The new world champion John Higgins yesterday revealed that he had to cut down on the booze and partying to achieve his ambition of becoming the game's number one player.
Higgins admitted that he "never gave snooker the respect it deserved" last season after his initial spectacular entry into the sport and rise up the rankings.
Too many late nights and resulting hangovers meant his practice on the green baize suffered - or even stopped - and consequently, his form dipped significantly, although he managed to cling on to the world number two spot. But the player known as the "Wizard of Wishaw" knew that he had to sort himself out to avoid the pitfalls which engulfed controversial genius Alex Higgins.
And the results of getting his act back together were there to see on Monday evening as he overcame Ken Doherty 18-12 to win his first World Championship crown in Sheffield and replace Stephen Hendry at the head of the rankings.
Now Higgins is looking to stay on his top perch and issued a "catch me if you can" challenge to former practice partner Hendry, Ronnie O'Sullivan and co.
Higgins admitted: "I had to get myself back on track. I'd had a good year in 1995-96 and won a few things and thought I'd actually done everything. I thought I'd made it and sat back.
"I was living it up and woke up suffering from too many hangovers and not wanting to practise. I was too busy having fun at discos or in the pubs."
"I thought I could get away with it and still play to the standard of the year before when I had won a few tournaments and had been on top of my game.
"I also don't think it helped earning a lot of money like I had the previous couple of years. How many young people know how to look after and cope when suddenly having loads of cash?
"I was real lucky to stay at number two without doing myself justice. People would say to me in the pubs `we like your company, but we want you to settle down and do the business on the table'.
"They told me to give snooker my best shot for 10 years to try to make all the money I could - and that I could come back after that and drink every day if I wanted.
"I knew I had to buckle down and that if I wanted to get to the very top of snooker, being world champion and world number one, that I had to change my way of life. I didn't give the game the respect it deserved last season.
"But this season I came back determined to concentrate fully, be more focused and put the practice in. I'd still have the odd night out, but not at the expense of my career."
Higgins pocketed £220,000 for his win on Monday - a far cry from the days when his dad and current manager, John senior, would give him £5 to practise once a week down the local snooker hall.
He won his first tournament as a 13year-old in Falkirk and then came the invaluable practice with Hendry and Alan McManus before Higgins started to carve out his own name.
Monday's win ended an eight-year reign at the top of the rankings for Hendry but Higgins claimed: "I think snooker was getting a bit bored with Stephen winning things all the time.
"Ken Doherty broke that stranglehold by winning the world title last year and since then class players have been coming through and winning a lot of tournaments.
"It's great for the game that people don't switch on TV and just expect to see Stephen winning every time in just the same way as with Steve Davis in the 1980s.
"We are in a new era with myself, Ronnie O'Sullivan, Mark Williams, Matthew Stevens, Stephen Lee, Paul Hunter, while you can't discount Ken Doherty, Stephen Hendry and John Parrott.
"There is a heavyweight division of half a dozen or so players and if the winner comes outside of that group then it is a bit of a surprise."
Higgins is determined to try to stay in the number one berth.
He said: "I've had three or four years chasing Stephen Hendry. Now it's his turn to start chasing me. Let's see if he is up to it."
Higgins's only regret this week is that he will not be able to see his beloved Celtic in action this weekend attempting to clinch the Scottish title because he will be in Matchroom League action - against Doherty.
Being world champion means earning big money and Higgins senior, who played football for Motherwell, said yesterday that he will be seeking assistance to maximise the earning power of his son who split from former manager Ian Doyle four years ago.
He said: "When my son left Ian Doyle's stable he said a father-son partnership would never work. I think we have proved him wrong."
Doherty, despite reaching the World Championship final for the second successive year, has dropped one place in the rankings to fourth.
He has been overtaken by Higgins's semi-final victim, O'Sullivan, while the other player to reach the last four in Sheffield, Mark Williams, also slips one place to fifth.
Jimmy White, who grabbed the headlines early in the tournament with convincing victories over Hendry and Darren Morgan, has not made it back into the elite top 16.
The "Whirlwind", who bowed out against O'Sullivan in the quarter-finals, rises only three places to 18th and will still have to qualify for The Crucible next year.
Romford's Mark King, who reached the second round of the World Championship after beating eighth seed Nigel Bond, is the only new name in the top 16. He replaces Morgan.
Leading 1998-99 Rankings: 1 J Higgins (Sco), 2 S Hendry (Sco), 3 R O'Sullivan (Eng), 4 K Doherty (Irl), 5 M Williams (Wal), 6 J Parrott (Eng), 7 P Ebdon (Eng), 8 A McManus (Sco), 9 S Lee (Eng), 10 T Drago (Mlt), 11 A Hamilton (Eng), 12 A Robidoux (Can), 13 N Bond (Eng), 14 S Davis (Eng), 15 J Wattana (Tha), 16 M King (Eng).
