 Born in Harlow , England , Murphy began playing snooker at the age of eight after his parents bought him a snooker table for Christmas . He made his first century break at the age of 10 and practised at the Rushden Snooker Centre , where players such as Stephen Hendry , Mark Williams , and Ken Doherty have also played . At the age of 13 , he secured a five @-@ year £ 5 @,@ 000 @-@ a @-@ year sponsorship deal with the Doc Martens shoe company and stated his ambitions of winning the World Championship and becoming world number one . He turned professional in 1998 at the age of 15 . 
