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Jack Lisowski dedicated his first ranking title win to his late father at the Northern Ireland Open. Despite being hailed as a young prodigy the snooker star had struggled to secure any silverware until now. Lisowski has long been recognised as one of snooker's top talents, but was previously known more for his lack of titles and losses in finals. However, this narrative changed dramatically when he faced off against childhood friend Judd Trump in an emotional Northern Ireland Open final. The 34-year-old emerged victorious from the epic 9-8 bout and was visibly moved in Belfast, especially as the victory came less than a year after his father's death. Lisowski has also battled health issues in the past, including a fight with Hodgkin's lymphoma at just 16 years old. Following his triumphant win over Trump in Belfast, which saw Lisowski finally shake off his ranking title curse, he paid a heartfelt tribute to his late father. He said: "I've got my dad's socks on today. He didn't live to see me win a ranking title. But this is for him if he's watching down and it's also for my Mum for everything she has done for me." Lisowski's father passed away in March. He acknowledges that the sudden loss impacted his snooker performance and suggests that he perhaps should have taken more time away from the sport to grieve. "It's been up and down, it feels different now," said Lisowski earlier this month. "I didn't have a lot of fighting in the first few months but now I'm able to play. "The first month I played without my dad, every frame I just felt so emotional, so I wish I didn't. I wish I didn't play for a bit but I just kept going. It's tough to support me, because there's so much heartbreak." The Cheltenham-born star has overcome hardship previously, particularly during his teenage years when he received a cancer diagnosis. A nine-month ordeal followed, involving 16 rounds of chemotherapy and he continues to need routine medical monitoring. "You are 16 and you have your whole life ahead of you and something like that happens and you start fearing for your life. You wouldn't wish it on anyone," confessed Lisowski during the early stages of his professional journey. "I felt really ill, and started thinking really negative things, and I was convinced I was going to die. But my consultant told me: 'I will do my best to cure you, and I'm confident I can.' I never looked back from there, and every scan after that saw the lump go down. I still have to go for scans, but it's looking pretty good. "There were nine months of chemotherapy and 16 courses, and all that time I was thinking about my snooker and how I was going to give it everything when I got back. "At that time I was too ill to practice, and had months of frustration. But I think it made me stronger as a person. I know that snooker isn't everything." Following his triumph against the world's top-ranked player in Northern Ireland, Lisowski secured the winner's cheque of £100,000. Having finally overcome his previous heartbreak in finals, he will surely be eyeing up further silverware opportunities throughout the remainder of the season, with the UK Championship fast approaching.
