Williamson Shield 2015

Play underway in Round 2

The Williamson Shield celebrated the centenary of its first staging in 2012. This year it took place (earlier than usual) on the first weekend in January at its home since 2004, the Maynard Sinclair Pavilion on the Stormont estate in the outskirts of Belfast. Although numbers playing were down on the unexpectedly high turnout in 2014, the 38 who did battle this year was still well up on the average over the last 12 years. There were therefore ample numbers for the tournament to be split into two sections.

The Shield itself was won by Ulster champion Gabor Horvath on 5.5 out of 6, with defending champion Gareth Annesley second and Calum Leitch, recent winner of the Ulster Masters, in third. John Phillips was the winner of the subsidiary Challengers section, with five straight wins after a surprise first round loss. Second place went to John McKenna, the only unbeaten player in this section. There is an excellent report at the UCU website.

A new Williamson Shield page has been added with detailed results from the very beginning of this long-established event.