THE MAGICIAN
Who is snooker player Shaun Murphy and what is his net worth?
Plus, he reveals how gastric band surgery saved his life
SHAUN MURPHY has one of the finest cueing actions the sport of snooker has ever seen.
Here we take a look at the life, career and net worth of 'The Magician'.
1
Who is Shaun Murphy?
Snooker ace Shaun Murphy was born in Harlow, England on August 10, 1982.
As well as being the world no.6 at snooker, Shaun is also a keen golfer and pianist.
After being horrifically bullied at school, he was homeschooled from the age of 13.
Shaun told the : "I grew up in a small town and there weren’t many kids like me who were in the paper and on the BBC.
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“I was just very different and kids can be cruel. I was terrified of going to school because it was a harrowing experience.
“I’d get beaten up all the time. In Year 9, when I was 13, I got left for dead in the toilet after these kids attacked me and left me there.
“A teacher found me and took me home. She sat my parents down and said: ‘If you take my advice, you’ll never send Shaun back to this school. They’ll kill him.’”
He has been married twice.
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Shaun and Claire Murphy tied the knot in 2005, before divorcing in 2008.
In 2016 he married Elaine O'Reilly — and the couple are still going strong.
They have two children together — a son, Harry, and daughter, Molly — but they prefer to keep their information out of the public spotlight, so little else is known about them.
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What tournaments has Shaun Murphy won?
Shaun has enjoyed an illustrious career, including winning snooker's triple crown: the UK Championship, Masters and World Championship.
Here are the titles he has lifted so far:
World Snooker Tour (WST) ranking events:
- 2023/24: Championship League
- 2022/23: Players Championship, Tour Championship
- 2019/20: China Championship, Welsh Open
- 2016/17: Gibraltar Open
- 2015/16: World Grand Prix
- 2013/14: World Open
- 2010/11: Players Tour Championship Grand Finals
- 2008/09: UK Championship
- 2006/07: Malta Cup
- 2004/05: World Championship
WST minor-ranking events:
- 2014/15: Ruhr Open, Bulgarian Open
- 2013/14: Gdynia Open
- 2010/11: Brugge Open
Non-ranking events:
- 2017/18: Champion of Champions
- 2014/15: Masters
- 2011/12: Brazil Masters
- 2010/11: Wuxi Classic
- 2009/10: Premier League
- 2007/08: Malta Cup
What is Shaun Murphy's net worth?
According to OLGB.com, as of February 2024 Shaun has raked in an impressive £5.3million in prize money so far in his career.
He has also enjoyed a successful career as a pundit when he is either not competing in, or has been knocked out of tournaments.
What did Shuan Murphy say about his weight loss?
The 2005 world snooker champion had stomach reduction surgery on May 10, 2022 — just eight days after Ronnie O’Sullivan lifted a sixth Crucible crown.
Rather than opt for a temporary solution — one choice was a gastric balloon — he went for an “extreme” and “irreversible” measure.
It meant medics “removed 80 per cent of my stomach” which means, he says, his four-year-old daughter Molly “has a bigger stomach than me now”.
As a result of having to eat smaller portion sizes, Murphy has plummeted from 20st to 15st.
The Magician explained: “Over the years I got to the point where I hated myself.
“I was in a lot of pain. The weight was the primary cause of that problem.
“I got to the point where I couldn’t run around after my kids. I became that bloke who couldn’t bend down to tie his shoelaces.
“It was completely demoralising. I couldn’t get out of this spiral of self-loathing.
“So I took a very big decision to have gastric-sleeve surgery.
“It was a big, big move that some would say was too drastic but I had reached the point of no return.
“I needed to do something serious. I couldn’t stop eating and I couldn’t stop drinking. I was in a deep depression.
“It might be too extreme to say it saved my life but that’s how it feels. And I wish I had done it 20 years ago.”
Before opting for the pioneering surgery, Murphy tried numerous methods to reduce his weight, including milkshake replacements, visits to Weight Watchers, Slimming World and other help groups, as well as hypnosis and podcasts.
He continued: “A lot of people out there don’t see food in the same sphere as alcohol or gambling but it is. I was addicted to eating.
“Mark Allen and I used to joke that we would commiserate and celebrate with Domino’s pizzas.
“You can’t drink ten pints of Guinness five nights a week and have Domino’s four nights and live to tell the tale.
“There’s a history of heart disease in the family. Both my grandad and my father had a heart attack in their mid-50s.
“All I can do is tip the scales in my favour.
“When that addiction or dependency grabs you, it’s very hard to let go.”
“Due to the surgery, I can eat anything I want but I just can’t eat as much. I feel full immediately.
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“Those all-you-can-eat buffets are just a waste of time on me now because I almost get full on the smell!
“My self-esteem has gone up — it’s made me a better bloke and a better snooker player.”
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