Everything the Leeds-born talent always wished to do was compete on the baize.
A competitive passion, caught at the tender age of three with the help of a small snooker set on his home's central table in his Leeds home, would result in a pro playing days that saw him secure six major trophies in six years.
Now marks 20 years since the beloved Hunter died from cancer, days short to his twenty-eighth birthday.
But in spite of the passing of a phenomenal skill that went beyond the sport he adored, his enduring mark on snooker and those who were close to him persist as vibrant now.
"It was impossible to foresee in a lifetime the boy would become a pro on the circuit," Kristina Hunter states.
"But he just adored it."
Hunter's father remembers how his son "showed no interest in anything else" besides snooker as a child.
"He never stopped," he says. "He practiced every night after school."
After persistently asking his dad to take him to a community venue to play on regulation tables at the age of eight, the young Hunter made the jump from miniature games with aplomb.
His raw skill would be developed by the former world title holder Joe Johnson, from the adjacent city, at a now former establishment in the north Leeds suburb of Yeadon.
With his family's urging to do his homework often being ignored as training came first, his parents took the "risk" of taking Hunter out of school at the fourteen years old to fully concentrate on carving out a career in the game.
It was a resounding success. Within a short period, their young son had won his initial major win, the Welsh Open of 1998.
Considered one of snooker's hardest tournaments to win because of the involvement of exclusively the best, Hunter was victorious a trio of times, in consecutive years.
But for all his success on the table, away from the game Hunter's approachable nature never deserted him.
"He was incredibly composed did Paul," Alan says. "He got on with everybody."
"If you met him you'd take to him," Kristina adds. "Paul was fun. He'd make you relaxed."
Hunter's widow Lindsey, with whom he had a child, describes him as an "incredible, lively, and kind spirit" who was "witty, generous" and "always the last to leave the party".
With his easy charm, youthful appearance and honest interview style, not to mention his prodigious ability, Hunter quickly became snooker's poster boy for the modern era.
No wonder then, that he was nicknamed 'The Snooker World's Beckham'.
In 2005, a year that should have signaled the peak of his powers, Hunter was diagnosed with cancer and would later undergo cancer therapy.
Multiple accounts from across the professional tour highlight the man's extraordinary commitment to fulfill commitments to charity matches, tournaments, and media duties, all while going through treatment.
Despite difficult symptoms, Hunter continued to compete through the illness and received a standing ovation at The World Championship arena when he played at the World Championships that year.
When he died in autumn 2006, snooker's family-like circuit lost one of its cherished personalities.
"The pain is immense," Kristina says. "It is a terrible thing for any mum and dad to suffer such a loss."
Hunter's true contribution would be felt not in royal circles but in local sports centers across the UK.
The charity in his name, set up before his death, would provide free snooker sessions to youths all over the country.
The initiative was so successful that, according to reports, local youth crime rates in some areas dropped significantly.
"The aim remained for a scheme to help offer a constructive activity," one official said.
The Foundation helped establish the basis for a huge coaching programme, which has opened up playing opportunities to children globally.
"It would have thrilled him what we've done with the sport and where it is today," a chairman in the sport stated.
Historic matches of their son's matches online help his parents stay "close to him".
"I can bring it up and I can watch Paul whenever I wish," Kristina says. "It's marvellous!"
"We don't mind talking about Paul," she continues. "Initially it was painful, but I'd rather somebody talk than him not be mentioned at all."
Even though he never won the World Championship, the widespread belief that Hunter would have secured snooker's ultimate trophy is etched into the sport's legend.
The Masters, the competition with which he is most associated, starts later this month. The winner will lift the memorial cup.
But for all his accomplishments, 20 years after his death it is Paul Hunter's personality, as much his spectacular skill with a cue, that will ensure he is forever celebrated.
