Snooker star breaks down in tears as he opens up on quitting drinking after turning to booze as a 'coping mechanism' - and reveals why playing is like 'brain damage'
Wells, 36, has compared playing his sport to 'brain damage' and said he suffered from 'bad experiences' as he turned to the bottle to cope with the pressure.
The Neath-born star is at his first World Championship in Sheffield after qualifying at the 16th attempt.
It has been a meandering journey for Wells, who turned to beer as a 'coping mechanism,' though he has now gone seven months dry.
His sponsors South Manchester Resurfacing suggested he should seek help during his dark days and that encouraged him to go teetotal.
'I have quit. Seven months now without a drink. It was just my lifestyle. Probably drinking too much, dealing with the pressure of,' he said.
I turned to it. For the day-to-day pressures of practice. Like a coping mechanism.
'But it's not the best way to cope with it. I'm really proud of myself. I feel better.
'There were a couple of bad experiences. I was drinking when I shouldn't have been.
'Turning up to some tournaments, having a few drinks the night before to try and deal with the pressure. But it became a bad habit.
'Drinking when I didn't want to be drinking really. A sponsor came on board and put me in touch with a therapist.
'That has been massive as well, dealing with my own personality and stuff, dealing with the pressures of the game.
'I can only take it day-by-day. I think a lot of snooker players have addictive personalities.
'You have got to be addictive to keep coming back, to the brain damage that is the game really.
'Any habit can form and I got myself into a bad habit. Luckily I have broken the habit. It's day-by-day.'
Wells will need to overturn a 7-2 deficit against former World Champion Shaun Murphy at the Crucible.
Murphy, 42, won four frames in a row to establish a commanding lead and their clash will resume on Wednesday morning.
In 2007, Wells was awarded the inaugural Paul Hunter Scholarship, and he had the chance to test himself at the World Snooker Academy in Sheffield, but his career has not reached the elite level since then.
Of his drinbking habits, he also said: 'It starts out with a couple of cans, watching the football.
'A good day's practice, have a couple of cans. A bad day's practice, have a couple of cans.
'But you know, you have got a bit of an issue. It's a tough game to deal with mentally.
'I know there are a number of players who go through similar things with different addictions and it is a tough gig. We can only try our best.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
9 hours ago
- The Independent
Toto Wolff speaks out about Lewis Hamilton amid Ferrari woes
Toto Wolff, Mercedes boss, has expressed confidence that Lewis Hamilton can still win an eighth Formula 1 world championship, despite his current struggles at Ferrari. Hamilton recently described his performances as "useless" after finishing 12th in Hungary, having not secured a podium finish in the current season. Wolff praised Hamilton's "emotional transparency" and affirmed that he remains the "GOAT" (greatest of all time) with "unfinished business" in F1. Wolff suggested Hamilton's current difficulties are linked to the car not providing the feedback he desires, similar to recent Mercedes vehicles. He believes that new car designs and power units for next year could enable Hamilton to perform better and achieve his championship goal at Ferrari.
Daily Mirror
9 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Ali Carter pockets £105,000 payday after text from Mark Allen – ‘I owe you a vodka!'
Ali Carter was a surprise runner-up at the Shanghai Masters this weekend, earning a considerable cash prize for his efforts - but he wouldn't have even been in the tournament if it wasn't for Mark Allen's withdrawal Ali Carter pocketed a cool £105,000 after finishing second to Kyren Wilson at the Shanghai Masters this weekend. But his path to the final was paved by an unexpected 'Merry Christmas ' text from Mark Allen. 'The Captain', ranked 17th in the world, wasn't set to compete, but Allen's withdrawal for personal reasons opened up a spot. Carter revealed that he was initially puzzled by Allen's cryptic message to inform him he could take his place. He said: "Getting in Shanghai is a result. I was buzzing to get the call because it's a good event." Explaining how Allen broke the news, he told Metro: "He just texts me and said, 'Merry Christmas, mate.' I didn't quite understand what he meant, but then I read between the lines and he said, he's not going to Shanghai. I was like, 'Thanks, mate. I owe you a vodka!'" Despite his initial disappointment at missing out due to his ranking drop, which many believe wasn't reflective of his performance on the green baize, Carter was thrilled to be part of the competition. Following Zhao Xintong's World Championship triumph in May, Carter was left gutted as he plummeted down the snooker rankings, particularly after widespread criticism of the World Snooker Tour's points system rulebook, reports the Express. Given that Xintong held amateur status when he claimed the coveted title, both players and supporters, Carter included, assumed he wouldn't be awarded ranking points as a consequence. Discussing the hotly-contested world rankings shake-up, Carter said: "Everyone's interpretation was that amateurs didn't get their ranking points. "But World Snooker's interpretation wasn't that, so it is what it is and at the end of the day, they're the governing body, they make the decisions and we'll see what transpires in the future." After Allen's pullout from Shanghai, Carter powered his way to the final, cruising past Le Qui and Mark Williams in the tournament's initial stages. He then took on Xiao Guodong, overcoming him 6-5 to secure his place in the semi-finals. Following his 10-8 victory over Mark Selby in the semis to face Wilson, Carter was perfectly positioned for a remarkable triumph - regardless of the outcome - having squeezed into the competition at the eleventh hour. Despite suffering a narrow 11-9 defeat, the Englishman will pocket a substantial cash prize of £105,000, as well as a confidence boost after his recent rankings setback.
The Guardian
11 hours ago
- The Guardian
F1 2025: end-of-term report card as drivers head for their summer break
Oscar Piastri Leading the world championship and has earned his place at the top. He has not only been quick in the best car on the grid, but consistent and calm. This has not been the stuff of fireworks, but relentless precision. His execution and attitude have no little of the Alain Prost about them and he is shaping up to be a similarly formidable opponent as The Professor. He has gone toe to toe with his teammate, Lando Norris, in these opening 14 meetings and, overall, come out on top. There have been six wins and only twice has he failed to reach the podium. The three consummate victories in a row in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Miami made his title ambitions clear, while errors have been few and far between. A spin in the wet in Australia and a safety car infringement at Silverstone are the only blots on an otherwise immaculate copybook. Lando Norris Entered the season as favourite and when the McLaren duly proved to be the class of the field was expected to exploit it. However, after a strong start in Australia it became clear the MCL39 was not quite giving him the feel for the front grip of the car that he likes. It proved costly, particularly in qualifying, and Norris was typically forthright and honest that it was up to him to adapt. Errors compounded his problems, not least crashing in qualifying in Saudi Arabia and hitting his teammate in Canada. In Budapest, he revealed an intriguingly nihilist approach, noting in regards to the title race: 'In 200 years no one is going to care. We'll all be dead.' Rather than settling down to contemplate the meaninglessness of existence in a darkened room the Briton has doggedly stuck at his task and returned some impressive wins with fine drives in Monaco and Austria and an inspired strategy coup on Sunday in Budapest. If he can eliminate the faults Norris will be challenging his teammate to the end. Max Verstappen Before the weekend began in Hungary, Verstappen ended speculation over his future by stating he would be with Red Bull next year, but did not say whether he would see out his contract that runs to 2028. The world champion has acknowledged the title is beyond him this year, but he still craves performance and stability within the team. However, over these 14 races, the form of the car has been sorely lacking, while bringing an end to the turbulence of the past two years and soothing the ruffled brows of the Verstappen camp was at least part of the purpose of the removal of Red Bull's team principal of 20 years, Christian Horner. Verstappen has still succeeded in wrestling repeated results, including two impressive wins, from a car that is barely manageable, but he and the team's focus is now on the future. There are major exams coming up in the form of the new regulations for next season and, for the second half of this one, the question that will dominate is how do Red Bull under their new boss, Laurent Mekies, now adapt? If the Frenchman fails to deliver, the internal politicking at the team could be fascinating. And brutal. Gabriel Bortoleto When Sauber brought in a new floor in Spain the 20-year-old Brazilian rookie came alive, showing promise given his team's relatively uncompetitive car. He is in good company in the new intake. At Racing Bulls, Isack Hadjar has been a standout adapting quickly to F1 with consistent, confident performances and largely outdriving his teammate, Liam Lawson, whom Red Bull had rated enough to promote, briefly, to the senior squad at the start of the season. Kimi Antonelli has demonstrated his potential at Mercedes, but has been inconsistent in a car George Russell muscled to a win in Canada. Bortoleto has given the impression he may have so much more to come. After Sauber applied upgrades in Barcelona, Bortoleto took his first points in Austria including challenging Fernando Alonso for seventh place. A crash at Silverstone followed while on slicks in the wet, but he took points in Belgium and in Hungary he was flying. He qualified seventh, 12 places in front of his experienced teammate, Nico Hülkenberg, and claimed sixth in the race after a battling drive. If he can repeat it in the second half of the season, Audi, as Sauber will be next season, have a genuine asset. Lewis Hamilton Left dejected after two races of, by his own admission, below-par performances – with 16th on the grid in Spa and a 12th in qualifying in Hungary he described as 'absolutely useless' before finishing the race in 12th – Lewis Hamilton even appeared to cast doubt on his future in F1. It was a response, likely a blip, from a driver worn down by having to deal with adapting to his new team under such scrutiny as well as dissatisfaction at how they, and he, are performing. It is unusual for Hamilton to be so publicly hard on himself and perhaps represents real frustration with Ferrari, but he has proved repeatedly he is nothing if not a fighter. A step back after what has been a gruelling opening with a new team is clearly required even if, as is believed, he feels there is still enormous work to be done at the Scuderia. Hamilton accepted the process to adapt would take time, but that frustration in Hungary suggests he could be disillusioned despite his belief Ferrari have everything needed to return to the top. He said rather dejectedly in Budapest he would 'hopefully' return after the summer break. The touch is still there, as he proved in Silverstone and Spa, but he, perhaps like no other driver, could benefit from a reset over the summer break.
