‘My eyes have gone.. I’m guessing’ – Three-time snooker world champion makes worrying health admission ahead of Crucible
SNOOKER star Mark Williams has made a worrying health admission by declaring “my eyes have gone.”
The three-time world champion revealed he is struggling to see the table after his 6-2 Players Championship win over Ding Junhui.
Williams became emotional as he opened up over his failing eyesight.
The star admits the issue is affecting his game as he is no longer able to properly identify different-coloured balls.
And Williams is now considering undergoing surgery to fix the problem.
But first he will take on Kyren Wilson in the second round of the Players Championship in Telford.
Williams said: “My eyes have gone. In the last six months they have deteriorated rapidly.
“Every single shot is blurry to me now, whether it is a straight black off the spot or an easy blue. I’m guessing.
“I’ll have to look into it after the World Championship and see if I can get something done. How I won that game I don’t know. The lights magnify it a lot more. I can’t see anything.”
Williams continued: “It is a bit concerning but I have got to get one with it at the minute.
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“I will see what happens after the Worlds. The big scoreboard at the end of the table, I can’t even see it, I can’t make it out.
“It is all a blur and is getting worse by the month, so it is a good win for me considering I am half blind.
“It’s mad. It has got to a stage if anything’s close I have no idea if they go, so I just go for them.
“It is hard enough playing anyway, but when you are playing safeties and long pots, you are guessing.
“I can’t expect to make breaks if I can’t see the pockets. I have got to try my best and will look into it more after the Worlds.
“I will see about laser, or something that can be done. It’s maybe the time to do it now.”
List of all-time Snooker World Champions
BELOW is a list of snooker World Champions by year.
The record is for the modern era, widely considered as dating from the 1968-69 season, when the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) took control of the sport.
The first World Championships ran from 1927 – with a break from 1941-45 because of World War II and 1958-63 because of a dispute in the sport.
Joe Davis (15), Fred Davis and John Pulman (both 8) were the most successful players during that period.
Stephen Hendry and Ronnie O’Sullivan share the record for the most titles in the modern era, with seven each.
- 1969 – John Spencer
- 1970 – Ray Reardon
- 1971 – John Spencer
- 1972 – Alex Higgins
- 1973 – Ray Reardon (2)
- 1974 – Ray Reardon (3)
- 1975 – Ray Reardon (4)
- 1976 – Ray Reardon (5)
- 1977 – John Spencer (2)
- 1978 – Ray Reardon (6)
- 1979 – Terry Griffiths
- 1980 – Cliff Thorburn
- 1981 – Steve Davis
- 1982 – Alex Higgins (2)
- 1983 – Steve Davis (2)
- 1984 – Steve Davis (3)
- 1985 – Dennis Taylor
- 1986 – Joe Johnson
- 1987 – Steve Davis (4)
- 1988 – Steve Davis (5)
- 1989 – Steve Davis (6)
- 1990 – Stephen Hendry
- 1991 – John Parrott
- 1992 – Stephen Hendry (2)
- 1993 – Stephen Hendry (3)
- 1994 – Stephen Hendry (4)
- 1995 – Stephen Hendry (5)
- 1996 – Stephen Hendry (6)
- 1997 – Ken Doherty
- 1998 – John Higgins
- 1999 – Stephen Hendry (7)
- 2000 – Mark Williams
- 2001 – Ronnie O’Sullivan
- 2002 – Peter Ebdon
- 2003 – Mark Williams (2)
- 2004 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (2)
- 2005 – Shaun Murphy
- 2006 – Graeme Dott
- 2007 – John Higgins (2)
- 2008 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (3)
- 2009 – John Higgins (3)
- 2010 – Neil Robertson
- 2011 – John Higgins (4)
- 2012 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (4)
- 2013 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (5)
- 2014 – Mark Selby
- 2015 – Stuart Bingham
- 2016 – Mark Selby (2)
- 2017 – Mark Selby (3)
- 2018 – Mark Williams (3)
- 2019 – Judd Trump
- 2020 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (6)
- 2021 – Mark Selby (4)
- 2022 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (7)
- 2023 – Luca Brecel
- 2024 – Kyren Wilson
Most World Titles (modern era)
- 7 – Stephen Hendry, Ronnie O’Sullivan
- 6 – Ray Reardon, Steve Davis
- 4 – John Higgins, Mark Selby
- 3 – John Spencer, Mark Williams
- 2 – Alex Higgins