Wilson 'enjoying' snooker again after son's health problems

Wilson, 31, is currently playing at the Tour Championship in Hull and got off to a winning start in his quarter-final with a 10-4 victory over Ali Carter.

But his participation at the tournament comes in the wake of his five-year-old son Bailey falling ill and being hospitalised in January.

Initial scans pointed towards a cancerous tumour but those fears were allayed after an incorrect diagnosis.

Wilson has since opened up on the ordeal, which he says talking about has helped his play on the table. 

"We had a couple of days to wait for an MRI scan to find out whether it was a tumour, and that was very tough," he told the World Snooker Tour.

"It now seems more likely it could be something like Crohn's Disease, though we are still not sure. 

"But before I left home he was running about and seems to have turned a corner so that was great to see."

He continued: "It's important to talk about these things sometimes rather than bottle them up. 

"I have sometimes felt that snooker is the be-all and end-all, but this has made me realise how lucky I am, and it has freed me up to just enjoy the game."

Wilson's opening Tour Championship win over Carter has moved him into the semi-finals, where he will face China's Ding Junhui on Friday.

The tournament winner will pick up £150,000 in prize money from a £380,000 pot.