England, Australia & Hosts South Africa Share World Masters Honours

The 8th World Masters Championships, the biggest ever international event in the sport, which was staged across five different venues, drew to a mighty climax in Cape Town with honours evenly shared between England, Australia and hosts South Africa.

A record entry of 672 players, representing 33 countries, competed in a total of 16 age-group events - from Over 35 for men and women to Over 65 for women and, for the first time, Over 75 for men! England, Australia and South Africa each won five gold medals, with Ireland claiming a sole gold medal.

South African Mike Tootill, runner-up in the Men's Over 35 event in the 2003 World Masters in Finland, clinched the 2006 title with a 9-7, 5-9, 9-4, 9-4 victory in the final over No4 seed Neil Frankland. The Scot made his breakthrough in the semi-finals where he dismissed England's top seed Mark Allen in straight games, while third seed Tootill crushed surprise German opponent Matthias Scholl, a 9/16 seed, for the loss of just two points.

In the Over 40 men's event, Craig van der Wath was in a different class from all the rest of the field. The top-seeded South African, winner of the O35 title in Finland, had his English opponent Jonathan Clarke, the No2 seed, pretty well on his knees with exhaustion after the first game, utterly controlling the T. After a one-sided second game, the third was over in minutes as van der Wath secured his 9-7, 9-2, 9-2 victory.

The impressive form shown by Australian Geoff Davenport throughout the Over 45 event continued in the final where he was too strong for a game compatriot Simon Gogolin, Fourth seed Gogolin was perhaps still suffering the effects of his four-game upset of Scotland's second seed Alan Thomson in the semis - but Davenport, a 5/8 seed, won 9-1, 9-1, 9-6.

With two successive British Open titles under his belt in the age-group, England's Peter Alexander was firm favourite for the Men's Over 50 title. The top seed from Suffolk reached the final without dropping a game, then despatched fellow countryman Stuart Hardy, a 5/8 seed, 9-1, 9-5, 9-2 to take gold.

South African-based Englishman Johnny Leslie was seeded four in the Men's Over 55 event. But the former England international upset top-seeded Australian Brian Cook in the semi-finals before taking on 5/8 seed Trevor Colyer, a New Zealander who also upset the seedings by beating South Africa's third seed Alan Colburn in the other semi. But Leslie prevailed in the climax, beating Colyer 9-2, 1-9, 9-2, 9-1.

There was Colburn success in the Men's Over 60 championship when Hugh Colburn, the No2 seed from Australia, beat England's 5/8 seed Martin Pearse 9-5, 9-6, 9-4 in the final.

In the Over 65 final, Chris Stahl took the first game against fellow Englishman Adrian Wright, but the latter then stepped up a gear and the second was over in one hand. Both had reached the final after impressive upsets, third seed Wright despatching top-seeded Welshman Brian Phillips in straight games and Stahl, the No4 seed, clinching a dramatic semi-final against New Zealand's second seed Barry Gardiner 10-9 in the decider! But Wright's mobility and crispness of hitting for the age are remarkable and ESF President Stahl had no answer in the finale, British O65 Open champion Wright adding the world title to his collection after a 7-9, 9-0, 9-1, 7-9, 9-5 win.

The final of the Men's Over 70 event was a tremendous match with British O70 Open champion John Woodliffe making Brian Heath work a great deal and a long time for his victory. Buoyed by his straight games upset over top-seeded compatriot Lance Kinder in the semi-finals, Englishman Woodliffe, the No3 seed, fought back from two games down against Heath to beat the second-seeded South African 6-9, 7-9, 9-4, 9-7, 10-8 with some amazing rallies that had a large crowd cheering loudly.

The inaugural Men's Over 75 championship reached an impressive all South African climax in which top seed Peter Fahrenheim defeated 3/4 seed Frank Allison 9-7, 9-2, 9-4. Earlier, Fahrenheim knocked out No2 seed Alex Hamilton in the semi-finals, but the Scot fought back to beat South African Terry Christy to win the bronze medal play-off.

World Masters debutante Sarah Fitz-Gerald comfortably won the Women's Over 35 crown to add to the British Open and World Masters Games O35 titles she already holds. The record five-times World Open champion from Melbourne beat fellow Australian Cindy Meintjes 9-1, 9-0, 9-4 in the final. Meintjes, the fourth seed, crushed England's second seed Isabelle Tweedle 9-1, 9-0, 9-0 in the semi-finals, while favourite Fitz-Gerald overcame South African Sharon Wakeford.

In the Over 40 event, local star Angie Clifton-Parks completed the family double of wins (as in 2003) with partner Craig van der Wath after easily beating Viv Doeg 9-0, 9-4, 9-4. Doeg, the fourth seed, upset second seed Susan Williams, from South Africa, to claim her unexpected place in the climax.

Janet van de Westhuizen (whose father was a bronze medallist in the Over 70 event) beat fellow South African Helene Kruger pretty severely in the Women's Over 45 section - the rumour being that there was a point to prove here to the SA Masters selectors! The third seed made her breakthrough in the semi-finals where she beat England's top seed Karen Hume in five games - but it was one-way traffic in the final which van der Westhuizen clinched 9-3, 9-1, 9-0 over her unseeded compatriot.

In the Over 50 event, Scotland's Pauline Douglas was just not strong enough to deal with the power and precision of Australia's Anne Richards. Douglas, the top seed, drew level after Richards took the opening game, but the second-seeded Australian again took control to run out a 9-2, 3-9, 9-2, 9-7 winner.

Australian Kathy Paterson claimed a big upset in the Women's Over 55 semi-finals when she fought back from 2/0 down to topple top seed Averil Murphy, from England, in five games. But in the final against fellow countrywoman and second seed Sue Volkze, 5/8 seed Paterson was unable to extend her first game win. Volkze ultimately prevailed 9-10, 9-3, 9-4, 9-6.

There was an upset in the Over 60 event final when England's No2 seed Ann Manley beat her top-seeded compatriot Bett Dryhurst 10-8, 9-4, 9-6. Earlier, Dryhurst had recovered from a game down to beat South Africa's former World Masters champion Jean Grainger in the semi-finals.

Probably the closest final - as well as astonishingly long - was the Over 65 climax where home committee member Glenda Erasmus went 2/0 up against Ireland's Barbara Sanderson and then had a match point in the third. But Sanderson, a 3/4 seed who had already put out top-seeded South African Dawn Kaiser in the semis, staged an amazing comeback to beat second seed Erasmus 5-9, 3-9, 10-9, 9-1, 9-1.

At the post event medal ceremony, 85-year-old Eric Grubb - the oldest competitor in the event - received a standing ovation for completing all of his games in the Over 70 event!

At the final function at a winery called Moya, WSF Technical Director George Mieras closed the 8th World Masters by receiving the WSF flag back from Margie Hunt-Kemp, Chair of the organising committee, and handing it over to Barry Gardiner, Tournament Director for the 2008 event in Christchurch, New Zealand.

Men's Over 35 Final:
[3] Michael Tootill (RSA) bt [4] Neil Frankland (SCO) 9-7, 5-9, 9-4, 9-4

Men's Over 40 Final:
[1] Craig van der Wath (RSA) bt [2] Jonathan Clark (ENG) 9-7, 9-2, 9-2

Men's Over 45 Final:
[5/8] Geoffrey Davenport (AUS) bt [4] Simon Gogolin (AUS) 9-1, 9-1, 9-6

Men's Over 50 Final:
[1] Peter Alexander (ENG) bt [5/8] Stuart Hardy (ENG) 9-1, 9-5, 9-2

Men's Over 55 Final:
[4] Johnny Leslie (ENG) bt [5/8] Trevor Colyer (NZL) 9-2, 1-9, 9-2, 9-1

Men's Over 60 Final:
[2] Hugh Colburn (AUS) bt [5/8] Martin Pearse (ENG) 9-5, 9-6, 9-4

Men's Over 65 Final:
[3] Adrian Wright (ENG) bt [4] Chris Stahl (ENG) 7-9, 9-0, 9-1, 7-9, 9-5

Men's Over 70 Final:
[3] John Woodliffe (ENG) bt [2] Brian Heath (RSA) 6-9, 7-9, 9-4, 9-7, 10-8

Men's Over 75 Final:
[1] Peter Fahrenheim (RSA) bt [3/4] Frank Allison (RSA) 9-7, 9-2, 9-4

Women's Over 35 Final:
[1] Sarah Fitz-Gerald (AUS) bt [4] Cindy Meintjes (AUS) 9-1, 9-0, 9-4

Women's Over 40 Final:
[1] Angelique Clifton-Parks (RSA) bt [4] Vivienne Doeg (RSA) 9-0, 9-4, 9-4

Women's Over 45 Final:
[3] Janet van der Westhuizen (RSA) bt Helena Kruger (RSA) 9-3, 9-1, 9-0

Women's Over 50 Final:
[2] Anne Richards (AUS) bt [1] Pauline Douglas (SCO) 9-2, 3-9, 9-2, 9-7

Women's Over 55 Final:
[2] Sue Volkze (AUS) bt [5/8] Kathy Paterson (AUS) 9-10, 9-3, 9-4, 9-6

Women's Over 60 Final:
[2] Ann Manley (ENG) bt [1] Bett Dryhurst (ENG) 10-8, 9-4, 9-6

Women's Over 65 Final:
[3/4] Barbara Sanderson (IRL) bt [2] Glenda Erasmus (RSA) 5-9, 3-9, 10-9, 9-1, 9-1