His first few years on the tour were low-key, but he reached the first semi-final of his career at Event 1 of the 1994 Strachan Challenge; there, he defeated Wayne Lloyd, John Giles, Darren Limbug, Billy Snaddon and Matt Wilson before losing 4–5 to Andy Hicks.

The following season, runs to the last 16 of the 1994 Benson & Hedges Championship, where he lost 2–5 to the rising Rod Lawler, and the quarter-final of Event 5 of the 1995 Minor Tour, where twenty-year-old John Higgins defeated him 4–0, were highlights, although Jones' prize money from these exploits amounted only to £1,575.

The highlight of this season was Jones' début appearance at the Crucible Theatre in the last 32 of the 1997 World Championship; he held John Parrott to 9–9, before losing the deciding frame by 44 points to 54.

Now an established top-64 player, Jones reached the quarter-final of the 2000 Welsh Open, defeating Jamie Burnett, Jimmy Michie and Drew Henry before losing 1–5 to Higgins, who would go on to win the tournament.

After losing 0–6 to Jimmy Robertson in the International Championship in September 2016, Jones did not play in a tournament until the 2017 Snooker Shoot-Out, five months later; he beat Sanderson Lam 80–7 in the first round - his first win in a ranking event since 2007 - but was eliminated at the last-64 stage, 27–34 by Darryl Hill.