Silvino Francisco (3 May 1946 – 14 December 2024) was a South African professional snooker player who won the 1985 British Open.
Snooker career Francisco came from a snooker-playing family. His brother Manuel and nephew Peter both played at a high level, Manuel having been a runner-up in the World Amateur Billiards Championship on several occasions, and Peter having risen to the world ranking of number 14.
Francisco won the 1985 British Open, beating Kirk Stevens 12–9. Prior to the start of the Final match, Francisco accused Stevens of playing under the influence of drugs. Francisco was subsequently fined for the comments. The world governing body of snooker, the WPBSA, accepted that the accusation was false and it is on record that Kirk Stevens has never failed a drugs test in the history of his career.Gordon Burn, Pocket Money. However, Stevens later admitted to having an addiction to cocaine.
He was involved in another scandal after the 1989 Masters. After losing 5–1 to Terry Griffiths in the last-16, it was discovered that there had been heavy betting on that exact score. Francisco was arrested, but later released without charge.
Personal life and death Francisco suffered gambling problems towards the end of his professional career, to the extent of being declared bankrupt in 1996 due to income tax arrears.
In 1997, Francisco was arrested for smuggling cannabis and served three years in prison.
Francisco married his wife June in the early 2000s. In his later years he dedicated himself to his family, specifically his grandchildren Enola and Osiris, charity work and the snooker youth.
Francisco died on 14 December 2024, aged 78.
He remains the only African snooker player to have won a professional snooker ranking event.
Performance and rankings timeline Tournament 1979/80 1981/82 1982/83 1983/84 1984/85 1985/86 1986/87 1987/88 1988/89 1989/90 1990/91 1991/92 1992/93 1993/94 1994/95 1995/96 1996/97 RankingHe was an amateur.New players on the Main Tour do not have a ranking.1721171312101223262428335781125 Ranking tournaments Asian ClassicThe event was also called the Dubai Masters (1988/1989), Dubai Classic (1989/90–1994/1995) and Thailand Classic (1995/1996).Tournament Not HeldNR1R3R2R2RLQLQLQLQ Grand PrixThe event was also called the Professional Players Tournament (1982/83–1983/1984).Not HeldA3R3RQFSF2R1R1R2R3R1RLQLQ1RLQ UK ChampionshipNon-Ranking Event1R3R2R3R2R2R3R1R1R1RLQLQLQ German OpenTournament Not HeldLQA Welsh OpenTournament Not Held2R2RLQ1RLQLQ International OpenThe event was also called the Goya Matchroom Trophy (1985/1986)NHNRAQFSF1RQF3R2R2RNot Held3R1R1RLQLQ European OpenTournament Not Held1R2R1R1R1RLQLQLQLQ Thailand OpenThe event was also called the Thailand Masters (1983/1984–1986/1987 & 1991/1992) and the Asian Open (1989/1990–1992/1993)Not HeldNon-Ranking EventNot HeldQFWD2R1RLQLQLQLQ British OpenThe event was also called the British Gold Cup (1979/1980), Yamaha Organs Trophy (1980/1981) and International Masters (1981/1982–1983/1984)Non-Ranking EventW2R2R2R1R1R2R2R2RLQLQLQLQ World ChampionshipAQF1R2R1R2R2R1R2RLQLQLQLQLQLQLQLQ Non-ranking tournaments Scottish MastersNHAAAASFAANHAAAAAAAA The MastersAAAAA1RQF1R1RALQLQLQLQWDAA Pontins ProfessionalAAAQFAAAAAAAAAAAAA Former ranking tournaments Canadian MastersTournament Not HeldNon-RankingLQTournament Not Held Hong Kong OpenThe event was also called the Australian Masters (1979/1980–1987/1988) and Australian Open (1994/1995)Non-Ranking EventNH1RTournament Not HeldNRNH ClassicNon-Ranking2R1R1RQF3R3RSF1R2RTournament Not Held Strachan OpenTournament Not Held1RMRNRNot Held Former non-ranking tournaments Limosin InternationalSFTournament Not Held Pontins Brean SandsNot HeldFTournament Not Held Pot BlackAAAQF1RATournament Not HeldAAANot Held Australian MastersThe event was also called the Hong Kong Open (1989/1990) and Australian Open (1994/1995)AAAAA1RAANHATournament Not HeldAANH SFTournament Not HeldWAATournament Not Held Shoot-OutTournament Not Held1RTournament Not Held World MastersTournament Not Held2RTournament Not Held World Seniors ChampionshipTournament Not HeldQFTournament Not Held
Performance Table LegendLQ 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-finalsSF lost in the semi-finalsF lost in the finalW won the tournamentDNQ did not qualify for the tournamentA did not participate in the tournamentWD 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 Ranking finals: 1 (1 title)
Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final ScoreWinner 1. 1985 British Open Kirk Stevens 12–9
Non-ranking finals: 3 (1 title)
Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final ScoreRunner-up 1. 1978 South African Professional Championship Perrie Mans 5–9Runner-up 2. 1983 Pontins Brean Sands Tony Meo 7–9Winner 1. 1986 South African Professional Championship François Ellis 9–1
Team finals: 1 OutcomeNo.YearChampionshipTeam/partnerOpponent(s) in the finalScoreRunner-up 1. 1989 World Cup Rest of the World
Amateur finals: 4 (4 titles) OutcomeNo.YearChampionshipOpponent in the finalScoreWinner 1. 1968 South African Amateur Championship Winner 2. 1969 South African Amateur Championship (2) Winner 3. 1974 South African Amateur Championship (3) Mike Hines 7–0Winner 4. 1977 South African Amateur Championship (4) Ayoob Majiet
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