Snooker star Tom Ford has opened up about the hardships he endured during the Covid pandemic and how he has overcome his mental health struggles thanks to a mindset coach. The 40-year-old admitted he was at his “lowest point” during the lockdown and revealed he broke down in tears to his wife in a hotel room.
Ford has returned to top form in recent years after a dip in his career. He reached two ranking finals in 2023, helping him reach a career-high world ranking as the prolific goalscorer moves some way towards reaching his full potential.
But Ford has now opened up about his battle with loneliness as a veteran player dating back to facing tough times during the pandemic. At the 2021 Welsh Open, he defeated Kyren Wilson and Jack Lisowski on his way to the quarterfinals, but was unable to focus on the tournament.
“I couldn’t really talk about it much before. I remember that being my lowest point,” Ford said. Talking snooker podcast. “I remember playing them two games, I came out, Kyren said ‘Well done’ and I said, ‘I don’t even want to be here, I don’t want to play in this.’
“It was a lockdown but I didn’t know why I was feeling it, I didn’t know what was going on. I remember bursting into my wife when I was in the hotel room in floods of tears saying, ‘I don’t want to be here’. And I didn’t mean Wales, I meant I didn’t want to be here. It was a difficult time.”
He credited the work of mindset coach Sabrina Francis for turning around his snooker performances. Ford explained how he no longer has “the hump” after a missed shot and it won’t affect his next attempt, thoughts that have plagued him in the past.
Encouraging others to speak out, Ford said: “I started talking to Sabrina. I would never tell anyone how I felt, I’m not one of them, I still don’t really now. But talking to someone definitely helped because some of the thoughts that were going through my mind were stupid thoughts.”
Ford has since urged those going through similar situations to seek professional help. “If you don’t talk to anyone, it’s only going to get worse,” he continued.
“It’s about finding the right person to talk to and going from there. I’ve been through all that but I can understand how many people have mental issues and have their demons. It’s basically about talking to someone and getting the help you need.”