Snooker hero Shaun Murphy ruined his plans to propose to his long-term partner after the double Masters champion excelled at the British Open this year
Snooker hero Shaun Murphy is preparing to walk down the aisle for a third time after proposing to his partner Jo Rochell. But his own success on the table nearly derailed his romantic plans.
The 43-year-old recently got down on one knee to ask girlfriend Rochell, his partner of four years, to marry him, with her immediately accepting. Whilst Murphy eventually popped the question in the comfort of their home, his original elaborate proposal scheme was inadvertently scuppered by his own prowess with the cue.
The two-time Masters winner had orchestrated a plan to propose at one of the pair’s beloved restaurants. However, his triumph at the British Open, followed by reaching the Xi’an Grand Prix final in China the subsequent month – where he was defeated by Mark Williams – threw a spanner in the works.
Unbeknownst to Rochell, whilst she was supporting his progress at the Cheltenham tournament, he was delaying her engagement to the snooker champion, as victory would have meant he’d be unavailable on the date he’d earmarked for the proposal.
Murphy explained: “The funny story is that I’d planned to do the engagement at our favourite hotel, which is up in North Yorkshire. I’d planned to do the engagement there over the dates of the 167 event [in Saudi Arabia].”
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He added: “By winning the British and getting to the final in China two weeks ago that meant I couldn’t do that – so the plans had to change. Jo is at home celebrating every match that I win, not knowing that it’s cancelling the engagement.
“So there was a bit of last-minute change of plan, but that’s why it ended up being a spur-of-the-moment and we came out here. All the best laid plans! I’d ruined my own engagement by winning the British Open!”
The snooker star, nicknamed ‘the Magician’, has travelled to Nanjing for the International Championship, which got underway on Sunday. But he arrived in China feeling slightly fragile after celebrating his engagement by polishing off a fair few glasses of champagne during his flight.
The reigning Masters champion said: “I don’t know if anyone celebrates on their way to Nanjing. I don’t know if anyone’s ever done that before, but that’s what we did. It was a last-minute thing. Last minute before we came out. Yeah, we’re both delighted.”
Describing how he finally popped the question, he said: “We went out for dinner and I had the ring in my pocket and it was all very low key. In the end, it didn’t feel right to do it in the restaurant in front of a load of strangers, so we went home and had a drink and just did it in the privacy of our own home.
“It was a nice personal moment, and as I say, it was very special, it’s been a long time coming. We’re both really delighted, excited. Hopefully, it’ll be a great week here. It’s already been a good week. A lovely week on and off the table.
“It’s magical, and of course, it’s the run-up to Christmas, and the Triple Crown events are about to start. Some big tournaments round the corner.”
He concluded: “We’re obviously in a great mindset, we’re both going to have a great time, whatever happens. There’s no champagne left on Emirates, because we drank it dry. So, we’ll have a nice week. We’re going to be celebrating for a bit longer yet.”
Murphy has been married twice before. He first wed Clare Llewellyn in 2005 and then in 2016, he exchanged vows with Ireland-based academic Elaine, the mother of his two children. However, they decided to part ways on amicable terms two years ago.
