Hong Kong Masters 1987

Hong Kong Masters 1987 Riley's Hong Kong Masters 1987
Tournament type:	Invitation tournament
Venue:	Queen Elizabeth Stadium , Hong Kong
Opening:	2nd September 1987
Endgame:	September 6, 1987
Winner:	Steve Davis
Finalist:	Stephen Hendry
Highest Break:	92 ( Jimmy White )
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The Rileys Hong Kong Masters 1987 was a snooker invitation tournament of the 1987-88 season . It was played from September 2nd to 7th at the Queen Elizabeth Stadium in Hong Kong . The winner was the reigning world champion Steve Davis , who defeated the 18-year-old Scottish Stephen Hendry 9: 3 in the final. No century break was played during the tournament , the highest break was a 92 break from Englishman Jimmy White .

After the Tokyo Masters, the tournament was the second of three tournaments in the 1987 World Series hosted by Matchroom Sport .

Prize money

For the first time the tournament was sponsored by Rileys. The prize pool decreased by £ 11,800 to £ 75,000 compared to last year , with a little less than half of the prize pool being awarded to the winner.

	Prize money
winner	£ 30,000
final	£ 12,000
Semifinals	£ 8,000
Quarter finals	£ 4,000
Round of 16	£ 0
Highest break	£ 1,000
All in all	£ 75,000

Tournament course

As with every tournament in the World Series, eight professional players, mostly players under contract with Matchroom Sport and their boss Barry Hearn , and eight local amateurs were invited. All amateurs were eliminated in the second round, with only Sunny Tong winning a frame in his game against Canadian Cliff Thorburn . The eighth and quarter finals were played in the best of 5 frames mode , the semi-finals in the best of 9 and the final in the best of 17 mode.

	Round of 16 best of 5 frames				Quarterfinals Best of 5 Frames				Semi-final Best of 9 frames				Final Best of 17 frames
	Jimmy White	3
	Kenny Kwok	0
					Jimmy White	3
					Willie Thorne	0
	Willie Thorne	3
	John Chan	0
									Jimmy White	2
									Stephen Hendry	5
	Stephen Hendry	3
	Gary Kwok	0
					Stephen Hendry	3
					Neal Foulds	2
	Neal Foulds	3
	Ivan Li	0
													Stephen Hendry	3
													Steve Davis	9
	Cliff Thorburn	3
	Sunny Tong	1
					Cliff Thorburn	2
					Dennis Taylor	3
	Dennis Taylor	3
	Franky Chan	0
									Dennis Taylor	4th
									Steve Davis	5
	Terry Griffiths	3
	Stanley Leung	0
					Terry Griffiths	0
					Steve Davis	3
	Steve Davis	3
	Wan Chi Tuen	0

final

On the way to the final, both the then three-time world champion Steve Davis and the reigning Scottish champion Stephen Hendry had each given four frames, whereby they both only won a game in the decider . Now they met in the final, it should be a fight between the most dominant players of the 1980s (Davis) and 1990s (Hendry).

Davis started the final better and won the opening frame with a 55 break. But Hendry managed to equalize immediately, to which Davis responded with another lead. Again Hendry managed to equalize, but Davis now found his relentless style of play against which Hendry had nothing (yet) to oppose. Davis pulled away thanks to two +50 breaks and finally led 8: 2, so that he only needed one frame to win the tournament. Hendry saved himself in the twelfth frame, but Davis won it 74:25 and the final 9: 3.

Final: Best of 17 Frames Queen Elizabeth Stadium ,  Hong Kong , Hong Kong SAR , September 6, 1987
Steve Davis	9 : 3	Stephen Hendry
115 : 6 (55); 21: 76 ; 81 : 21 (77); 36: 77 (72); 67 : 38; 66:60 (Davis 58, Hendry 55); 75 : 11; 77:15 ; 112 : 27 (78); 70 : 57 (57); 44: 80 ; 74 : 25
78	Highest break	72
-	Century breaks	-
4th	50+ breaks	3

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c} Ron Florax: 1987 Hong Kong Masters. Cuetracker.net, accessed November 29, 2018 .  
2. ↑ Chris Turner: Other Non-Ranking and Invition Events - First held 1980-1989. Chris Turner's Snooker Archive, archived from the original on February 16, 2012 ; accessed on November 29, 2018 (English).  
3. ↑ Ron Florax: 1987 Hong Kong Masters - Finishes. Cuetracker.net, accessed November 29, 2018 .