Jack Lisowski and Luca Brecel name their top five snooker players ever

Naming the greatest players of all time is a classic bit of pub chat for sports fans and snooker enthusiasts are no different.

There is still the odd dissenting voice, but the vast majority taking part in the debate agree that Ronnie O’Sullivan is now the GOAT of the baize.

Stephen Hendry was widely considered to be the greatest before the Rocket and Steve Davis before him, going back to the 1980s.

Where do Hendry and Davis find themselves nowadays? And where do the other greats of the game place in the rankings?

It’s all entirely personal and current stars of the World Snooker Tour, Jack Lisowski and Luca Brecel, have rustled up their greatest ever players.

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Known for their fairly maverick styles of play, it may be no surprise that their lists could cause a stir in the snooker community.

However, what they both agree with almost everyone else on is that the Rocket is top of the tree.

‘I’ll start with one. Obviously, Ronnie O’Sullivan. Easy,’ 2023 world champion Brecel told Metro. ‘And then it’s a tough one between Judd [Trump], [Mark] Selby and [John] Higgins, I think.

‘I would actually say Judd, number two. People struggle to put guys like Judd number two because he’s still very young, but it’s obvious that he’s much better than Steve Davis or Hendry or people like that, it’s obvious.

‘So Judd two, Higgins three, Selby four, and then… we’d have to say Hendry five.’

The problem with all these kind of lists is comparing eras, with Brecel judging on the pure standard of play being produced, which is why he has Trump higher than many fans would.

‘It’s hard to predict, but I think it’s obvious. With Judd, he’s so much better than those guys, I think,’ said the Belgian Bullet.

‘Obviously as a player, when you play Ronnie a lot, Judd a lot, you know which one is the most difficult and I think Judd is really up there.’

Brecel lost to Trump 13-8 in the 2025 World Championship quarter-final and was blown away by his performance at the Crucible.

He recalls: ‘I was playing so well in that World Championship and I felt like I could win it that year as well, but he was unstoppable against me.’

Lisowski is good friends with Trump and also has him high on his list, which he struggled and ultimately failed to keep to just five names.

The Englishman gave a big nod to the last two world champions, with 22-year-old Wu Yize riding very high.

‘Ronnie, Judd, Higgins. Who else? Can I do six?’ Lisowski said.

‘Ronnie, Judd, Higgins, Wu Yize, [Mark] Williams, [Zhao] Xintong. That’s what I reckon…yeah, that’s what I reckon.’

Jackpot was again dealing with the challenge of comparing eras but felt the standard of the modern game is too great to deny.

He did realise he had forgotten about Stephen Hendry, though, and the seven-time world champ got a late call-up to the ever-growing list.

‘It’s hard. I don’t know, you look at their centuries as well, people have so many more centuries now, compared to the older guys. But it’s hard to compare eras,’ he told Metro.

‘You could put Steve Davis in there, I don’t know, but that’s all I see now, I’m only really going back the last 20 years.

‘Hang on. Did I put Hendry in there? F***ing hell, stick Hendry at seven, or else I’ll get a b******ing.’

1997 world champion Ken Doherty was asked the same question in May and went with: ‘Ronnie, Stephen Hendry, Steve Davis, John Higgins, and Mark Selby.’

The Irishman was baffled by the suggestion that Hendry would not be right behind O’Sullivan at the top of the charts.

‘Stephen Hendry almost won six in a row here [the Crucible]! No one will ever, ever do that again,’ he said. ‘And as great as the other players are, even Ronnie, Ronnie won a seven in 30 years. Stephen won seven in 10.

‘No one will dominate the game the way he played. And if he had been around with the era today, he would have actually got better.’