Snooker: Ronnie O'Sullivan reached the quarter-finals of the Welsh Open today but continued to insist that playing well, rather than just winning, is most important to him.
"Maybe I'm a perfectionist compared to most people, but I need to reach the heights. There's no point playing if I don't," said O'Sullivan, after cruising past Leicester's Mark Selby 5-1.
O'Sullivan has embarked on a two-year plan to revamp his game and revealed that the motivation behind his decision was a series of sessions in which he has felt "totally lost".
One of those melt-downs came in the semi-finals of last year's 888.com World Championship when, in the third session, he lost all eight frames to Graeme Dott and was eventually beaten 17-11.
"It was horrible to feel like that in the heat of battle. I couldn't make 20 — and it hurt," admitted O'Sullivan. "The thought that I'm capable of playing so badly makes me feel like going on anti-depressants. It was embarrassing at the end — and it was the same in Malta a couple of weeks ago."
O'Sullivan, who lost 5-3 to Michael Holt in his opening match at the Malta Cup, has decided to try and eliminate such horror performances by seeking the advice of Frank Adamson — a coach from Bristol who has worked with several top players, including last year's Welsh Open champion Stephen Lee.