Introduction
Marcus Willoughby Owen (4 April 1935 – December 1987) was a Welsh professional snooker player.
Career
Before turning professional, Owen won the English Under-16 Championship in 1949, and reached the final in 1950. Owen also won the English Amateur Championship on four occasions in 1958, 1959, 1967 and 1973
Owen followed his brother Gary into professional snooker in 1973, entering the 1974 World Championship. As an unknown quantity, Marcus was not expected to progress far; however, he beat Dennis Taylor and Maurice Parkin to set up a last-16 meeting with Gary. Gary held Marcus to 5–5 at one point, but could not prevent him from pulling away to reach the quarter-final with a 15–8 victory. There, Marcus faced Ray Reardon, but having recovered from 3–9 to 7–9, was eventually defeated 11–15.
Owen next reached a quarter-final at the 1982 Welsh Professional Championship, which was itself an eight-man event. He lost his first match 0–6 to Cliff Wilson.
Owen had no further success in the professional game, his last match being a 0–6 loss to Tony Chappel in the first round of the 1985 edition of the Welsh Professional Championship; having held 17th place in the inaugural world rankings in 1976, he had not occupied a position on the list since 1980.
Personal life
Owen died in hospital in December 1987, under 'tragic circumstances'. His older brother Gary was also a professional snooker player.
Performance and rankings timeline
| Tournament | 1973/74 | 1974/75 | 1975/76 | 1976/77 | 1977/78 | 1981/82 | 1982/83 | 1983/84 | 1984/85 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ranking | No ranking system | 17 | 23 | UR | UR | UR | UR | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ranking tournaments | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Professional Players Tournament | Tournament Not Held | LQ | A | A | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International Open | Tournament Not Held | NR | LQ | A | A | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Championship | QF | A | LQ | A | A | A | LQ | A | A | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Non-ranking tournaments | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Welsh Professional Championship | Not Held | A | NH | QF | QF | QF | 1R | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Former non-ranking tournaments | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Norwich Union Open | 1R | 1R | Not Held | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Watney Open | NH | WD | Not Held | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International Open | Tournament Not Held | LQ | Ranking | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UK Championship | Tournament Not Held | A | A | LQ | A | R | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Performance Table Legend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LQ | lost in the qualifying draw | #R | lost in the early rounds of the tournament (WR = Wildcard round, RR = Round robin) |
QF | lost in the quarter-finals |
| SF | lost in the semi-finals | F | lost in the final | W | won the tournament |
| DNQ | did not qualify for the tournament | A | did not participate in the tournament | WD | withdrew from the tournament |
| NH / Not Held | means an event was not held. | |||
| NR / Non-Ranking Event | means an event is/was no longer a ranking event. | |||
| R / Ranking Event | means an event is/was a ranking event. | |||
Career finals
Amateur finals: 4 (3 titles, 1 runner-up)
| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | 1. | 1958 | English Amateur Championship | Jack Fitzmaurice | 11–8 |
| Winner | 2. | 1959 | English Amateur Championship | Allan Barnett | 11–5 |
| Runner-up | 1. | 1966 | English Amateur Championship | John Spencer | 5–6 |
| Winner | 3. | 1967 | English Amateur Championship | Sid Hood | 11–4 |
| Winner | 4. | 1973 | English Amateur Championship | Ray Edmonds | 11–6 |