Snooker Incident | John Higgins vs Gary Wilson | 2021 Championship League - Group 2

Mark Selby, Shaun Murphy and Gary Wilson have recently opened up about a sense of personal despair blighting their mental health.

Gary has been the most affected. His 3-year steady success rate of 61% of matches won has dropped to 37% this season. He suspected what was happening but was in denial for a while. Finally, he acknowledged having depression and decided to fight it after noticing his weight loss: from 10 stones to 9 stones 2.

The sanitary crisis, confinement, and other new 'normalities' clearly play a role in recent depression among snooker players.

"When you are in your pomp and getting victories, trophies and are at number one, you don't mind taking the snooker depression because you think I'm getting rewarded for it.
But if you are putting that effort in and aren't getting anything back, getting beaten in the first, second and third rounds all the time, and it's still leaving you feeling like s***, it's a lot harder to take and handle."", commented Ronnie O'Sullivan.

The statistics shown in the video correspond to the date of the match.

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The controversial 2010 Higgins meeting: Information for people who had no opportunity to investigate further:

1. Mazher Mahmood, editor of the newspaper and 'gangster' in the video, was known for living performing similar traps (actors and other sports stars). In October 2016, he was jailed for a year for tampering with evidence involving a singer (a victim of his traps).

2. The original video lasted 11 minutes, but they only showed 4 min.
The video has too many cuts, answers without questions and vice versa. Moreover, they didn't keep the dialogue structure despite being professional journalists who own the raw footage. They could have excluded the moments of fear and intimidation; perhaps they brought up the topic of foreign properties, making us believe that the idea was Higgins' initiative.

3. Ian Mill KC* headed a second independent investigation―the first was led by David Douglas, former detective chief at Scotland Yard.―He had access to all original videos and audio tapes (as Douglas had). He textually concluded: "I have no doubt that the Association was right to conclude that this account by Mr Higgins was a truthful one."
His conclusion on Pat Mooney**: "he committed the most egregious betrayals of trust ".

Audiotapes revealed that Pat Mooney was aware of the 'bribery'. He told Higgins they were wealthy sponsors, and just before the meeting, he asked him to play along if the subject of match-fixing came up.

*Ian Mill KC is considered an authority in sports bribery cases in Formula 1, Football Premier League and Tennis ATP, among others. He headed the recent investigation on the ten Chinese snooker players.

**Pat Mooney, Higgins' manager in the video, was a member of the WPBSA board at that time.

- Meeting: Friday, 30 April 2010.
- Publishing: Sunday, 2 May 2010, 'coincidentally' during the final at the Crucible.
- John Higgins at the time: 34 years old, married, two children, World N°1, reigning world champion, famous and millionaire (£5 million only in prize money―£450,000 in 2009).

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Cesar Muroya created a unique editing technique to extract the essence of the game without losing the drama involved. Contextual information is also an innovation appreciated by viewers.

This format is not intended to substitute the full version but to make Snooker more accessible to new fans. The fluency and atmosphere of the game stay in a shorter-length video, allowing even experienced fans to enjoy Snooker at any time.

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[michael]

Higgins was incredibly sportsmanlike there not complaining about it or even drawing attention to it. Classy

[e.e]

Almost 2 years later, not only has Gary Wilson found a way back to good health, but he has just won his first ranking event. Good on him and hope he retains control over his mind

[homersimpson]

Huge lack of empathy and compassion by the commentators. Not every incident is this huge talking point to make a big deal out of. The players are human as well

[julianalstin]

I think the class of John Higgins showed through here. Less said about the commentary the better but they probably didn't appreciate the whole situation.

[dazuk]

Unless you have experienced depression/mental health issues you won't really get it. I have nothing but empathy for Gary watching that. I hope he is coping better now...peace to ya.

[alantmac]

Depression is not a choice.

As far as Gary's actions, to be honest, no big deal. Gary is a good bloke going through the thing that depression can do to you, to anyone, and John Higgins is a gentleman.

[lulezimaliaj]

It's really painful to hear Gary say " I'm absolutely gone"

[jakeloranger]

I think this is a good example of how we never really know what's going on inside a person. The commentators obviously had no clue about Gary Wilson's state of mind. I commend the referee for having the intuitive sense that this was an anomaly for Gary. Perhaps because the ref was on the floor close to the players, he was able to pick up certain non-verbal clues and thus was better informed to make his decision. Whatever the reason, I applaud his judgment.

The commentators did harp on a bit too much. But they are paid to provide commentary and so it is natural they would use the incident as something to talk about. And they don't have the luxury of taking the time to consider all the complexities of human behaviour.

I really appreciate this video as it reveals the more unpleasant realities for the pros under the pandemic conditions. I hadn't realized just how isolated the players are during a tournament. These are difficult times for everyone and they too are dealing with extraordinary circumstances.

Finally, as someone who has lived with depression on and off for most of my life, I am thankful that more people are talking about mental health issues and thus slowly eroding the social stigma associated with emotional and mental disorders. It is important for people to learn that it's not a matter of lack of will-power or courage to pull one out of depression. In fact, living with depression and still showing up for work despite how hard it is just to take a shower or brush one's teeth takes an enormous amount of courage. I had to learn that myself and stop calling myself a coward because I found everything so hard to do.

Thank you so very much for putting out this video.

[peterscott]

I have been a Gary Wilson fan since the first time I watched home escape impossible snookers. Truly wish him the best.

[andrewnielsen]

Sad to see that. No wonder many player take a "rest" at times. Hopefully Gary will come out of his problems and enjoy life again.

[Maffchops]

Imagine being so good at this game that you're professional, you can pot just about anything you like, you can put the ball wherever you want and you can basically play at a level that virtually no one in the world can reach, yet when it matters to you it seems that you can't get it right or you miss a ball - you don't get a chance to do it over and in some cases the whole world is watching and laughing at you for it. It must tear you apart knowing that you're quality but not being able to do yourself justice and the consequences of that must be overwhelming and therefore spills out of snooker and into everyday life. Remember - for these guys, not winning matches can be the difference between a comfortable lifestyle and food on the table.

We need to get over the stigma of viewing those who admit to mental health problems as "weak" or "not as strong" as others. Prime example - Mark Selby, someone who everyone agrees is one of the toughest mentally has contemplated suicide. The point being that someone can put on a tough act and do things that look like they're doing great, but deep down even they are not only fallible, they are maybe not all as they seem, maybe they are struggling even more than someone who is more open about it.

As someone who's fought with depression, admitting you have some form of mental health problem and that you need help is the single most powerful thing you can do. The first step to overcoming any problem is accepting and acknowledging that an issue exists and looking to get something done about it, and I sincerely hope that not just Gary, but anyone who is struggling with their mental health knows that they are not alone and that they keep fighting. There is a purpose for everyone, there will always be someone out there that cares about you and things do get better.

[EannaButler]

Just to echo the sentiments of the comments section here.. And also to recognize Paul Collier as what I regard as the best ref in snooker.
And to Dominic, don't judge people or events thru the lens of outrage.
Thank you very much for picking up on this Cesar, treating it sensitively, and giving it the Cesar "what the rules *actually* say" treatment. You're a good guy...

[EynkiYoom]

These guys are titans.
100% respect to each and every one of them.
From small to huge..
From bottom to head..
We all salute you guys.

[gamevids]

He's far from the only one who's struggled with depression, anger or worse over the past year, it's been a tough time for many. Good on the referee and Higgins for dealing with the incident professionally and indeed sympathetically, and I hope Gary Wilson makes a full recovery.

[江江江江-ko]

Great efforts of the editing and all the subtitles, explaining those rules and letting knowing several players’ similar situations! Really objective and sympathetic!

[goofe.washington]

Credit to whoever posted this. Depression is serious....and talking about it and seeking help are obviously huge. Good thoughts your way, Gary Wilson - and to anyone else who suffers with this stuff.

[sltga]

Depression's not fun at all. Been there, done that. Never want to go back into it.
Best way to overcome depression for me was to talk about it.
Hopefully Gary Wilson comes out of it. He's seems like a nice and humble guy.

[moce]

I felt in depression when I was 13-14 yo, it was a very deep hole in my mind where I was not capable to get out of, I actually made it after years of work, but surely wouldn't have been able to do it if it wasn't for my parents who were behind my back all the time and my friends who tried to involve me more on making music, those 2 facts were what made me have something to get back on track, being a little bit happier everyday, step by step, and eventually after like 3-4 years I was stable again, now I'm turning 20 in 4 months and doing very very good.
Depression is HORRIBLE, and there's a point where you're feeling so bad not even compliments or having someone to talk is enough, once you're alone again you're at the bottom again. If you think you're depressed please look for a professional to help you get out of that, and I hope Wilson gets the help he needs as well.
This video is excellent to bring this topic because of how often we get to talk to people who are in this mind-state, but don't even realize, or even if they talk us about how sad they are we don't actually perceive it as bad as it is. Great job Cesar, como siempre!

[TeddyBears.]

I'm full of admiration for the lads who have spoken publicly about depression, as a sufferer myself, I know its really hard to talk about, but we have to, so total respect to you lads, 👍

[michaelgerry]

Dominic dale should be fined for talking crap