'Paul was fun': Reflecting on the game's lost great a score of years on.

All the Leeds-born talent ever wanted to do was compete on the baize.

A competitive passion, developed at the age of three with the help of a small snooker set on his family's living room table in Leeds, would culminate in a professional career that saw him claim half a dozen major wins in a six-year span.

The present year marks a score of years since the beloved Hunter died from cancer, mere days prior to his birthday marking 28 years.

But in spite of the passing of a generational talent that transcended the game he loved, his enduring mark on snooker and those who were close to him endure as strong as ever.

'His passion was clear': A Childhood Obsession

"We'd never have known in a lifetime our son would become a professional snooker player," Kristina Hunter says.

"Yet he just was passionate about it."

His dad recalls how his son "wasn't bothered about anything else" besides snooker as a youth.

"His dedication was constant," he adds. "He practiced every night after school."

After successfully badgering his dad to take him to a local club to play on regulation tables at the age of eight, the budding player made the jump from miniature games with remarkable ease.

His mercurial talent would be nurtured by the 1986 World Champion Joe Johnson, from nearby Bradford, at a now closed venue in the Leeds district of Yeadon.

Metoric Ascent: The Path to Glory

With his family's urging to do his homework increasingly falling on deaf ears as practice took priority, his parents took the "gamble" of taking Hunter out of school at the age of 14 to fully concentrate on carving out a career in the game.

It proved a masterstroke. Within five years, their adolescent had won his first ranking title, the 1998 Welsh Open.

Considered one of snooker's toughest events to win because of the presence of elite players only, Hunter triumphed a trio of times, in the early 2000s.

'A Cheeky Charm': His Enduring Personality

But for all his triumphs in the sport, away from the game Hunter's down-to-earth charisma never faded.

"His demeanor was excellent did Paul," Alan says. "He connected with everybody."

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

Hunter's partner Lindsey, with whom he had daughter Evie, describes him as an "wonderful, youthful, and fun personality" who was "witty, generous" and "typically the final guest at the party".

With his effortless appeal, youthful appearance and honest interview style, not to mention his prodigious ability, Hunter quickly became snooker's pin-up for the modern era.

No wonder then, that he was dubbed 'The Snooker World's Beckham'.

Facing Adversity: His Final Years

In that year, a year that should have marked the height of his career, Hunter was told he had cancer and would later undergo chemotherapy.

Multiple stories from across the sporting world speak of the man's extraordinary willingness to fulfill commitments to charity matches, tournaments, and media duties, all while undergoing treatment.

Despite harsh reactions, Hunter continued to compete through the illness and received a tumultuous reception at The Crucible Theatre when he competed in the World Championships that year.

When he passed away in October 2006, snooker's tight community lost one of its most popular brothers.

"It is tragic," Kristina says. "No parent should experience any mum and dad to lose a child."

A Foundation for the Future: Giving Back

Hunter's true impact would be felt not in palaces and castles but in local sports centers across the UK.

The charity in his name, set up before his death, would provide no-cost coaching to young people all over the country.

The scheme was so successful that, according to reports, anti-social behavior in some areas plummeted.

"The aim remained for a platform to help provide a positive outlet," one coach said.

The Foundation helped establish the basis for a huge coaching programme, which has extended playing opportunities to children globally.

"He would have embraced what we've done with the sport and where it is today," a chairman in the sport stated.

Always Remembered: Two Decades On

Archive videos of their son's matches via the internet help his parents stay "in touch with his memory".

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

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

Even though he never won the World Championship, the common opinion that Hunter would have eventually won snooker's greatest prize is ingrained in the sport's history.

The Masters, the competition with which he is most synonymous, begins later this month. The winner will lift the Paul Hunter Trophy.

But for all his successes, a generation after his death it is Paul Hunter's spirit, as much his spectacular skill with a cue, that will ensure he is always remembered.