Page "Stephen Hendry" Paragraph 4

The 1989 / 90 season saw the beginning of Hendry's period of dominance.

That year, he won the UK Championship, Dubai Classic, Asian Open, Scottish Masters, Wembley Masters and his first World Championship, beating Jimmy White 18 – 12 in the final, elevating him to the summit of the world rankings at the age of 21.

The following season, he set a record of five world ranking titles in one season and recorded a hat-trick of Masters, beating Mike Hallett 9 – 8 after coming back from 7 – 0 and 8 – 2 behind in the final.

However, Hendry failed to retain his world title, losing to Steve James in the quarter-finals.

In 1991 / 92, Hendry regained the World title, winning 10 frames in a row to come from 8 – 14 down to defeat White 18 – 14, adding to the victories in both the Grand Prix and the Welsh Open.

He won the Masters, too, and achieved his first competitive 147 break, in the Matchroom League.

A year later, he retained both his World Championship title and a fifth consecutive Masters crown.

The following season, he retained the World Championship, narrowly beating Jimmy White 18 – 17 in the final.