Ross Muir is channeling the pain of his mother's death into a renewed drive to succeed in snooker, having already overcome career-threatening ocular migraines. The 30-year-old Scot, who first turned professional in 2013 after coming through Q School at 17, admits he has 'definitely not shown anything at all' since then, with last-16 runs his best in ranking events. But after a turbulent period off the table, he believes he is now a 'different prospect'.
Mother's death becomes motivation
Muir's mother, Margaret, passed away in February after being diagnosed with heart failure over a year earlier. During that time, snooker faded into insignificance as Muir focused on caring for her. 'She was my best friend and very supportive with snooker,' Muir told Metro. 'She has been with me for the whole journey. She always loved watching my games and we always chatted after the games. So from that perspective it's a massive gap in my life now.'
Before she died, Margaret urged him to return to the sport. 'She had a good talk with us. She wanted us to look forward. She wanted me to be a snooker player again,' Muir said. 'She appreciated all the time that we spent together. But she did ask me to be a snooker player again, so that's what I'm trying to be.'
After the World Championship qualifiers, Muir immediately returned to practice. 'The following day I was on the practice table and I've been working harder than I've ever worked before. I've been tackling all the technical problems that were in my game. I'm really delighted with how things have come out.'
Ocular migraines nearly ended career
Earlier in his career, Muir suffered from ocular migraines that caused up to 90 per cent vision loss during matches. The condition began in 2019 and led to him falling off the professional tour. 'I was pretty much not seeing anything. It was 90 per cent vision loss when it was at its worst. I think it was pressure driven, so generally the more pressurised the match was, the worse it would get,' he explained.
Muir described the sensation as 'being in a room that's filled with smoke' and said it occurred every day, sometimes multiple times a day. He thought his career was over. 'When I fell off the tour, at the end of the second year of suffering, I was done with it. I thought, what's point of battling when you can't see, when I can't see the break-off? There seemed no point in pursuing it.'
He didn't touch a cue for six months and took security jobs in Edinburgh at an office building and a railway station. But the lure of snooker brought him back. 'I was comfortable for a while, but missing snooker started to creep in and that feeling became a little bit too strong,' he said.
Return to tour and new perspective
Muir eventually returned to the professional tour in 2023 by winning the European Amateur Championship. He now manages his migraines through diet, fitness, and stress control. 'I'm absolutely delighted. Snooker's a wonderful job. I'm very lucky to be able to play the game professionally. I'm very grateful for that opportunity,' he said.
Currently ranked world number 109, Muir needs strong results this season to retain his tour card. He practices with John Higgins, Anthony McGill, and Scott Donaldson in Musselburgh. 'I certainly don't want to be in a position of just grinding by, getting near the top 64, falling off, resetting. That's not what I want to do, I want to be pushing a lot further forward than that,' he stated.
Muir is determined to use his mother's death as a driving force. 'I realise there's two ways a tragic event like this can impact a person: very negatively or you can use it as a driving force. That's what I've tried my best to do.'
