score Runner-up 1. 1999 Scottish Open 1–9 Runner-up 2. 2001 British Open 6–9 Runner-up 3. 2004 World Snooker Championship 8–18 Runner-up 4. 2005 Malta Cup 7–9 Winner 1. 2006 World Snooker Championship 18–14 Winner 2. 2007 China Open 9–5 Runner-up 5. 2010 World Snooker Championship (2) 13–18 Runner-up 6. 2018 German Masters 1–9 Runner-up 7. 2018 Snooker Shoot Out 0–1 Runner-up 8. 2020 World Grand Prix 8–10

Minor-ranking finals: 2

Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final Score Runner-up 1. 2011 Sheffield Open 2–4 Runner-up 2. 2013 FFB Open 3–4

Non-ranking finals: 5 (1 title)

Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final Score Winner 1. 2008 World Series of Snooker Berlin 6–1 Runner-up 1 2009 World Series of Snooker Prague 3–5 Runner-up 2. 2011 Brazil Masters 0–5 Runner-up 3. 2012 Snooker Shoot Out 0–1 Runner-up 4. Championship League (March) 0–3

Pro-am finals: 9 (4 titles) Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final Score Runner-up 1. 1994 Pontins Spring Open Wayne Brown 3−7 Winner 1. 1995 Pontins Autumn Open 5–1 Winner 2. 1997 Austrian Open 7–6 Runner-up 3. 2008 Belgian Open 0−4 Runner-up 4. 2016 PMK Invitational Pro-Am 2−4 Winner 3. 2017 PMK Invitational Pro-Am 4−3 Winner 4. 2018 PMK Invitational Pro-Am (2) 4−0 Runner-up 5. 2019 PMK Invitational Pro-Am (2) Michael Collumb 3−4

Team finals: 1 (1 title) Outcome No. Year Championship Team Opponent in the final ScoreWinner 1. 2017 CVB Snooker Challenge 26–9

Amateur finals: 1 (1 title) Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final ScoreWinner 1. 1993 Scottish Amateur Championship Neil Martin 8–4