Lionel Sams was born on January 20th, 1961 in London, England. He is nicknamed ' The Lion' and made his TV debut in 1986. Sams has been a very consistent performer on the circuit and his results have seen him as a regular in the top 20 of the rankings.

He has been unable to take his performances from the circuit to the main television events. He has been woeful in recent showings including a whitewash defeat in the first round of the 2006 World Championship. If he can adapt to the cameras then Sams could cause a few upsets.