STEPHEN HENDRY went to Aberdeen a week ago highly focussed on winning his native Scotland's "first ever world ranking event and duly did so by beating Tony Drago 9-1 in Saturday's final.

Breaks of 90 and 128 gave him a 2-1 lead. Two black ball wins made in 4-1 and prefaced the Malta number one's increasing helplessness as the six times world champion piled on breaks of 55, 48, 78, 94, 42 and 40 to equal Steve Davis's record of 28 world ranking titles. It was his 63rd professional title in all, pursuing Davis's record of 71.

Since October, Hendry has won four titles plus (with John Higgins and Alan McManus) the World Cup for Scotland while sustaining only two defeats, both in quarter finals.