David Grace admits he had ‘such a bad last season’ on the table, but it is hardly surprising given the circumstances he was playing under.
The world number 65 is fighting for his place on tour this campaign and has picked up some good wins so far over the likes of Jack Lisowski and Marco Fu.
He is up against it, though, after struggling for results last season over a few months that were mired in tragedy.
A good friend passed away in August and then David lost his mother in February, with snooker far from the forefront of his mind.
‘Obviously it is hard. It was such a weird set of circumstances. I’ve been so lucky to have had my parents and not lose anyone really,’ Grace told Metro. ‘Then it was August last year when the table-fitter here [at the Northern Snooker Centre], Gary Hood, had a heart attack and died, that was a huge shock and the start of it all.
‘I’d known him for 20-odd years, we were good mates and he died suddenly, he was only 60. It was just a stark reminder of how fragile life is. He was fit as a fiddle obviously lumping snooker slates around so if it can happen to him then it can happen to anyone. It was a kick in the teeth that life is so…crap. Just a shocking turn of events.
‘He used to do so much work because we’ve got 50-odd tables, we were thinking how on earth are we going to replace him? Obviously that’s not the priority at all but that was all part of it.
‘Gary was the first thing that happened then loads of other horrible things for the next six months or so. It was absolutely relentless. It’s just life, everybody goes through it at some point, but you couldn’t make up the things that were happening for about six months.
‘It’s only natural, you’re human, it draws your attention away. It’s not important, a game of snooker, at the end of the day. And to be honest, when I got to playing matches it was a nice little bit of escapism because that’s when I knew what I was doing and I was on autopilot with playing.’
Clearly losing a parent is devastating, not just for David but the rest of the family, but he is pleased that they are staying close together after the terrible time.
‘It’s just heartbreaking to see my dad going through it,’ he said. ‘He did absolutely amazing in looking after my mum in the time she was ill and it’s just weird going round the house now and it’s just him.
‘He’s doing amazing though, he’s focusing his energy on his grandkids. My sister’s got five girls so that keeps him busy!’
While not to be compared to the loss of a parent or friend, the relentless nature of the bad news earlier this year saw Grace also lose his beloved cat Asha.
‘That was about two weeks after my mum passed!’ Grace said. ‘I was in China and my wife had to tell me she’d had to take her to the vets and get her put to sleep. It was absolutely awful.
‘It is just life, everyone goes through it. You just don’t expect so many things to happen in such a short space of time.’
Grace is back on the baize next week at the Northern Ireland Open as he fights to keep his place on tour, facing world champion Kyren Wilson in his opener in Belfast on Tuesday and it will be a family affair for him on his trip across the Irish Sea.
‘My dad’s going to come and my eldest niece as well, because she wants to visit the Titanic museum and we’re going to take the coastal route, see Giant’s Causeway and some of the Game of Thrones sites. It’s nice we can all do it together.’
One of Grace’s two ranking semi-finals came in the Northern Ireland Open, although it was during the pandemic so it was held in Milton Keynes.
Asked whether he can still draw on that next week in Belfast, he said: ‘Because it’s a positive thing then yeah, I count it!
‘When I beat Ronnie [O’Sullivan] the other year in Belfast I’d never won a frame never mind a match in the venue! I’d never even won a frame in four or five visits. I’d lost 4-0 and 4-0 in the back room, [Dave] Gilbert beat me 4-0 the year before, then I beat Ronnie.
‘I need a really good run at some point. Winning matches here and there like I am doing is paying the bills but it’s not going to keep me on tour. I need a semi or something, probably to boost me up. I’ll just keep going.’
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