'He was a joy': Remembering the game's taken talent a score of years on.

Everything the Leeds-born talent truly desired to do was play snooker.

A competitive passion, sparked at the tender age of three with the help of a tiny snooker set on his home's central table in Leeds, would culminate in a pro playing days that saw him secure six major trophies in a six-year span.

This year marks a score of years since the adored Hunter died from cancer, days short to his 28th birthday.

But in spite of the tragic departure of a once-in-a-generation player that went beyond the sport he adored, his enduring mark on the sport and those who followed his career endure as vibrant now.

'The game was his life': The Formative Years

"We'd never have known in a billion years the boy would become a professional snooker player," Hunter's mum recalls.

"Yet he just adored it."

Alan Hunter recalls how his son "showed no interest in anything else" other than snooker as a youth.

"He never stopped," he says. "He would play every night after school."

After persistently asking his dad to take him to a community venue to play on full-size tables at the age of eight, the young Hunter made the transition from home play with aplomb.

His mercurial talent would be nurtured by the former world title holder Joe Johnson, from neighbouring Bradford, at a now closed venue in the north Leeds suburb of Yeadon.

Quick Success: A Star is Born

With his mother and father's requests to do his homework regularly going unheeded as practice took priority, his parents took the "chance" of taking Hunter out of school at the mid-teens to fully focus on building a career in the game.

It was a resounding success. Within half a decade, their young son had won his first ranking title, the Welsh Open of 1998.

Considered one of snooker's toughest events to win because of the involvement of exclusively the best, Hunter triumphed three times, in the early 2000s.

'Paul was fun': The Man Behind the Cue

But for all his success on the table, away from the game Hunter's approachable nature never deserted him.

"He was incredibly composed did Paul," Alan says. "He was liked by everybody."

"If you met him you'd take to him," Kristina adds. "He was enjoyable. He'd make you relaxed."

Hunter's widow Lindsey, with whom he had a daughter, describes him as an "wonderful, youthful, and fun personality" who was "humorous, caring" and "never the first to depart from the party".

With his natural likability, boyish good looks and candid way with the press, not to mention his considerable talent, Hunter quickly became snooker's pin-up for the modern era.

No wonder then, that he was nicknamed 'The Beckham of the Baize'.

Facing Adversity: A Fight Against Cancer

In the mid-2000s, a year that should have been the zenith of his talent, Hunter was diagnosed with cancer and would later undergo cancer therapy.

Multiple stories from across the professional tour attest to the man's extraordinary dedication to fulfill commitments to public appearances and promotional work, all while enduring treatment.

Despite harsh reactions, Hunter played on through the illness and received a standing ovation at The World Championship arena when he played at the World Championships that year.

When he succumbed in autumn 2006, snooker's close-knit fraternity lost one of its most popular brothers.

"It is tragic," Kristina says. "No parent should experience any mum and dad to suffer such a loss."

An Enduring Legacy: Inspiring Youth

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

The foundation he inspired, set up before his death, would provide free snooker sessions to youths all over the country.

The initiative was so successful that, according to reports, anti-social behavior in some areas dropped significantly.

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

The Foundation helped pave the way for a major coaching programme, which has opened up playing opportunities to children all over the world.

"Paul would have loved what we've done with the sport and where it is today," a leading figure in the sport stated.

Always Remembered: 20 Years Later

Classic footage of their son's matches on YouTube help his parents stay "close to him".

"I can bring it up and I can watch Paul anytime," Kristina says. "It's marvellous!"

"We like to reminisce about Paul," she continues. "Before it would be tears, but I'd rather somebody mention him than him not be mentioned at all."

Although he never won the World Championship, the widespread belief that Hunter would have gone on to lift snooker's top honor is a part of the sport's legend.

The Masters, the competition with which he is most associated, begins later this month. The winner will lift the memorial cup.

But for all his achievements, two decades after his death it is Paul Hunter's spirit, as much his spectacular skill with a cue, that will ensure he is forever celebrated.