'Paul was fun': Honoring snooker's taken talent two decades on.

All the young snooker player ever wanted to do was compete on the baize.

A sporting bug, caught at the tender age of three with the help of a miniature snooker set on his family's living room table in Leeds, would lead to a professional career that saw him secure six significant titles in half a dozen years.

The present year marks 20 years since the adored Hunter passed away from cancer, mere days prior to his twenty-eighth birthday.

But despite the loss of a phenomenal skill that transcended the pastime he cherished, his legacy and impact on snooker and those who were close to him remain as vibrant now.

'He just loved it': The Formative Years

"We'd never have known in a million years Paul would become a professional snooker player," Kristina Hunter states.

"Yet he just adored it."

Hunter's father remembers how his son "wasn't bothered about anything else" except for snooker as a child.

"He never stopped," he notes. "He competed every night after school."

After repeatedly pleading with his dad to take him to a nearby hall to play on full-size tables at the age of eight, the budding player made the leap from table top snooker with remarkable ease.

His natural ability would be nurtured by the snooker legend Joe Johnson, from nearby Bradford, at a now former establishment in the area of Yeadon.

Rapid Rise: From Teenager to Champion

With his family's urging to do his homework regularly going unheeded as practice took priority, his parents took the "risk" of taking Hunter out of school at the age of 14 to fully dedicate himself to carving out a career in the game.

It proved a masterstroke. Within a short period, their young son had won his first ranking title, the Welsh Open of 1998.

Considered one of snooker's most difficult competitions to win because of the lineup featuring exclusively the best, Hunter triumphed a trio of times, in the early 2000s.

'A Cheeky Charm': The Man Behind the Cue

But for all his success on the table, away from the game Hunter's approachable nature never faded.

"He was incredibly composed did Paul," Alan says. "He got on with everybody."

"Upon meeting him you'd enjoy his company," Kristina adds. "He was enjoyable. He'd make you comfortable."

Hunter's wife Lindsey, with whom he had daughter Evie, describes him as an "incredible, lively, and kind spirit" who was "humorous, caring" and "always the last to leave the party".

With his natural likability, youthful appearance and candid way with the press, not to mention his considerable talent, Hunter quickly became snooker's leading figure for the new 21st Century.

No wonder then, that he was dubbed 'The Beckham of the Baize'.

A Brave Battle: His Final Years

In the mid-2000s, a year that should have signaled the height of his career, Hunter was found to have cancer and would later undergo cancer therapy.

Multiple stories from across the snooker circuit speak of the man's extraordinary dedication to keep promises to exhibitions, events and press interviews, all while undergoing treatment.

Despite gruelling side effects, Hunter continued to compete through the illness and received a rapturous applause at The World Championship arena when he competed in the World Championships that year.

When he died in October 2006, snooker's tight community lost one of its best-loved members.

"The pain is immense," Kristina says. "I wouldn't wish any mum and dad to suffer such a loss."

A Foundation for the Future: Inspiring Youth

Hunter's true contribution would be felt not in royal circles but in snooker halls and clubs across the UK.

The charity in his name, set up before his death, would provide free snooker sessions to children all over the country.

The scheme was so successful that, according to reports, local youth crime rates in some areas dropped significantly.

"The idea was for a scheme to help provide a positive outlet," one coach said.

The Foundation helped pave the way for a huge coaching programme, which has opened up playing opportunities to children globally.

"It would have thrilled him what we've done with the sport and where it is today," a leading figure in the sport stated.

Forever in Memory: Two Decades On

Archive videos of their son's matches on YouTube help his parents stay "close to him".

"I can watch it and I can watch Paul anytime," Kristina says. "It's wonderful!"

"We don't mind talking about Paul," she concludes. "At first it was sad, but I'd rather somebody talk than him not be mentioned at all."

While he never won the World Championship, the highly probable notion that Hunter would have gone on to lift snooker's greatest prize is etched into the sport's legend.

The Masters, the competition with which he is forever linked, commences later this month. The winner will lift the Paul Hunter Trophy.

But for all his successes, 20 years after his death it is Paul Hunter's spirit, as much his brilliant talent on the table, that will ensure he is always remembered.