John Welsh claimed his 5th Merseyside Open victory after defeating Josh Mulholland 4-3 in a four hour epic final. 

With the win, John has his first Open title since 2001. Incredibly it is his fifth open title spanning over 30 years.

John made his way to the final by defeating Pat Horne in the quarter finals and Neal Jones in the semi finals. Josh Mulholland was in red hot form defeating Alex Millington in the quarter finals and Lee Stephens in the Semi Finals, compiling 3 breaks over 70 in the process.

Josh also claimed the high break prize with a break of 100.