England’s talented 19-year-old Liam Pullen faced an early career crisis when he dropped off the circuit at the end of last season, but success at Q School has earned another two years on the World Snooker Tour and the Yorkshireman is raring to go…
Pullen first turned professional in 2023. Having been runner-up to compatriot Stan Moody in the WSF Junior Championship, he ran the Q School gauntlet to earn his slot.
A strong first campaign saw Pullen beat Noppon Saengkham on a run to the last 32 of the International Championship and win 15 games in total during the season. However, Pullen could only muster seven match wins in the second season and was subsequently relegated.
Victory over Germany’s Umut Dikme in the last round of Q School Event One has ensured Pullen at least two more seasons as a professional. He’s taken a lot of pride in the way he handled the mental pressure cooker of Q School…
Liam first of all, what was it like having to return to Q School?
“It’s completely different to any tournament I’ve played in, even the World Championship. Those Judgement Day matches look very intense, but most of the time you aren’t playing for your career. I don’t think there is much more pressure in any match you can ever play in. That may sound ignorant in the context of world finals and things like that. But these best of sevens, with so much on the line, are cutthroat. To survive in that tournament it is tough. It was a come down to be there. I’d definitely rather have not been there. However, it has helped my confidence and helped with producing under pressure when I really need to.”
What do you think is the key to success at Q School?
“The main thing during that time was trying to get my mindset right. You need to approach Q School in the right way. When the challenges come at you during the matches you need to handle them in the right way and in a positive way or you won’t get through.
“I think snooker is a little bit like tennis in that regard. I was watching the Roland Garros final between Sinner and Alcaraz. Sinner managed to get 5-3 and 40-0 up when on the verge of victory. He still had to get himself over the line, which he couldn’t and Alvarez won. It is the same in snooker. They are completely different sports, but the psychology has some parallels in that regard. When I won the biggest emotion was relief. There is no doubt about it. Now I can kick on with my career. The stage I’m at I need to be on tour to do what I want to do.
“I thought I dealt with it really well. I could have played better, but I’m glad I found a way to get through and not have to do the second event. That would have done my head in even more. It was a big challenge in the final round vs Umut. I made a 73 in the first frame and lost, that was torture to be honest. I was proud of myself to come over the line very strongly in the end.”
What do you think the difference was between your strong first season and difficult second?
“That is a difficult question to answer. I think I put more pressure on myself in the second season. It got on top of me a bit and I got used to losing. It was very hard mentally to be honest. There’s no time to sulk, that is the hardest thing about the sport. You need to have a tremendous attitude towards the game and be very mentally strong.”
Have you been up to much over the summer away from snooker?
“I’m doing a 10km race in Harrogate soon. I’ve been running for six to eight months now and I’m starting to get alright so just want to keep going. At the moment 5km is my best distance, my PB is 19 minutes and 41 seconds. It is very good to clear my head and helps physically as well. Some days, if you don’t feel great, you dread doing it, but afterwards you feel brilliant every time. It is a really good thing to get into and great for your mental health. I’ve done Parkruns before but this will be my first race. I’m looking forward to it.”
You’ve got Jimmy Robertson in Wuhan Open Qualifying on Tuesday, how important is it to qualify for as many of the China events as possible?
“These big events are what really help with your rankings. To win these qualifying matches for the China tournaments is crucial. I really enjoy the travelling. Hopefully in two decades time, I will have done so much travelling I won’t enjoy it. You have to appreciate the experience and it is a completely different world to the UK. I remember I went out with Zhou Yuelong to a restaurant when I was out there and I tried a deep fried purple plant and it was disgusting! You have to try these things though and we had a hot pot and I really enjoyed the rest of it.”
