Former snooker sex symbol, 69, suffers major blow in bid to return to World Tour for the first time in 24 years
TONY KNOWLES's hopes of joining the professional snooker ranks as an OAP potter suffered a major blow.
The Bolton cueist – who reached the Crucible World Championship semi-finals on three occasions in the 1980s – was thumped 4-0 by William Lemons in round one of
5
Tony Knowles suffered a major blow in his quest to get back on the pro tour
5
Heartthrob Tony Knowles was the lothario of snooker
5
Knowles was notorious for selling his lurid tales of his sexual encounters to the papers
Knowles – who turns 70
next
month – potted only 100 points across four frames as Lemons, 29, progressed with breaks of 50 and 54.
The Lancastrian, a two-time ranking tournament winner and an iconic figure from the sport's past, last played on the World
Snooker
Tour circuit in 2001.
But the former world No.2 is not giving up on his dreams of playing alongside the likes of top stars
A sex icon on the baize in his pomp, Knowles still plays to a decent standard for his age.
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But he will have to win six matches in a row in Event Two, which starts
next
Tuesday, if he is to be reunited with old drinking and
smoking
pal
next
two seasons.
A notorious ladies' man who was blessed with good looks, after leading a session against
Quite brilliantly, he returned to
He sold countless stories on lurid sexual conquests, including an interview for £25,000 where he called himself the "hottest pot in snooker.'
Most read in Snooker
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Meanwhile, his conqueror Lemons now plays 14-year-old Moldovan Vladislav Gradinari in round two at the Mattioli Arena in Leicester.
Amateur ace
'Not fit for purpose' - Barry Hearn slams Crucible with World Snooker Championship tipped to 'travel around world'
5
Hot shot snooker ace Knowles was a self-professed womaniser in the 80s
5
He's a two-time ranking tournament winner
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