Editing Ken Doherty (section)

== Early life ==
Born on 17 September 1969, Doherty grew up in a working-class Catholic family in [[Ranelagh]], Dublin, with his three siblings, two older brothers and a younger sister. He first became interested in snooker when he started to watch the BBC programme ''[[Pot Black]]'' with his father at eight years old. At the time, Doherty particularly admired [[Alex Higgins]]. He received a miniature snooker table as a Christmas present, and soon afterwards began playing on full-sized tables at Jason's Snooker Hall in Ranelagh.<ref>{{harv|Doherty|2011}}</ref> When he was 13 years old, his father died from a heart attack. Shortly afterwards, he won the Irish Under-16 Championship. After leaving school, he moved to London to pursue his snooker career, receiving free accommodation and practice time at Ilford Snooker Centre courtesy of Irish professional [[Eugene Hughes (snooker player)|Eugene Hughes]]. He won the [[IBSF World Under-21 Snooker Championship|World Under-21 Amateur Championship]] and the [[IBSF World Snooker Championship|World Amateur Championship]] in 1989, and turned professional the following year.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Doherty |first=Ken |date=2018-07-05 |title=Ken Doherty: Nearly Over Before It Started |url=https://www.thesportschronicle.com/more-sports/ken-doherty-snooker-irish/ |access-date=2024-04-02 |website=The Sports Chronicle |language=en-GB}}</ref>