Welsh Open 2023: Robert Milkins opens up on what life-changing £230,000 pay cheque means after victory over Shaun Murphy

Last year, Robert Milkins admitted he was “struggling” to put food down on the table for his family such were his financial woes – but now the ‘Milkman’ has just claimed a “life-changing” £230,000 pay cheque after he won the Welsh Open.

“I can’t even speak,” said Milkins, who now has two ranking titles to his name.

“It’s unreal, really. All through the day, I was sort of struggling a bit. Same as Shaun. We were both struggling and obviously, I have a lot of reasons to struggle – it’s a lot of money for me, that is!

“I just tried not to think about it. To be fair, I played alright in the evening but to start off with today, it was really hard work, and if Shaun would have been pretty much 20 per cent of his game, I’m sure he would have taken a lead going into tonight.”

On the £150,000 bonus, Milkins admitted that it’s a life-changing sum of money.

“Yeah, it is. Definitely. It’s just a dream, really.

“I lost in the semis in Germany to Ali Carter and all I was thinking about was the Players Championship. And I thought ‘I’ve got to go through it all again here, do all the hard work, get to a semi’.

“And then I’ve got to the semi and then, obviously, the pressure comes on even more, you know, not only just the bonus, but the trophy is more important to me, and I’m just so glad I got there in the end.”

Asked how it felt to get his hands on the trophy, Milkins said: “It’s unreal. I mean, obviously, Gibraltar was brilliant. That was the first one. But beating someone like Shaun in the best-of-17 in a final – even if he didn’t play well – is just the icing on the cake, you know.

“It’s unreal, really, because you have to play well to beat someone like Shaun or play fairly decent and I think I did in the end.”

Back in the Eurosport studio, Milkins was asked to reflect on his recent financial problems. Before claiming the Gibraltar Open in March 2022, he had won just three matches that season, as his confidence – and his bank balance – took a hit.

“Yeah, really tough,” he said.

“I was playing alright, I just couldn’t win. When you’re playing alright and you come off and you’ve lost, it just makes it even worse. When you’re playing to try to put some bread on the table, it’s tough.”

There had been signs that Milkins was on the verge of winning another ranking title after he made it to the semi-final of the German Open and the last-32 of the World Grand Prix.

On his recent form, he said: “I have been on the crest of a wave for a long time. Even when I’m not playing so well, I seem to be winning matches.”

And how he felt to win the Welsh Open and to receive such a significant pay cheque, Milkins added: “I’m feeling on top of the world to tell you the truth. The emotions I was going through all evening, really, knowing what was on the line… it was really tough. I’ve never played for that sort of money before and obviously the Welsh Open title as well, all of it combined is too much to take, really.”

“Maybe there was a turning point in there somewhere and he said: ‘Maybe I’ve got to get my act together now’, you know.”

Milkins was a thoroughly deserved winner, continued Foulds, who paid tribute to the veteran for playing such good snooker under so much pressure.

“Nothing got in his way,” Foulds added.

“I thought that break in that last frame was as good as any I’ve seen in many, many years by anybody. He’s got a different sort of agenda going on to the man he’s playing, he’s got a different battle to win with this bonus. For Robert Milkins, there was something extra, and all of the spin-offs – the Champion of Champions, the Players Tour Championship, he’s probably going to be at the Crucible now. Maybe at the Masters next year, all of these things, and all of it was hinging on those last couple of frames.

“He can play under pressure, there’s no doubt. He’s a seasoned player. In this world of people having mind coaches, different technical coaches, going on special diets – there is a guy who is just a good snooker player, you know? And all of that stuff he doesn’t do – let’s be honest – he’s just an ordinary bloke, but what a player.

“Tonight, he was by far the better player. Most of the time he played well. I mean, he’s just said ‘I played alright’; that’s as much as you’re going to get out of him.

“He put in all the big balls and when he didn’t know what to do, he would be very composed and play a safety shot in keeping with a man with all of the experience that he’s got, you know. A terrific performance from a great snooker player. A popular character on the tour and tonight is his night.”

– – –