Graeme Dott (born 12 May 1977) is a Scottish professional snooker player from Glasgow. He turned professional in 1994, first entered the top 16 in 2001, and reached his first world final at the 2004 World Championship, losing 8âÂÂ18 to Ronnie O'Sullivan. Two years later, he defeated Peter Ebdon 18âÂÂ14 in the final of the 2006 World Championship, winning his first world title and first ranking title. He claimed his second ranking title at the 2007 China Open, defeating Jamie Cope 9âÂÂ5 in the final, and reached his career highest ranking of second in the 2007âÂÂ08 rankings.
In late 2007, Dott began experiencing clinical depression that affected his form. Following a string of defeats, he fell from second to 28th in the rankings over the following two seasons. He qualified for the 2010 World Championship and reached his third world final, losing 1318 to Neil Robertson but recovering his top-16 ranking for the next several seasons. He failed to qualify for the 2014 World Championship but successfully qualified each year from 2015 until 2019. His best performances in the other Triple Crown events have been semi-final finishes at the 2006 UK Championship and the 2013 Masters. He was runner-up at three further ranking tournaments, the 2018 German Masters, the 2018 Snooker Shoot Out, and the 2020 World Grand Prix. In all, Dott has played in ten ranking finals, winning two.
In April 2025, the WPBSA suspended Dott from competition after he was charged with sexually abusing two children, a girl between 1993 and 1996, beginning when she was around 10 years old, and a boy between 2006 and 2010, beginning when he was around 7 years old. Released on bail, he has pleaded not guilty to the charges and will stand trial at Scotland's High Court of Justiciary in August 2026. He remains suspended pending the outcome of his trial.
Graeme Dott was born in Glasgow on 12 May 1977, the youngest child of John Dott and Susan Cartledge. He has three older brothers. Raised in the Easterhouse housing estate, he was educated locally at Commonhead Primary School and Lochend Secondary School. His father, uncle, and grandfather all worked for Yarrows Shipbuilders and he has 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 maternal uncle, George Cartledge, began taking him to snooker clubs, where he practiced 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. At Reardon's, he met Alex Lambie, a businessman from Larkhall in Lanarkshire, whose son played alongside him in junior tournaments. Lambie, who owned a snooker club as well as Berries Hotel in Larkhall, mentored Dott as an amateur and went on to manage his professional career. Dott has described Lambie as a "second father".
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.
Dott turned professional in 1994, at age 17. He reached his first ranking quarter-final at the 1996 Welsh Open, losing 4âÂÂ5 to John Higgins, made his Crucible debut at the 1997 World Snooker Championship, losing 9âÂÂ10 in the first round to James Wattana, and reached his first ranking final at the 1999 Scottish Open, losing 1âÂÂ9 to Stephen Hendry. He 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 6âÂÂ9 to Higgins, and entered the top 16 for the first time in the 2001âÂÂ02 rankings. He arrived at the 2004 World Championship having won only two previous matches at the Crucible, but he reached his first world final, where he faced Ronnie O'Sullivan. Although Dott took a 5âÂÂ0 lead, O'Sullivan won 18 of the last 21 frames for an 18âÂÂ8 victory. The following year, Dott lost a fourth successive ranking final when Hendry defeated him 9âÂÂ7 in the 2005 Malta Cup. He suffered a first-round defeat at the 2005 World Championship, losing 9âÂÂ10 to Ian McCulloch.
At the 2006 World Championship, Dott defeated Neil Robertson 13âÂÂ12 in the quarter-finals and advanced to face O'Sullivan in the semi-finals. The scores were tied at 8âÂÂ8 after the second session, but Dott won all eight frames in the third session to lead 16âÂÂ8. Dott remains one of only four players who have won a session 8âÂÂ0 against O'Sullivan at the World Championship; John Parrott and Higgins had previously done so in 1994 and 1998 respectively, and Zhao Xintong subsequently did so in 2025. Although O'Sullivan won the next three frames, Dott took frame 28 on the last to win 17âÂÂ11. He advanced to face Peter Ebdon in the final, where he led 11âÂÂ5 and 15âÂÂ7, but Ebdon won six consecutive frames to reduce Dott's lead to two at 15âÂÂ13. However, Dott went on to secure an 18âÂÂ14 victory, claiming his first ranking title and first world title. The final was noted for its long duration, slow pace of play, and lack of high 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.
Competing as the reigning World Champion the following season, Dott reached the semi-finals of the 2006 UK Championship, his best ever performance at the tournament, but he lost 7âÂÂ9 to Hendry despite having led 7âÂÂ5. At the 2007 China Open, he defeated O'Sullivan 6âÂÂ2 in the semi-finals and Jamie Cope 9âÂÂ5 in the final to win his second ranking title. Dott 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," under which no first-time winner at the Crucible has ever successfully defended the title. Dott reached his career highest ranking of second in the 2007âÂÂ08 rankings.
In the 2007âÂÂ08 season, Dott reached the semi-finals of the 2007 Shanghai Masters but did not win any further matches for the remainder of the season. Dott later disclosed that he had suffered a severe depression for around two years after the death of his father-in-law in late 2006, which 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 eventual runner-up Stephen Lee. Speaking after his first-round loss to Ebdon at the 2008 Malta Cup, his 11th consecutive professional defeat, he described his form as "hopeless" and said he was "nowhere near to playing a good enough standard".
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 7âÂÂ10 to Joe Perry in the first round. In the 2008âÂÂ09 rankings, he fell from second to 13th place. At the beginning of the 2008âÂÂ09 season, he broke his left arm playing soccer and had to withdraw from the 2008 Shanghai Masters and the 2008 Grand Prix. At the 2009 World Championship, he reached the second round for the first time since winning the title in 2006 but lost 10âÂÂ13 to Mark Selby. He fell further to 28th place in the 2009âÂÂ10 rankings.
During the 2009âÂÂ10 season, he 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 13âÂÂ12 in the quarter-finals and Selby 17âÂÂ14 in the semi-finals to reach his third world final. Although he lost 13âÂÂ18 to Neil Robertson, he regained his top 16 standing in the 2010âÂÂ11 rankings, where he began the season ranked 13th. He reached the semi-finals of the 2011 German Masters but lost 46 to Selby. At the 2011 World Championship, he reached the quarter-finals before losing to eventual runner-up Judd Trump. It was the last time Dott advanced past the second round of the World Championship. He was runner-up to Barry Hawkins at the non-ranking 2012 Snooker Shoot-Out. At the 2012 World Championship, he lost 1âÂÂ10 in the first round to Perry, his heaviest ever defeat at the Crucible. Afterwards, he called his performance the worst he had ever played as a professional. Perry, who made a highest break of just 59, acknowledged that he had also played poorly in the match but said he had felt sorry for Dott.During the 2012âÂÂ13 season, Dott reached the quarter-finals of the 2012 Wuxi Classic, where he was whitewashed 0âÂÂ5 by Mark Davis, and the 2012 Shanghai Masters, where he lost 4âÂÂ5 to Trump. At the 2013 Masters, he had his career best performance at the tournament, defeating Stephen Maguire 6âÂÂ5 and Trump 6âÂÂ1 to reach the semi-finals, where he faced Selby. He led 4âÂÂ1 but missed a pot on the black that would have given him a 5âÂÂ1 lead, and Selby recovered to win 6âÂÂ5. The 2013 World Championship was the last time Dott qualified automatically for the Crucible as a top-16 seed. He defeated Ebdon 10âÂÂ6 in a first-round match that lasted over 7 hours; an extra session had to be added after the players failed to complete the match in the first two sessions. Afterwards, he 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 Murphy in the second round, he recovered from 2âÂÂ6 behind to tie the scores at 8âÂÂ8, but Murphy went on to win the match 11âÂÂ13.
In the 2013âÂÂ14 season, he reached the semi-finals of the 2013 International Championship but lost 7âÂÂ9 to eventual winner Ding Junhui. He reached the quarter-finals of the 2014 World Open but lost 4âÂÂ5 to Murphy, who fluked the final black in the deciding frame. At the 2014 China Open, he reached the quarter-finals but lost 3âÂÂ5 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 7âÂÂ10 to Kyren Wilson in the last qualifying round. He failed to reach the Crucible for the first time since 1999, following 14 consecutive appearances. He ended the season ranked 17th.
At the 2014 UK Championship, he defeated Neil Robertson in a deciding frame to reach the quarter-finals of the event for the first time since 2006. He said afterwards that he was taking a more carefree approach to the game. He took a 4âÂÂ1 lead over Stuart Bingham in their quarter-final match but lost 5âÂÂ6. Dott was ranked 16th after the tournament, but dropped to 17th after the 2015 German Masters and never again retained his top-16 standing. He successfully qualified for the 2015 World Championship and won his first-round match 10âÂÂ8 against Ricky Walden. In the second round, he lost 5âÂÂ13 to Bingham, who went on to win the title. The following season, he reached his first ranking semi-final in over two years at the 2016 German Masters but lost 2âÂÂ6 to Martin Gould. He qualified for the 2016 World Championship but lost 4âÂÂ10 to Mark Williams in the first round.
Dott did not reach the latter stages of any ranking event during the 2016âÂÂ17 season. He qualified again for the 2017 World Championship and defeated Ali Carter 10âÂÂ7 in the first round, to date his most recent victory at the Crucible, but lost 6âÂÂ13 to Hawkins in the second round. The following season, he reached his eighth ranking final at the 2018 German Masters but lost seven consecutive frames on his way to a 1âÂÂ9 defeat by Williams. After qualifying for the 2018 World Championship, he again faced Carter in the first round and led 6âÂÂ2, but Carter won eight of the last ten frames for a 10âÂÂ8 victory. Dott reached his ninth ranking final at the 2018 Snooker Shoot Out but lost to Michael Georgiou. At the 2019 World Championship, he qualified for the Crucible for a fifth consecutive year, where he played Bingham in the first round. From 1âÂÂ8 behind, Dott recovered to tie the scores at 9âÂÂ9, but Bingham won the match after Dott missed the black off its spot in the deciding frame. During thel 2019âÂÂ20 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 2019âÂÂ20 Championship League, and the final of the 2020 World Grand Prix. In the latter, he lost 8âÂÂ10 to Neil Robertson, who made five centuries in the match. It was Dott's eighth defeat in his ten ranking finals. Subsequently, Dott's career went into decline. He failed to qualify for the main stage of the World Championship for five consecutive years, losing in the final qualifying round each year from 2020 to 2023 and in the third qualifying round in 2024. He made his second professional maximum break in the 2022 World Championship qualifiers, 23 years after his first at the 1999 British Open. His only further appearances in the last eight of a ranking event were the semi-finals of the 2022 European Masters and the quarter-finals of the 2022 Turkish Masters. His world ranking also declined, as he ended the 2021âÂÂ22 season ranked 35th, the 2022âÂÂ23 season ranked 41st, and the 2023âÂÂ24 season ranked 54th. Dott has last competed professionally at the 2025 World Open in February 2025, losing 25 in the last 64 to Stan Moody. 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 pending court proceedings. At the time of his suspension, he was ranked 56th. He ended the 2024âÂÂ25 season ranked 61st.
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 their first child, a son, was born the following year. With his winnings from the 2006 World Championship, Dott paid off the mortgage on their family home in Larkhall. Alex Lambie died from kidney cancer in December 2006; his wife May had previously died from cancer in 2002. In early 2007, Elaine, who was then pregnant, had a cancer scare when doctors discovered potentially cancerous cysts on her ovaries. Although she turned out not to have cancer, she suffered a miscarriage. Following his father-in-law's death and his wife's cancer scare and miscarriage, Dott entered a severe depression that affected his motivation to practice and his performances in tournaments. His form improved again with the help of antidepressants. He also suffers from narcolepsy. Dott and Elaine had a second child, a daughter, born in 2008. Elaine earned a nursing degree from the University of the West of Scotland in 2010, having promised her dying father that she would complete her education. She went on to work as a school immunisation nurse.
In 2025, Dott was charged with child sex offences relating to two alleged victims. Prosecutors claim that he sexually abused 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. He is alleged to have instructed the girl to remove her clothing, exposed his genitals to her, and sexually assaulted her. He is alleged to have molested the boy, made sexual remarks to him, and watched him shower. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges, and his lawyer claimed during an August 2025 hearing that: "the allegations are fabricated and there is no truth in any of them." He will stand trial at Scotland's High Court of Justiciary, beginning on 17 August 2026.
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