Peter Lines has a long career in the world of snooker. He reached the final of the English Amateur Championship in 1999, and made it to the quarterfinals of China Open in 1999. When he became a professional, 1991 was the year he began to enjoy success on professional circuit. In the early 1990s, he made the quarter-finals of the Asian Open and Strachan Open. 1998 was the first year he reached the televised stages at the World Championship.
Although his career is generally unremarkable in nature, Lines' performance during the last few decades of his career was more than admirable. He reached the top 64 of Order of Merit for the first time in his professional career. He even reached the quarter-finals of an event ranking him. His season's highlight was his run at German Masters. He made it to the semi-finals but came so close to winning.
After a promising start in his 2011/12 year, he found himself under immense pressure. As the season progressed he felt more pressure and began losing matches in his final four ranking events. At the end of the year, he was ranked just 57th on the European Tour. He was blessed with a second year of tour and qualified for the World Championship qualifiers.
He went on to play in two other major tournaments, defeating Ian McCulloch and Joe Perry. He was also qualified for the Players Tour Championships (PTC), but his performance was not sufficient to keep him in main tour.
In 2010, he won a UK Championship. But, he was again demoted to the PTC after the 2015/16 year. As a result, he has continued to take part in amateur tournaments.
The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) has ruled that Lines' behaviour during a match in China was not appropriate. The World Snooker Tour was notified and launched an investigation into the matter. There was a formal complaint filed by Xiao Guodong and the matter is expected to be referred directly to the World Snooker Tribunal.
The case was heard by the WPBSA on December 16th. Lines was fined for his offence. The fine had an interesting side: Lines was found guilty for violating two rules regarding player conduct.
The first rule required him to replace the white ball following a foul and miss. It is not uncommon for professional players to temporarily hang up their cues in this situation. Lines' opponent, Brendan Moore, clashed with him over this issue. Both Lines and Brendan Moore claimed Lines was wrong, but Lines said he was right.
The World Snooker Tour, on the other hand, stated that Lines used "swear words" and intimidation during the match. Moreover, Lines threatened to fight outside the arena.