The 28-year-old Scot, who has become a millionaire from his earnings at the game had been tied with Ray Reardon and Steve Davis on six titles apiece.

Hendry had last won in 1996 but after a brief spell of poor form, regained his best snooker to win the title for the seventh time at the crucible.

Hendry's march into the final included wins over Paul Hunter, James Wattana, Matthew Stevens and Ronnie O'Sullivan to reach his eighth world final.

And reflecting on his tough route, Hendry Said: ``I've played the best players in the world, so nobody can say I had it easy.''

``I was tested every single match and it's given me even more satisfaction to know that I've come through what everybody's thrown at me.''

Williams was unable to recapture the form which saw him beat last year's champion JohnHiggins in the semifinals.

But he acknowledged that he gained valuable experience from playing in a world final. ``If I ever get to another final, I can probably take a bit more confidence into it,'' he said.

Hendry retains his world number two ranking behind Higgins while Williams moves up two places to number three.