Davis beaten in epic battle

St Leonards' world number 40 found himself on the wrong end of a 5-4 scoreline after an epic match against Scotland's 27th ranked Drew Henry, denying him a shot at former World Champion John Higgins.

Davis, who knocked out Alan McManus en route to the last 16 where he was beaten by Higgins last year, qualified for the final stages of his home tournament courtesy of a 5-1 win over another Scot Marcus Campbell in Prestatyn, Wales, on Thursday, last week, with a top break of 57.

The next assignment for the 2002 Benson & Hedges Championship winner is a first round clash with Stephen Maguire at the Travis Perkins UK Championship which gets under way in York from Monday. Davis beat Rod Lawler 9-4 to book his place in the main draw.