A maximum break (also known as a maximum or a 147, conventionally pronounced onefourseven) is the highest possible in snooker in normal circumstances and is a special type of . A player compiles a maximum break by potting all 15 with 15 for 120 points, followed by all six for a further 27 points. Compiling a maximum break is regarded as a highly significant achievement in the game of snooker and may be compared to a ninedart finish in darts, a holeinone in golf or a 300 game in tenpin bowling. A break of up to 155 is possible if the referee awards a before any of the reds have been potted, but breaks exceeding 147 are exceptionally rare, having occurred only twice in professional competition. Any break greater than 147 but not 155 is not considered to be a maximum.
Joe Davis made the first officially recognised maximum break in a 1955 exhibition match in London. At the Classic in January 1982, Steve Davis achieved the first recognised maximum in professional competition, which was also the first in a televised match. The following year, Cliff Thorburn became the first player to make a maximum at the World Snooker Championship. As of August 2025, over 200 officially recognised maximum breaks have been made in professional tournament play. Ronnie O'Sullivan holds the record for the most maximum breaks in professional competition, with 17, and also the Guinness World Record for the fastest competitive maximum break, which he made at the 1997 World Championship in a time of 5 minutes and 8 seconds. At the 2017 Championship League, Mark Davis became the first player to make two official maximums at the same event. In the 2025 World Snooker Championship qualifiers, Jackson Page became the first player to make two official maximums in the same match. In the 2025 Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters semi-finals, O'Sullivan became the first to make two official maximums in a one-session match or on the same day.
Maximum breaks have become more frequent in professional snooker. Only eight recognised maximums were achieved in professional competition in the 1980s, but 26 occurred in the 1990s, 35 in the 2000s and 86 in the 2010s. As of the 2026 Shanghai Masters, 91 officially recognised professional maximums have been made thus far in the 2020s. The 2025–26 season produced a record total of 24 official maximums. Beginning in the 1980s, substantial prizes were awarded for maximum breaks, but such bonuses were reduced or eliminated as the achievement became more common. During the 2019–20 season, a £1 million bonus was offered for 20 or more maximums during the season; the prize would have been shared among all players who contributed to the total. The bonus was not claimed as the threshold was not reached. For the 2023–24 season, a £147,000 prize was offered for two maximums across the season's Triple Crown events; for the following two seasons, eligibility was extended to the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters. This bonus was won three times in total, by Jackson Page, O'Sullivan, and Chang Bingyu, but it was discontinued after the 2025–26 season. Some tournaments continue to award special bonus prizes for maximum breaks. At the World Snooker Championship, £40,000 is offered for maximums made at the main stage and £10,000 for maximums made in the qualifying rounds.
History Joe Davis compiled the first officially recognised maximum break on 22 January 1955, in a match against Willie Smith at Leicester Square Hall, London. The Billiards Association and Control Council initially refused to accept the break since the match was not played under their rules. At the time, the professional game used a rule (now standard, see rules of snooker) whereby, after a foul, a player could compel the offender to play the next stroke. It was not until a meeting on 20 March 1957 that the break was officially recognised and Davis was presented with a certificate to commemorate his achievement. The match between Davis and Smith was played as part of a series of events marking the closure of Leicester Square Hall; known as Thurston's Hall until 1947, the venue had hosted many important billiards and snooker matches since its opening in 1901, including twelve World Snooker Championship finals. John Spencer compiled a maximum break in the 1979 Holsten Lager International, but it did not count as an official maximum, however, as the break was made on a nontemplated table used during the event. The first official maximum break in professional competition was compiled by Steve Davis in the 1982 Classic at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in Oldham, against John Spencer. This was also the first televised maximum break. For his achievement, Davis won a Lada car provided by the event's sponsors. The following year, Cliff Thorburn became the first player to make a maximum at the World Championship in the fourth frame of his second round match against Terry Griffiths.
Before the 199495 season, the maximum break remained a rare feat, with only 15 official maximums compiled altogether. However, beginning in the 199495 season, at least one maximum break has been achieved every season thereafter. There were 13 maximums scored in each of the 201617, 202223 and 202324 seasons. This was the highest number until the 202425 season, during which 15 maximums were made. The record was broken again in the 202526 season which produced 24 maximums.
Mark Selby made the 100th officially recognised maximum break in professional competition on 7 December 2013 in the seventh frame of his semifinal match against Ricky Walden at the UK Championship. , 246 official maximum breaks have been recorded in professional competition, with the 200th being made by Joe O'Connor at the 2024 Championship League. Ronnie O'Sullivan has compiled 17 official competitive maximum breaks, the most achieved by any professional player. Following him are John Higgins with 13, Stephen Hendry with 11, Shaun Murphy with 10, Stuart Bingham and Judd Trump with 9, and Ding Junhui and Thepchaiya Un-Nooh with 7.
On 30 April 2023, Selby made a maximum break in the 16th frame during the 2023 World Championship final against Luca Brecel, the first achieved in a World Championship final. On 7 December 2023, Murphy made a maximum break in his firstround match against Bulcsú Révész in the 2023 Shoot Out, the first ever compiled at the Shoot Out, which is played under a variation of snooker rules, with a shot clock and fouls awarding . On 5 October 2024, in his winning run in event 3, Zhao Xintong made the first ever maximum break on the Q Tour, the secondary snooker tour that serves as a qualification route to the main professional tour, in his 41 win over Shaun Liu.
At least nine players have missed the final black on a score of 140: Robin Hull, Ken Doherty, Barry Pinches, Mark Selby, Michael White, Thepchaiya Un-Nooh (twice in the 201516 season and once in the 202425 season), Liang Wenbo in a qualifying match at the 2018 World Championship, after he had already made a maximum earlier in the same match, and both Joe O'Connor and Jack Lisowski at the 2025 Championship League. Xu Si missed the last black in a maximum attempt at the 2026 China Open qualifying.
Breaks above 147 are possible when an opponent fouls and leaves a with all 15 reds still remaining on the table. A break greater than 147 has happened only twice in professional competition, first when Jamie Burnett made a break of 148 at the qualifying stage of the 2004 UK Championship., and second when Ronnie O'Sullivan surpassed Burnett's long-standing record in his quarter-final match against Ryan Day at the 2026 World Open with a 153 break. Jamie Cope compiled a break of 155 points, the highest possible freeball break, during practice in 2005. Alex Higgins is said by some players to have attained the same feat.
Records First maximums The first known maximum break in practice was made by Murt O'Donoghue at Griffith, Australian Capital Territory, Australia, on 26 September 1934. Joe Davis compiled the first official 147 against Willie Smith in an exhibition match on 22 January 1955 at Leicester Square Hall, London. Rex Williams made the first maximum break in a competitive match against Manuel Francisco, Professionals v. Amateurs, on 23 December 1965 in Cape Town.
John Spencer made the first maximum compiled in professional competition on 13 January 1979 at the Holsten Lager Tournament against Cliff Thorburn, but it was not officially ratified due to oversized pockets. The break was not caught on video as the television crew were away on a tea break. The first official maximum break in professional competition was made by Steve Davis in the 1982 Lada Classic against Spencer. This was also the first televised 147. Thorburn became the first player to make a maximum break at the World Snooker Championship, achieved in 1983 during his second-round match against Terry Griffiths.
Thorburn made a second competitive maximum break in March 1989, becoming the first player to make two maximum breaks in competition. In November 1995, Hendry made his second televised maximum break, becoming the first player to have made two 147s on television. In March 2019, Mink Nutcharut made a 147 during a practice match at the Hi-End Snooker Club in Thailand. She is believed to be the only woman to have made a maximum break, either in practice or in competition.
World Snooker Championship maximums There have been 15 maximums made at the main stage of the World Championship—staged at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England—by 11 different players. Thorburn made the first, followed by Jimmy White, Stephen Hendry (three times), Ronnie O'Sullivan (three times), Mark Williams, Ali Carter, John Higgins, Neil Robertson, Kyren Wilson, Mark Selby and Mark Allen. Another eight maximums have been made during World Championship qualifying matches, by six players: Robert Milkins (twice), Gary Wilson, Liang Wenbo, Graeme Dott, Noppon Saengkham and Jackson Page (twice in the same match).
Multiple maximums More than one official maximum break has been compiled in the same event on more than twenty occasions. The first tournament with more than one maximum break was the 1992 Matchroom League, in which John Parrott and Stephen Hendry each made a 147 break. The first time that two maximum breaks were made in the same ranking tournament was at the 1999 British Open, where Jason Prince made one during qualifying and Graeme Dott at the main event. This was repeated at the 2000 Scottish Open, with Stephen Maguire in qualifying and Ronnie O'Sullivan at the main event. The 2008 World Snooker Championship was the first event where two maximum breaks (by O'Sullivan and Carter) were televised. Two maximum breaks (by Neil Robertson and Noppon Saengkham) were also televised at the 2019 Welsh Open.
Three official maximums at the same professional tournament have been achieved six times. The first was at the 2012 UK Championship, when Andy Hicks and Jack Lisowski both compiled one each in qualifying and John Higgins compiled one in the televised stages. The second time was at the 2017 German Masters, where Ali Carter and Ross Muir both compiled one each during qualifying and Tom Ford during the televised stages. The third time was at the 2024 Championship League by Kyren Wilson in Group 3, by John Higgins in Group 5, and by Joe O'Connor in Group 7. The fourth time was at the 2025 Championship League by Jak Jones in Group 2, by David Gilbert in Group 7, and by Mark Selby in the Winners' Group. The fifth time was at the 2025 Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters, with Thepchaiya Un-Nooh compiling one in his third-round match, and O'Sullivan making a brace in the semi-final. The sixth time was at the 2025 Xi'an Grand Prix, where Zhou Yuelong made one in qualifying, and both Judd Trump and Aaron Hill made maximums at the main stage.