At the 1977 World Championship a couple of months later, he defeated Higgins again in the first round but lost to Dennis Taylor in the quarter-final 11–13. At the end of 1977, he reached the final of the first UK Snooker Championship, losing to Patsy Fagan 9–12. He won the title at the 1978 UK Championship, however, beating David Taylor 15–9, and he defeated Ray Reardon in the same season to win the Irish Masters 6–5. He won the 1980 Champion of Champions, with a 10–8 victory over John Virgo in the final.