MASTERS CHAMPIONSHIPS
History was made at the Ambassador Cruise Line 2026 World Indoor Bowls Championships on the penultimate day of the 17-day showpiece tournament.
The new open Masters Championship was played and won by England’s Russell Bewick, a member of Hartlepool IBC.
Bewick, 57, a former Under 25 international indoor and outdoor title holder, is an English pairs champion and five-time Liberty Trophy winner.
He beat former world singles qualifier with seven national titles to his name Danny Denison 2-0 (10-5, 12-2) in the final.
Twelve months ago, the masters was trialled and was invitational with the winner being former Top 16 player, England’s Ian Bond.
This year, following four qualifiers held around the country with 32 spaces at each, four players who had all had their 55th birthday by September 30, 2025, won through to the semi-finals played today.
The format was similar to the normal playdowns with two sets of seven ends and tiebreak if required.
In the semi-finals, Denison, who won the Cambridge Chesterton IBC qualifier, beat Ireland’s John R Nicholl who qualified from his own club’s qualifier event at County Antrim IBC, 2-0 (13-1, 10-2), with Bewick (England) who was successful at Hartlepool also a 2-0 victor (1-15, 1-10) over Scotland’s Richard Mark who took the honours at the qualifier at West Lothian IBC – home of the WBT’s Scottish International Open.
OPEN SINGLES
It will be battle of the Auld Enemy in final of theAmbassador Cruise Line 2026 World Indoor Bowls Championships open singles – the pinnacle event in indoor bowls at the International Arena, Potters Resorts, Hopton-on-Sea.
Paul Foster MBE (Scotland) and Robert Paxton (England) will cross swords in the final tomorrow (Sunday) live on BBC2 and the World Bowls Tour’s social media platforms at 2.30 pm.
Foster, the World Bowls Tour’s No 4 seed will be bidding for his sixth title in this contest, while opponent, Robert Paxton, who holds third place in the rankings, will be looking for his second victory and going one better than 12 months ago when he was runner-up.
In the semi-finals, Foster ended the hopes of reigning champion Jason Banks looking to be the first back-to-back winner since Alex Marshall MBE in 2008 when he beat him 2-0 (8-5, 10-3).
Foster, who will be stepping out onto the portable blue rink for his seventh open singles final, interestingly playing with the same set of bowls Banks, also runner-up in 2023 as a qualifier, used to win the title 12 months ago.
Now Foster’s attention turns to the final himself where he will be looking for his sixth title having chalked up success in 1998, 2001, 2005, 2011 and 2017.
If successful, he will equal the record of the aforementioned Marshall with whom he won the open pairs title for the fifth time just five days ago.
His route to the final has been unblemished and he has returned 2-0 wins in all his four matches so far.
Round one against qualifier Mark Higgins (England), round two over sponsor’s invite Greg Harlow (England), quarter-final over No 5 Les Gillett and the semi-final pressing home against Banks.
Paxton, champion in 2020 who will be making his third final appearance, began his campaign with a 2-0 win over Israel’s Zvika Hadar, then got over the line 1.5-0.5 against No 14 seed, fellow Englishman winner in 2006 Mervyn King, before advancing 2-0 to the semi-final over Dolphin IBC qualifier Martin Puckett and finally an epic tiebreak thriller 2-1 against Scotland’s No 10 seed and 2014 champion Darren Burnett – who endured his fourth tiebreak of the tournament. Interestingly a tiebreak semi-final pattern emerging for Paxton with both his other winning semi-finals also going to the wire.
TODAY’S RESULTS
Masters championship semi-finals: Danny Denison (England) bt J R Nicholl (Ireland) 2-0 (13-1, 10-2); Russell Bewick (England) bt Richard Mark (Scotland) 2-0 (15-1, 10-1).
Final: Bewick bt Denison 2-0 (10-2, 12-2).
Open singles semi-finals: 2.30 pm Paul Foster MBE (Scotland) bt Jason Banks (Scotland) 2-0 (5-8, 3-10); Robert Paxton (England) bt Darren Burnett (Scotland) 2-1 (9-3, 6-11, 2-0).
SCHEDULE FOR TOMORROW (SUNDAY, JANUARY 25)
Open singles final 2.30 pm: Paul Foster MBE (Scotland) v Robert Paxton (England)
MORE INFORMATION
See draws and results for all five World Indoor Bowls Championship competitions: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/12rfi652WGXpFR13e1P6OzeeSBQBdiRFMJzKWWClwbsE/edit?gid=885959891#gid=885959891
All matches are streamed on the World Bowls Tour YouTube and Facebook page.
See also the WBT Facebook page for updates with interviews and results.
Caption: Ambassador Cruise Line 2026 World Indoor Bowls Championships masters winner Russell Bewick. Credit: World Bowls Tour