Ronnie O'Sullivan willing to pull out of tournaments for his dog and lose bumper payday
SNOOKER champion Ronnie O'Sullivan admits his four-legged friends have brought a different perspective to his life away from the sport - and are even making him practice less.
Ronnie O’Sullivan is willing to pull out of tournaments for his dog – after admitting his life has been changed by a new addition to his family. O’Sullivan was back in action over the weekend as he breezed past Lukas Kleckers 4-0 in the first round of the Northern Ireland Open.
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The world No.1 has previously opened up on his struggles away from snooker but admits a new arrival to his household has changed his perspective on life. And the 46-year-old didn’t even practice ahead of the tournament in Northern Ireland as his four-legged friends took his attention.
He told Eurosport: “They are the best thing. They have restored my faith in life. They give you so much love. I just like spending all day at home with him. I’d rather spend all day with him rather than any other person on the planet.
“If I had to pull out of any tournament to make sure he’s all right, I would. It changed me a lot. He is just an amazing little thing.”
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O’Sullivan has three children but has previously insisted he would not want them to follow in his footsteps and become snooker players. The seven-time world champion said: "If they decide to play snooker they’re on their own, I’m not supporting that.
"It’s a bad sport, it can cause you a lot of damage. Unless you’re Stephen Hendry, Steve Davis, John Higgins, Mark Williams, me, Judd Trump, [Mark] Selby, [Neil] Robertson… forget it. The others, it’s just a waste of a life."
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O’Sullivan’s victory over Kleckers set up a clash with David Grace in Northern Ireland on Wednesday, with the snooker star admitting he did not have to get out of second gear to secure victory.
“He was not at the races,” O’Sullivan said. “I just had to pot a few balls. I did not do anything special, just plodded away.”
Mark Allen claimed victory in the competition in 2021 after Judd Trump vacated the title, while the likes of Mark Selby and John Higgins will also be in contention in Belfast this month.
