Prisoners dub Ronnie O’Sullivan ‘one of us’ and bet Mars bars on games | Other | Sport
Snooker phenomenon Ronnie O’Sullivan has revisited the chaotic scenes that unfolded in his father’s prison block when he won his maiden world title. And while ‘The Rocket’, who will be in action as the UK Championship gets underway this weekend, was banking the biggest payday of his career to date at the time, his backers in jail were wagering chunks of chocolate on his performance.
It was back in 1992 that Ronnie O’Sullivan Sr was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Bruce Bryan, serving 18 years before his release in 2010. And that meant he was behind bars for his son’s first three World Snooker Championship wins, including his breakthrough title in 2001. The victory landed Ronnie the £250,000 grand prize, but he later heard how his dad’s fellow prisoners were playing for far lesser stakes. And it forged a unique kind of connection, which O’Sullivan has said made certain prisoners feel like he was «one of them.»
During a conversation with Craig Doyle on TNT Sports’ ‘Roll the Tape: Ronnie O’Sullivan at 50’, The Rocket recounted how his father tracked his World Championship exploits from prison. O’Sullivan Sr knew his son had won the title when the other inmates started banging their cell doors, having kept up to date via the radio.
«Obviously, people that have been in prison, you hear the stories, like the inmates just create such a strong bond for each other,» said Ronnie. «With my dad being there and me playing snooker, I had such a big following from the inmates, because not only did they like my dad, it was something for them to say, ‘He’s one of us.’
«That’s what it felt like a lot of the time, going to see my dad and a lot of people in the prison service. They’re coming in and buzzing, saying ‘I won a Mars bar on your son the other day’, you’d hear a lot of stories like that. I’ve met a lot of my dad’s friends and people in the service, and you realise how much of a big moment that was for my dad and what all the inmates were going through on that night.»
O’Sullivan, 49, faced John Higgins in the 2001 World Championship final, having previously made the semis on three occasions. A fast start against the Scot proved key to his chances as he successfully held off ‘The Wizard of Wishaw’ to clinch the first of seven Crucible crowns.
He sits level with Stephen Hendry as the tournament’s most successful champion of all time, with time still left to break the title record outright. O’Sullivan, who has confirmed he’ll skip the upcoming Masters, has since had his dad in attendance to watch his most recent World Championship win in 2022, but that first triumph spent miles apart will always hold a special significance.
He continued: «When I heard my dad talk about his night and how he celebrated it, it was emotional. My dad was my biggest fan, my biggest cheerleader. He had the most confidence in me, he had confidence in me when I didn’t have that much confidence in myself. He instilled something in me that just naturally wasn’t there.
«I was a bit of an introvert, my dad was an extrovert. He would come alive in front of a crowd of people, but I would be very quiet. He gave me that confidence and belief in myself. Without all that support and belief that someone else has in me,I would never have been…maybe not got anywhere like the achievements I’ve got.»
O’Sullivan’s most recent bid for an eighth Crucible win ended at the semi-final stage earlier this year. He was soundly beaten 17-7 by eventual winner Zhao Xintong, whom he has mentored in the past.
Despite not lifting the title since 2022, The Rocket has ventured to at least the quarter-final stage in each of the last three tournaments. And there will be more than chocolate on the line as he goes in search of a ninth UK Championship crown.
