Me and the Table - My Autobiography

by Stephen Hendry

STEPHEN HENDRY became the youngest professional snooker player in 1985 aged 16 and, in 1990, he was the youngest ever snooker World Champion, at the age of 21.Widely regarded by fans and pundits alike as one of the greatest players of all time in the sport, over a 27-year career, Hendry went on to win the World Championship seven times, and was snooker's world number one for eight consecutive seasons between 1990 and 1998. Hendry retired in 2012 with a record-breaking seven World Champion titles under his belt, a record that remains to this day. He's now ready to tell his life story for the first time - from a childhood spent climbing the ranks of the sport, through the highs of the '90s and lows of the 2000s, to his life now as a sports pundit and commentator.With an insight into the world of the man behind the cue, and what made him such a top-class player, this is the definitive autobiography of the legend that is Stephen Hendry.

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, Audiobook, Autobiography, Sports

373 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 6, 2018

About the author

Stephen Gordon Hendry MBE (born 13 January 1969) is a Scottish former professional snooker player and current commentator for the BBC and ITV. He is best known for his domination of the sport in the 1990s, during which he won the World Championship seven times, a record in the modern era, and was ranked world number one for eight consecutive seasons between 1990 and 1998, and again in 2007. The all-time record holder for the number of ranking titles won (36), Hendry is widely regarded as one of the greatest snooker players ever.

Reviews

[Claudia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started playing pool around seventeen with my friends and enjoyed every minute of it, soon enough winning most of the games. Then I wanted to try snooker as well, and to my frustration, I couldn’t pot more than two balls in a row and that in a good day. As a result, I started watching snooker on TV to see how they could do it. And I became in love with the game ever since. Pool days are long gone now, but my love for snooker is here to stay.

Hendry was among the first I watched playing and I can’t put in words my awe at his skills. His aggressive style, the risks he took instead playing a safety shot, his incredible long shots made me a fan. His attitude helped as well, being so cold and emotionless when everyone else, me included, were on the brink of a heart attack. I always thought that he wears his armor tightly closed and after reading this, I guess I was right. But I would have never guessed how harsh he was on himself, which eventually led to his retirement.

His story is blunt, honest, warm on occasion, cold on others; sometimes you can feel the hurt behind the words or the arrogance of a statement; no matter, he is a man with qualities as well as flaws, who worked hard to gain his success. Even when his actions or attitude do not put him in a good light, he is honest and state his mind and I appreciate that. He does not try to gain the reader to his side; he just tells his story from his point of view.

He recalls a lot of his matches, some lost but most won. Some of them I remember like I saw them yesterday and I enjoyed every word of his telling, not for a moment bored.

And it really doesn’t matter how he is in his personal life: it’s his life and he has the right to live it as he pleases, as the rest of us. For me, he will always be the King of the Crucible, as Ronnie O'Sullivan will always be the King of Snooker for me.

And here is a sample of his brilliant skills and that in his declining years, in fact, the very tournament he retired, the 2012 World Snooker Championship. He made this maximum break in the first round and after losing in the quarters 2-13 to Stephen Maguire, he announced his retirement. If only he could've just pull himself together, maybe he would have played even today…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73Vd6...

[Sean Peters (A Good Thriller) · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's amazing that I have read this autobiography, by Stephen Hendry, who was not or never was one of my favourite players. Yes of course I could see his talent, his skills, but I found him too boring, too quite with no personality.

But with due respect his book is a powerful, honest, clear, interesting and a great behind the scenes story of a game I enjoy watching and more so playing.

In this book Stephen openly talks about his character, his personality, his shyness, his thoughts on other players, his sometimes brutal opinion on his opponents, his financial success, and from honestly about his downfall.

STEPHEN HENDRY became the youngest professional snooker player in 1985 aged 16 and, in 1990, he was the youngest ever snooker World Champion, at the age of 21.

Widely regarded by fans and pundits alike as one of the greatest players of all time in the sport, over a 27-year career, Hendry went on to win the World Championship seven times, and was snooker's world number one for eight consecutive seasons between 1990 and 1998. Hendry retired in 2012 with a record-breaking seven World Champion titles under his belt, a record that remains to this day. He's now ready to tell his life story for the first time - from a childhood spent climbing the ranks of the sport, through the highs of the '90s and lows of the 2000s, to his life now as a sports pundit and commentator.

With an insight into the world of the man behind the cue, and what made him such a top-class player, this is the definitive autobiography of the legend that is Stephen Hendry.

Which he is a legend of the game, alongside Steve Davis these two players brought snooker to the world in the 80's and 90's.

My favourites players were always the characters, like Mark Williams, John Higgins, Jimmy White, but still admiring the qualities of Steve Davis , Stephen Hendry and Ronnie O'Sullivan.

Love snooker, you will love this book. Enjoy.

[Darren Byrne · Rating 4 out of 5]

You're not going to read Stephen Hendry's autobiography for it's compelling prose or literary prowess. This is the life of a sporting legend in his own words. It's rough and ready at times, but always very warm, charming and honest.

I have followed Hendry's career since his first World Championship win in 1990. At 21, he was the youngest player ever to do this. I was not even 10 years old, but he became my idol. His cool, calm, unbreakable exterior was everything I wanted to be, and I have been with him every step of the way - from his epic heights to his painful retirement (and preceding years of decline in play).

It has been remarkable hearing the story (he narrates the audiobook himself) behind the legend - his early days as a young Scottish teen with little interest in schooling and an utter devotion to the practice table; his steady rise to greatness; his difficult fall from the top; and his candidness in how he speaks about his family, his time off the table, and his divorce.

[Sinead · Rating 4 out of 5]

I definitely have more of a likeness for him now that I’ve read the book. He always seemed so robotic when he was at his prime that I couldn’t really warm to him, but the book has made me appreciate what he did to be so successful. Having read most of the other snooker memoirs, there are very few tales of bad behaviour or funny moments. However you do appreciate how hard he worked for it. A decent read!

[Giles Burrows · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not a huge fan of snooker but I did watch it quite a lot in the Steve Davis/Stephen Hendry era so I was interested enough when this came up on an Audible special offer to give it a punt. My initial impression was not good. Hendry's delivery is quite dry. But I got used to that and instead got caught up in his story. In these kind of biographies it's fun to vicariously enjoy the upward progression of the subject to the top of their game and such was here. Stephen Hendry is quite a dour, unflashy character so there aren't any sensational reveals but nevertheless it was interesting to hear about what goes on behind the scenes in the snooker world. More interesting still, was hearing about the personal interactions with other players. I did wonder whether he was holding back since he is very respectful to everyone who features and where there is any criticism, it is very mild indeed. A lot of the book concerns itself with particular games/frames, obviously, and what I found was fun to do was after reading about them, was to then watch them on YouTube with new insight. 3.5/5

[Sam Burrell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite boring. The story goes like this, starting playing snooker, got quite good at it and so on. It’s ok. May be some would enjoy it but I don’t think it was written well enough. Preferred Ronnie’s running book

[Bustagroovy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hendry would have a wealth of gory and controversial stories but was very diplomatic in this book and obviously left them out, probably due to his BBC/ITV commentating commitments, which is fair enough. Maybe when he's finished with snooker completely we'll get the full story. Still enjoyable.

[Mark Williams · Rating 2 out of 5]

To read this book you need to either a massive fan of snooker and even bigger one of Stephen Hendry. It is not a bad book by any means, there were just times when i feel he went too much into particular shot and frames but if you knew the matches he was talking about then its a really good read.
I liked the stories about the banter he had with the other players.

[Ruth McAvinia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stephen Hendry was my hero for about 25 years, from when I was about 10 years old. Snooker is so much part of my life that I can’t remember much before I knew the rules and watched with my grandmother, and Hendry was such an extraordinary player. There are some interesting details in this book that weren’t public before, but there are definitely some big holes in the story (some of which involve people I briefly worked for) and some minor mistakes. It doesn’t tell you much about what Stephen Hendry thinks about the world, except about superficial things. By the end, I just felt very sorry for him.

[Carla Groom · Rating 4 out of 5]

This really is very good. No, really, it is. I bought the audiobook and it was a good call - Stephen narrates it himself and he has a wonderful voice for narration. Not just for snooker buffs, the psychological self-reflection of someone who has hit the greatest heights in his field and then moved into retirement are fascinating.

[Martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not too bad .Too much reading about his tournaments and scores

[Ben DT Reid · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this autobiography. It was everything that a sports autobiography should be for me. What I’ve found with other snooker ones, is then players go more in depth with the matches and talk shot by shot and it’s just not for me. Stephen He’d ru talks about the big shots, the main moments in a match and how he felt or how it effects him and so on. The book flows so perfectly well. He goes through calendar years in one single chapter, rather than detailing his entire career. It’s an easy read.

I didn’t realise how deep of a character that Hendry was. He was very much a keep yourself to yourself kind of guy. In snooker and Life. It’s helped his career, but not so much his out of the snooker room life. It’s really interesting to read about a players rise and Stephens was such a sudden and huge one, it’s hard to not be amazed by it. He literally burst into the scene just a short couple o years after playing on a kids table in his room. It’s unbelievable.

The tale end of his career is a sad one really. I love that he plays to win and not the enjoyment of the game. That’s why he retired so early. He wasn’t winning and so want enjoying the sport anymore and called it quits. That’s what winners are all about. The desire, need and sheer will to win everything they ever compete in. He’s had an unbelievable snooker career and will remain the king of the crucible for a long time yet. A brilliant read.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve followed Stephen Hendry’s snooker career from the 90s and onwards. A page turner. His betrayal of wife Mandy certainly left a sour taste in my mouth but in Hendry’s defence he did try at least to make the marriage work again after revealing he had met another woman. Perhaps he was never really cut out for being a dad considering he was so single-mindedly focused on his career. I got the feeling from reading the autobiography he was not actively involved in his kid’s lives and acted as a breadwinner first and foremost. Father-son anecdotes of Blaine and Carter are absent; he regrets not spending enough time with them. Hendy’s own childhood seemed very uneventful. He is most comfortable going on about life as a snooker player and trips to countries such as China. He got the most out of his talent with a cue with discipline and dedication but admits losing his desire to practice as he grew older and developed the yips. His manager played a key role in his success, especially in terms of the financial and motivational sides. The chapters about his snooker depression and lack of confidence in matters on and away from the table are very honest.

[Mark Andrew Roberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great look at how the most successful player ever to enter the Crucible in Sheffield started from a chance shopping trip that resulted in a small table being at his house, which lit the fire and started him off on the road to unparalleled success. Takes me back to the 90s and watching hours of snooker with my taid as a child, before family of own and commitments made that less of a possibility! If you enjoyed watching him as a winning machine, this recounts how it all came about. Was almost more interesting to read about his thoughts as he became less of a fixture in the latter stages of events, and how the yips came to eventually bring his career to a close. Also sad to read about how his marriage fizzled out after so long, but the trips to China in a new role led to personal reflection and changes on numerous levels.

[Jude Ripin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was studying in Aberdeen, Scotland when I first saw Stephen Hendry played snooker on tv. I was never his fan. This was when he was winning almost every tournament he played in and more importantly, kept beating my favourite snooker player of all time i.e. The Whirlwind Jimmy White in the World Championship finals at The Crucible :(
This is a very honest account of probably the Greatest Snooker Champion that ever played the game on how he got hooked to the game at a very very young age and achieving instant successes after that..and also how he dealt with his dwindling form which eventually led to his retirement.
A must read for all snooker fans!

[Alasdair · Rating 2 out of 5]

I write this somewhat regretfully, as a huge Hendry fan. The first snooker match that I can clearly remember was the 1992 final, when Hendry relentlessly chased down Jimmy White from 14-8 down to win 18-14, and from that point on, Hendry was my man. For a few years in the Nineties, he genuinely seemed unbeatable, at least to this teenage snooker fan, and his decline, whilst it seemed vertiginous at the time, was actually more gradual - he continued to be competitive and reach finals well into the 2000s. As a snooker player then, and currently, as a pundit, he is pretty much unimpeachable. I'm not sure what I wanted to get from this book that I didn't - perhaps more introspection and key insights from those early years when it really just was him and the table? I just don't know, but after reading this book I still cannot fathom how it it possible that a kid can go from never having played snooker to making a century break within just a couple of months without any coaching. In that sense, his story remains enigmatic.

[Lisa Billingham · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not a huge snooker fan but I did enjoy the Hendry/Davies/ O'Sullivan era and quite a few of Stephen's thoughts and experiences resonated with me. His self-doubt and depression especially. No matter what we go through in life we always have those moments that make us think we should do or be something rather than following our gut feeling. I'm glad Stephen gave up professional snooker - for his own sake. As Mandy was often quoted as saying, "if you aren't enjoying it why are you doing it?" Thank you for sharing your story. I certainly found inspiration within the pages of this book.

[Ivana Richards · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a quick, enjoyable and surprisingly well-written autobiography. However, I'd have prefer more anecdotes and less ball-by-ball analyses of snooker frames, which to be honest, got to be rather tiresome rather quickly. There's also at least one point where he gets his facts wrong - he says he played in a Snooker Shootout in the Blackpool Tower Ballroom, however it started ( and remained for several years) in the Tower's Circus Arena. Pretty difficult to confuse those venues! Recommended for snooker fans.

[Alex Richards · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn’t overly sure what to expect from this book, but upon finishing it, I wasn’t disappointed. It provides a fantastic insight to his personal and professional life, I love how he can recall certain moments of his career so accurately. I throughly enjoyed this read. Highly recommended.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this. It doesn't go into minute detail about matches which can spoil sport autobiographies, making it an easy and enjoyable read. It's not all about snooker, Stephen talks a lot about his life outside the game too. A good read for any fan of the sport.

[Matt Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great account of Stephen Hendry's career in his own words and a really good autobiography. He was one of my favourite players growing up, and it's fascinating to see what made the man tick and how he became such a dominant force on the snooker table with talent and hard work.

[Chairoplane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Meh, liked it. Riveting because I love snooker, but probably a shite book.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite interesting to understand his mentality and felt very honest but found it difficult to engage at times. The end felt very rushed.

[Chris Nicol · Rating 4 out of 5]

Legend of the game, a 90s icon and a true sporting hero of mine. Enjoyed the book, feel like I know him better.

[Marmalade · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great insight into the life and career of Scotlands greatest players.

[Paul McCormack · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book could never match the beauty of the career and it didn't

[Sean · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are a fan of snooker or Stephen Hendry. This is a must read!

[Nick Ackland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great snookee player.

[Lyle Probert · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rousing for good reads, an enjoyable, if brief, insight into one of the greatest players of all time

[Adam Depledge · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truely dedicated professional with a great story!