Just wanted to make a thread to see what other people's views are. There seems in recent years, to be a rewriting of this man's ability and talent. Many point out he made less than 100 centuries, others say he'd be hammered if he played today.
To address the centuries point, there was so few tournament to actually rack up official centuries, and it was only when he popularised the game, this actually started to happen, years later. He also played in an era with heavier balls, rubbish cloth etc, and where the aim was to get ahead, and play safe to kill off the frame.
We're also told he only won two world titles, one whereby in 72, it wasn't a serious thing. In 82, it was one of the few tournaments he actually practised when sober and applied himself, he beat everyone when he tried, for his daughter. Was drunk at home and seen his young daughter on a stool trying to pot a ball, and broke down crying. Said he'd apply himself and win it for her. He won, pulling off one of the greatest intuitive breaks the game has ever seen
People forget too, he cued wrong, his stance was wrong, he was never trained or coached properly, and played under the influence with absolutely no time for positional play. A standard half century for a player today, was a massive uphill battle for Higgins. He'd run out of position every shot, doing everything wrong as usual, and drunk, and to keep that small break going would require at least 4 otherworldly pots.
But that's the point, that's his brilliance and true genius. Despite being drunk and doing everything wrong, he could repeatedly pot balls every frame, no player before or since could pot with such regularity.
He wasn't the best ever or didn't win the most, but he had the greatest natural eye for the game that I've ever seen, if you needed one man to pull off an impossible shot to save your life it's Higgins you want. Hendry even said at his funeral, people don't actually realise how good he was in full flow.
I wish he could of been born today, nurtured and coached how to do everything right, without any of the drink and drugs. I genuinely believe if that was the case, he was a prodigious talent, even greater than O'Sullivan. He repeatedly potted shots even O'Sullivan wasn't capable of imo. The sharpest and most natural eye we've ever seen in the game, which many have tried to downplay with 'stats" on centuries and that sort of thing, completely out of context.
He genuinely was a genius imo, his career completely hindered and corrupted by his own hand and others, but a genius none the less
