He might be remembered as much for peroxide-blonde hairstyles and serenading snooker fans with Frank Sinatra songs, but Dominic Dale has been potting balls for a living for as long as Ronnie O’Sullivan and the other ‘Class of 92’ legends.
But the 53-year-old Welshman – nicknamed ‘The Spaceman’ – says he has played his final frame as a professional having missed out on a place at the 2025 World Championship, which starts in Sheffield on Saturday.
It brings to an end a colourful career that began in 1992 – the same year seven-time world champion O’Sullivan broke through. It was also the year that Dale’s fellow Welshman Mark Williams joined the professional ranks, alongside Scotland’s John Higgins.
“I don’t have that killer instinct any more – it’s the right time to retire,” said Dale, who was beaten by another Welsh player, Daniel Wells, in the third round of qualifying for the Crucible.
“I do get a lot of aches and pains in my shoulders – I can’t do an hour’s practice without having a sharp pain in my bridge arm shoulder.
“And I get stresses in my finger joints as well. If I wanted to be competitive, and put the time in, I’d be really struggling to do so.
“It’s a combination of that and wanting to just carry on as a commentator, and be retired for 300-odd days of the year.”
Losing to Wells in a qualifier at Sheffield’s English Institute of Sport, with only around 20 people watching, did not quite constitute going out in a ‘baize of glory’, as Dale was hoping to make an 11th and final appearance at snooker’s top event.
But Dale, who said he decided at the start of the season he had “had enough” and would retire this year, has not entirely missed out on a Crucible farewell as he will be playing there next month in the World Seniors Championship.
For the moment, he is happy to hang up his cue and reflect on a professional career that included two ranking event titles – the 1997 Grand Prix and the 2007 Shanghai Masters.
It is far fewer than his 1992 contemporaries have amassed – O’Sullivan is the ranking event record holder with 41, while Higgins has won 33 and Williams 26.
“I’ve grown up and played with these guys [the Class of 92] and seen them develop as players – I used to practise with John Higgins,” said Dale.
“Ronnie was so popular, even in ’92. I remember a match he played with Jimmy White… the governing body were selling tickets because there was only space for something like 30 spectators. Everyone wanted to see this new kid. He won 5-1.
“To see these players come through and achieve what they have is amazing.”
Dale’s trophy haul might be relatively modest, but he says he is proud, and “a little surprised”, at what he has achieved over his 33-year pro career, having been born in England before moving to west Wales at the age of 10.
“I suppose any sportsperson would want to have a glittering career like those players have,” said Dale, who also plans to spend more time walking and running near his Cotswolds home and indulging an interest in antique clock horology.
“I have left my mark on the game, but I’m a little surprised I’ve won two majors because I know that some other players who haven’t done a great deal in the game are better players than me. They’d probably hammer me on the practice table.
“Some people just aren’t cut out to play in major finals. You need a lot of things in your make-up to be a professional sports person. You’ve got to like playing in front of a big audience on television, being the centre of attention.”
As one of the sport’s extroverts, Dale says he liked being “the centre of attention” and entertaining crowds, not just with his snooker skills but his vocal talents, too.
Never more so than in 2014, when he serenaded spectators with a rendition of Frank Sinatra’s My Way after winning the final of the Snooker Shootout.
“I was asked to do it,” he said. “The TV presenter at the time said ‘If you win this thing, will you sing?’ and I said ‘Yes, of course’.
“I was being interviewed after winning it, and all of a sudden this secondary microphone appeared out of nowhere.
“Then I realised I had to sing, so I did a bit of My Way, and changed the lyrics at the end of it to suit the snooker theme.
“That tournament was tailor-made for me – all the razzmatazz that came with it.”
Dyeing his hair blonde was another way of standing out from the snooker crowd.
“The peroxide hair started when I used to hang out with the Australian player Quinten Hann,” said Dale.
“He was a very flamboyant guy, and we had similar personalities.
“I tried the peroxide thing, and found I really liked it.
“I’ve won two major tournaments with peroxide hair – the Shanghai Masters and the Shootout – so maybe I should’ve put peroxide in my hair before I played Daniel Wells [in 2025 qualifying].”
But what about the famous Spaceman nickname? To this day, Dale says he is unsure where it came from.
“Nobody really knows the answer to that,” he said.
“I heard a couple of stories that it came from the Grimsby boys [players born in the town]. But they’ve said it’s nothing to do with them.
“I also heard a story Jimmy White was asked about me on the Parkinson show.
“I’d beaten him in the semi finals of the 1997 Grand Prix, and he was asked ‘What do you think of this new kid on the block, this Dominic Dale?’ and his answer was ‘He’s a Spaceman’. That was bizarre.
“But Jimmy told me he’d never used the phrase ‘Spaceman’ in his life.
“It must’ve come from an MC who has sadly passed away now. It must’ve come from him to denote my personality. A lot of nicknames come from MCs.”
But, tongue in cheek, he said, “I hate it [the nickname]. It belies my superior intellect! It’s a bit derogatory, .unless you take it in the right spirit.
“It was always good, though, when I played Ronnie O’Sullivan – The Spaceman versus The Rocket.”
The Spaceman. Not completely out of fuel. But grounded for the time being.
