World ranking: 20
Last five seasons: 20-19-23-54-87
Date of birth: 29-12-71
Lives: Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan
Turned professional: 1992
Ranking tournament victories: 1 - Grand Prix 1997
Last season's prize money: £41,735
Career prize money (up to start of 2001-2002 season): £297,265
Highest tournament break: 145 - Liverpool Victoria UK Championship 1999

Dominic Dale caused a major upset by winning the 1997 Grand Prix in Bournemouth, defeating John Higgins 9-6 in the final.

Ranked 54th in the world at the time and a 100-1 outsider with the bookmakers, Dale beat Karl Burrows 5-1, Andy Hicks 5-3, Steve Davis 5-2, Dave Harold 5-4, Chris Small 5-2 and Jimmy White 6-2 on his way to claiming the £60,000 first prize.

In so doing, he became only the fifth Welshman to win a world ranking title and zoomed 31 places up the rankings.

The 1998-99 season proved a major disappointment in contrast as he failed to progress further than the last 32 of a ranking event but the man with a taste for colourful suits - and even more colourful shirts - returned to form during the 1999-2000 campaign.

He reached the semi-finals of the Thailand Masters, where he went out 5-1 to eventual winner Mark Williams, and the quarter-finals of the Embassy World Championship.

A 10-8 victory over Patrick Wallace secured his third trip to the Crucible where he then beat Peter Ebdon 10-6 and David Gray 13-1 before going down 13-9 to Joe Swail.

Dale was bitterly disappointed not to qualify for the Crucible in 2001 when he lost 10-9 to Mark Davis in the final qualifying round. With only five victories in eight ranking events, his hopes of a top 16 place were also dented.

A member of Wales' Nations Cup-winning side in 1999, he helped them reach the final again in 2000 when they were beaten by England.