Tony Knowles was maybe snooker’s greatest title within the early Eighties.
The Lancastrian was a particular expertise, turning into an in a single day sensation in 1982 after annihilating Steve Davis 10-1 within the first spherical of the World Snooker Championship. He went on to succeed in three World Championship semi-finals, cementing his place as snooker’s poster boy.
Knowles lapped up the fortune and fame that got here along with his stardom, being flooded with letters of appreciation from feminine admirers. And as he climbed as much as the world no.2 spot, he earned an unmistakable repute as a playboy.
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Now 68 and lengthy retired, Knowles is probably greatest remembered for his antics away from the desk. Most infamously, the extraordinarily assured star controversially agreed to a sequence of steamy tabloid exclusives forward of the 1984 World Snooker Championship.
He offered his jaw-dropping tales to The Sun, showing in three separate articles through which he boasted about his sexual adventures. One headline noticed Knowles discuss with himself as “the hottest pot in snooker”.
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(Image: Mirrorpix)
He even posed for a racy picture the place he stared longingly on the digicam whereas caressing a unadorned girl on a snooker desk. Alongside his X-rated revelations, he was additionally dismissive of most of the event’s different rivals.
The Bolton man obtained a hefty £25,000 from the newspaper – no small sum on the time. But his tell-all story landed him in scorching water as he was fined £5,000 by the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) for bringing the sport into disrepute.
(Image: PA)
Knowles’ antics have been of little shock, nevertheless. Gareth McGinley, writer of the biographical ebook ‘Tony Knowles – Heart Breaks’, revealed the snooker sensation reportedly had three separate lovers in the audience at his maiden professional win.
There were also allegations that he enjoyed wearing women’s underwear, whereas different headlines about him learn “What a break! Three birds in my bed” and “I sign their sexy bits”. Knowles additionally notoriously visited Josephine’s nightclub in Sheffield, open from 1976 to 2003, throughout the world championship fortnight.
Unsurprisingly, his antics away from the sport would have a detrimental impression on his efficiency. He spectacularly crashed out of the event with a 7-10 defeat to John Parrott within the first spherical.