Players started to assemble in the playing hall all morning, firstly those staying at the hotel, then those staying in accommodation nearby and later on those having to travel, sometimes considerable distances in difficult weather conditions.
At 1 o’clock there were the usual welcoming words to all entrants, followed by a few words about former regulars, Heinz Herschmann and John Gorodi, who had passed away earlier in the year. As this was Ewart Smith’s 10th Seniors and last event he would control, and presentation was made to him of a framed photograph of him in action at his previous event, in Bournemouth, taken by and organised by Brendan O’Gorman.
A few last-minute alterations had had to be done to the accellerated Swiss draw, due to a few unexpected arrivals and delays, but play started a few minutes after 1 o’clock with no-one without a game, no forced byes. Most games went with grading, though there were a few surprises.
| “Juniors” | Rd. 1 | ||||||||
| 1 | D. Rogers | 158 | (0) | 0 | 1 | A. Brown | 185 | (0) | |
| 2 | J. Wells | 183 | (0) | 1 | 0 | M. Roberts | 145 | (0) | |
| 3 | C. Sellwood | 156 | (0) | 0 | 1 | S. Dilleigh | 182 | (0) | |
| 4 | I. Heppell | 174 | (0) | ½ | ½ | R. Burton | 152 | (0) | |
| 5 | T. Thynne | 161 | (0) | 1 | 0 | R. Wynarczyk | 173 | (0) | |
| 6 | I. McAllan | 170 | (0) | ½ | ½ | D. Sheppard | 147 | (0) | |
| 7 | D. Orr | 127 | (0) | ½ | ½ | S. Bartlett | 169 | (0) | |
| 8 | S. Dean | 167 | (0) | 1 | 0 | M. Maber | 99 | (0) | |
| I. Cross | 147 | bye | ½ | ||||||
| I. Blencowe | 130 | bye | ½ |
| Seniors | 65+ | Rd. 1 | |||||||
| 1 | B. Gosling | 153 | (0) | ½ | ½ | A. Footner | 187 | (0) | |
| 2 | W. Adaway | 186 | (0) | 1 | 0 | P. Morton | 152 | (0) | |
| 3 | R. Scowen | 152 | (0) | 0 | 1 | A. Barton | 170 | (0) | |
| 4 | R. Everson | 164 | (0) | 0 | 1 | D. Toms | 151 | (0) | |
| 5 | I. S. Annetts | 162 | (0) | 1 | 0 | J. Shaddick | 142 | (0) | |
| 6 | J. Robertson | 130 | (0) | 1 | 0 | R. Waters | 112 | (0) | |
| 7 | O. Namouk | 140 | (0) | ½ | ½ | R. Gamble | 161 | (0) | |
| 8 | D. Openshaw | 155 | (0) | 1 | 0 | N. F. Tidy | 135 | (0) | |
| 9 | P. Errington | 137 | (0) | ½ | ½ | A. Price | 155 | (0) | |
| 10 | J. Reinhardt | 155 | (0) | 1 | 0 | J. Footner | 145 | (0) | |
| 11 | P. Wood | 147 | (0) | ½ | ½ | M. Page | 163 | (0) | |
| 12 | R. Curtis | 106 | (0) | 0 | 1 | B. Sandercock | 130 | (0) | |
| 13 | M. Adams | 130 | (0) | ½ | ½ | A. Fraser | 105 | (0) | |
| 14 | F. Day | 96 | (0) | 1 | 0 | R. Smith | 127 | (0) | |
| 15 | A. Sherriff | 125 | (0) | 1 | 0 | P. Lucas | 96 | (0) | |
| 16 | H. Welch | 96 | (0) | ½ | ½ | R. Hurn | 125 | (0) | |
| 17 | J. Clapp | 122 | (0) | 1 | 0 | M. Kaye | 91 | (0) | |
| 18 | D. Burt | 112 | (0) | ½ | ½ | R. Cox | 80 | (0) | |
| 19 | T, Maloney | 70 | (0) | ½ | ½ | K. Langmaid | 112 | (0) | |
| 20 | P. Carrick | 94 | (0) | 0 | 1 | P. Gordon | 118 | (0) |
General view of the playing area.
General view of the action.
Exouth player, Dave Rogers (W) faces top seed Alan Brown on Bd. 1 of the "Juniors" Section.
Brian Gosling vs Andrew Footner - game drawn.
McAllan vs Sheppard - game drawn.
J. Reinhardt (W) of Dresden on his way to a winning start vs John Footner.