Former Snooker World Champion Terry Griffiths Passes Away at 77 After Struggle with Dementia
THE FORMER world snooker champion Terry Griffiths has passed away at the age of 77 after a lengthy struggle with dementia, as confirmed by his family.
Griffiths triumphed through the qualifying rounds to secure the 1979 Crucible title as a qualifier, in addition to winning the Masters and the UK Championship, completing the sport’s prestigious ‘triple crown’.
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In his later years, Griffiths became a skilled coach, mentoring notable players like Stephen Hendry, Mark Williams, and Mark Allen.
Three-time world champion Williams was one of the first to honor Griffiths on social media, calling him a “mentor, coach, friend, and legend.”
Allen expressed: “What a tremendous man who helped shape my career and life both at the table and off it. Absolutely heartbroken. He wasn’t just a coach; he was family.”
Wayne, Griffiths’ son, shared on Facebook: “To our friends and snooker supporters, we are profoundly saddened to announce the news of our loss.
“Terry Griffiths OBE passed away peacefully on December 1st, following a long battle with dementia.
“He was surrounded by loved ones in his cherished home town in South Wales.
“A proud Welshman, Terry was born in Llanelli, brought pride to Llanelli, and he has now found peace there.”
“He wouldn’t have had it any other way.”
Griffiths consistently ranked at the top of the sport during the 1980s and early 1990s, reaching at least the quarter-finals of the World Championship for nine consecutive years, and made another final appearance in 1988.
He retired from competitive play after a first-round loss to Williams at the 1997 World Championship.
Griffiths was married to Annette and had two sons, Wayne, who is a snooker coach, and Darren, who is a PGA golf professional.
UNDAUNTED RESILIENCE
Known for his deliberate and methodical style, Griffiths’ career as both a player and coach shone brightly for more than four decades.
Though he was often seen as the tortoise against the hares of green baize rivals like Alex ‘Hurricane’ Higgins and Jimmy ‘Whirlwind’ White, Griffiths steered clear of controversy outside the arena.
Nonetheless, he maximized his talents and played a crucial role in ushering in a new era for snooker during the late 1970s and 1980s, rivaling his more flamboyant contemporaries.
“Even after 21 years since I stopped playing, fans still approach me for photos and autographs,” Griffiths remarked during a 2019 BBC interview.
He made history by winning the world championship on his first attempt in 1979, becoming the first qualifier ever to achieve this feat.
A year prior, he was working as an insurance agent.
People still come to me for a photograph and an autograph and I finished playing 21 years ago
Terry Griffiths
The Welshman turned professional in June 1978, and in the following April, he embarked on a transformative journey at Sheffield‘s Crucible Theatre.
Griffiths achieved 13-8 and 13-12 victories over Perrie Mans and Higgins before overcoming Eddie Charlton 19-17 in a semi-final that concluded at 1:40 am—the latest finish for any match at that time.
He then defeated future champion Dennis Taylor 24-16 in the final, securing the winner’s prize of £10,000.
“Dennis and I were good friends and had to attend the reception, but I didn’t have a car,” Griffiths recalled. “So, I asked him if I could put the trophy in his boot, and he graciously agreed.”
Afterwards, he laughed, telling me, ‘I can’t believe you asked me to put the trophy in the boot.’ But I was just asking him for a favor!”
The public resonated with Griffiths’ underdog narrative as the sport transitioned from smoky snooker halls to mainstream television and became big business.
Griffiths’ warm personality captured hearts, and his stylishly coiffed look was famously featured in Chas & Dave’s ‘Snooker Loopy,’ where he sang, ‘I’ll buy another eight hairbrushes for me barnet.’
When Judd Trump‘s hairstyle was the talk of social media nearly four decades later, the 2019 world champion quipped: “I aspire to be like Terry Griffiths. Hopefully, I can also play as slowly as him one day.”
Born on October 16, 1947, in the rugby town of Llanelli, Griffiths began playing snooker at 13 and quickly rose to prominence as a top Welsh amateur player.
I want to be like Terry Griffiths. Hopefully I can play as slow as him one day as well
Judd Trump
Outside of snooker, he started working in a mine at 15, later working as a bus conductor and a postman, before transitioning to an insurance agent.
Motivated by fellow Welshman Ray Reardon, who grabbed six world titles from 1970 to 1978, Griffiths turned professional, kicking off an era where snooker’s elite became among the most recognized figures in British sports.
Though not frequently a tournament winner, Griffiths clinched the Masters in 1980 and the UK Championship in 1982, positioning him among the 11 players who have achieved snooker’s Triple Crown.
Griffiths consistently reached the quarter-finals of the World Championship for nine consecutive years between 1984 and 1992, with a second final appearance occurring in 1988, where he lost 18-11 to Steve Davis.
Upon his retirement from professional play in 1997, Griffiths’ elegant style remained timeless.
Nevertheless, he stayed within the snooker realm as a respected commentator while establishing himself as one of the sport’s premier coaches.
World champions Hendry and Williams, alongside Ali Carter, Stephen Maguire, and Ding Junhui, were among the players he coached, and he served as the director of the South West Snooker Academy.
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