Alex Higgins won his first world title, defeating defending champion John Spencer 37–31 in the final.

Higgins became the first qualifier to win the World Championship, and, aged 22, the youngest champion until Stephen Hendry in 1990.

Spectators at the final were seated on wooden boards placed atop beer barrels.

On the first evening of the final, the session was conducted with reduced light provided by a mobile generator, as the normal power supply was interrupted due to the miners' strike.

[9] Pulman had been touring snooker clubs as promotional work for the tobacco brand John Player, and the company had sponsored his 1968 match against Eddie Charlton.

[13] The 1969 championship is regarded as the first of the modern snooker era, and was won by John Spencer, who defeated Gary Owen 37–24 in the final.

[17] There was no sponsor for the tournament,[12]: 47  and the prize money was by arrangement with individual promoters;[18] The defending champion was Spencer, who had won the 1971 World Snooker Championship (which was actually held in 1970) in Australia.

Those in the qualifying section included Alex Higgins, and four former amateur champions, Ron Gross, Maurice Parkin, Pat Houlihan and Geoff Thompson.

[22] Graham Miles eliminated Bernard Bennett at the Castle Club, Southampton, and made a 115 break in the 21st frame, making it 15–6.

[23] In the second qualifying round, playing at Ecclesfield Ex-Servicemen's Club, Sheffield, Higgins took ten consecutive frames while defeating Parkin 11–3.

The match went to a deciding frame, and Williams was 28 points to 14 ahead when he missed an attempt to pot a blue ball from its spot into a middle pocket.

Higgins compiled a break of 32, and then, following some safety play, potted the green ball to clinch victory, 31–30.

[17] The final was played at the Selly Park British Legion, Birmingham,[17] from 21 to 26 February,[18] refereed by Jim Thorpe.

[8]: 84  There was a miners' strike in progress at the same time as the final, and on the first evening of play, without normal power, the session was conducted with reduced light provided by a mobile generator.

[8]: 85  On day five, Spencer was stuck in a lift due to a power cut, and the match started ten minutes late.

The win made him the youngest champion, at the age of 22 years, 345 days, until Stephen Hendry won the title in 1990.

[8][42][43] In March he was the subject of a profile in The Sunday People, and a documentary titled Hurricane Higgins was broadcast on ITV in September 1972.

[44]: 123  Journalist Donald Trelford wrote of Higgins that "This thin, pale, hollow-cheeked ex-jockey was something new to the game, cutting through its genteel pretensions like a swordsman.

[45]: 90  Promotions company West and Nally, believing that the emergence of Higgins represented a commercial opportunity, organised a further Park Drive 2000 event.

[32] Park Drive sponsored the 1973 World Snooker Championship providing £8,000 in prize money.