after losing his first-round match to Steve James, he punched tournament official Colin Randle in the stomach before the start of a press conference at which he announced his retirement
I saw him about 15 years ago leading out of a cab on Kensington High Street, giving the "come here" gesture to two stunning looking young women. They got in his cab.
I've seen him play at many snooker halls down through the years, and lots of my friends who were serious players tried to take him down. They never could. I saw him play Andy Townsend once in Birmingham, and that was as close as you will get to a non snooker pro beating him, but Alex turned on the afterburners for the last few reds and potted all the colors bar the black, which he didn't need. Awesome. We had a lot of professional snooker players hanging around the places I used to frequent, but none were like the Hurricane. None. posted by Nick Verstayne at 3:21 PM on July 24, 2010 [2 favorites]
Brilliant. At a difficult thing. posted by tawny at 4:24 PM on July 24, 2010
When I was a kid I was subjected to many hours of snooker on TV courtesy of my obsessed father. Higgins was the only player I had any interest because he seemed to be the only one that ever took any chances. Watching Steve Davis was like watching paint dry.
And I'll never forget that time he tried to frighten a very young Hendry by telling him offstage during the break that he was the devil. Priceless...
Oh! And the headbutting the official thing!
RIP Alex posted by Monkeymoo at 5:17 PM on July 24, 2010
He was always riveting to watch. RIP. posted by unSane at 7:33 PM on July 24, 2010
His breathtaking pace and adventurousness have been an inspiration to everyone who plays sports involving a cue stick. Well played sir.
"The only true genius snooker ever had" - Steve Davis
Back in the day if I flicked on the tv and it was snooker and it was Higgins playing I'd definitely keep watching. Didn't do that for many other players.
Heard a story, a friend of a friend one and almost certainly apocryphal but seemed true to the legend, of him turning up at a snooker club drunk, as it was closing up and shoving a great wad of notes into the owner's hands so that him and his cronies could play after hours. posted by fearfulsymmetry at 3:26 AM on July 25, 2010
What's going on in the Hurricane's head? Why such rage? Yes, we've read about it over the years, all the matches and relationships that ended in violence, but it's shocking to see it first-hand. Is it because he's lost so much? Because he's in so much pain? Or is the simple truth that Alex Higgins has spent a lifetime hitting out against anybody and everybody, because he knows no other way?
RIP
posted by inturnaround at 1:27 PM on July 24, 2010 [1 favorite]