The finals of the 8-ball division played out this afternoon at the 2022 Dynamic Billard European Pool Championships Seniors and it was Reiner Wirsbitzki (Germany) and the Netherlands’ Melissa Rademakers who comfortably took home the gold medals. It was Wirsbitzki’s second medal of the championship’s following a silver in the 10-ball division, while Rademakers made it two golds out of two, following up on her victory in the Ladies’ 10-ball.
Wirsbitzki was up against Poland’s Roman Wasilewski, who was part of Poland’s gold medal-winning team the previous day. However, the Pole missed too many balls to sustain a challenge in the final as the German ultimately ran away with it.
Wirsbitzki got the final underway and selected the stripes after a successful break. With just the 10-ball left, the German ran out of position and his safety attempt left a ball on for Wasilewski who looked good for the run out. He missed on a long 2-ball though, and Wirsbitzki took advantage to open the scoring.
It was the same story in the next, as following a Wirsbitzki miss, the burly Pole made the same mistake as the first rack in missing his final ball. Wirsbitzki was happy to accept the gift and increased his lead to 2-0.
Back on the stripes, Wirsbitzki soon ran out of position, leaving the white too close to the 9-ball to affect a pot. He left the cue ball in the corner and Wasilewski couldn’t make the on ball. Coming back to the table, the German cleared up for a 3-0 lead.
A missed 2-ball from Reiner got Wasilewski back to the table with both sets of balls available. He elected solids and looked good for the rack before missing the penultimate solid down the rail. It was another golden chance for Wirsbitzki and he took it to increase his lead to 4-0 in the race-to-seven match.
Reiner dropped a solid in off his break and chose stripes to continue his visit. They were nicely out in the open and he ran out to increase his lead. Wasilewski really needed something now and a good break gave him options. He took the solids and went through the balls. The 8-ball just about passed a stripe and he rolled it in to open his account, trailing 5-1.
Wirsbitzki scratched on the break to give Roman ball in-hand behind the headstring. He split an awkward cluster with his first shot but then missed the pink 4 to hand the table back to the German. With no hesitation, he ran out to put himself on the hill. Wasilewski took the solids off his break and he could ill-afford a single slip up. To his credit, he played the rack well to reduce his deficit to 6-2.
Three balls off the break, though, gave Wirsbitzki every chance to close the match out. However, a miscue, pocketing a 2/1 combination saw him lose position. There was an easy safety available which left Wasilewski in a very tight spot. His escape made contact with a stripe but it left the 4-ball on for his opponent and he grasped the opportunity. The final 8-ball was a slow roll into the centre pocket and Wisbitzki completed it for another German gold medal.
For Wisbitzki it was a successful defence of the title he won last year in Treviso, Italy. In fact, it was his fourth European seniors 8-ball gold, having also won way back in 2011.
Said Wisbitzki, “There were some very tight matches, 7-6, 7-6 so I’m very happy to win my second title in a row in 8-ball. I’ve been invited into the World 8-Ball Championship in Puerto Rico but I can’t go there in November so I hope that next year I can go there and play.
“It was very difficult as I played five matches today in 8-ball and now I must play two matches in 9-ball, it’s a little bit late, it’s complicated to play but I get it!” he added.
Bronze medals were won by Andrea Grosso of Italy and Portugal’s Henrique Correia.
In the ladies’ division it was Melissa Rademakers who claimed her second gold of the event, having come out top in the 10-ball division earlier in the week. Following that triumph, Rademakers stated that 8-ball was her best discipline and so it proved as she ran undefeated through the field before beating GB’s Alexandra Cunha 5-1 in the championship match.
Commented Rademakers after her win, “I came here for the 8-ball, that was my main priority and I’m really, really happy that I won that. 10-ball, of course was nice but 8-ball, that’s my game. I had a big mouth before the tournament so I’m glad I did it well and now we go for No.3.
“They were very happy and very surprised back home after the 10-ball win. My dad passed away a few months ago and he was my coach and trainer so I did it for him; he must be very proud and it seems like everything falls into place.
“I tried to hold myself at the presentation ceremony but I had to think about him and he must be so proud,” she added.
She now goes for her third gold medal in the 9-ball division which gets underway on Friday morning.
Jum Zwijnenburg (The Netherlands) and Birgit Heidorn of Germany took the bronze medals. It was Heidorn’s second bronze of the championships.
The 2022 Dynamic Billards European Championship Seniors and Ladies comprises nine separate events across four disciplines – 8, 9 and 10 ball as well as straight pool for men and teams.
Play continues later today with action in the men’s’ 9-ball division.
All matches can be viewed live at www.kozoom.com as well as selected matches on the EPBF’s Facebook page.
After a long day’s play, the Dynamic Billards Slovenian Open, held in the mountainous town of Lasko, is well underway. The winners’ side is down to the last 32 qualification round, whilst remaining players on the other side of the bracket have three full rounds to complete before the last 32 single elimination knock-out matches.
Zielinski enjoyed two wins to position himself in the winners’ qualification round heading into Sunday. Firstly, he peat Czech Petr Urban by 9-3 and then followed it up with a hard-fought 9-7 victory over Portuguese veteran Henrique Correia.
Commented Zielinski, “The first match I played near to perfection. I made a lot of break and runs and a lot of nice outs but in the second one I think I lost my confidence because I got the feeling that the cloth was a bit more slidey.
“It was very easy to overspin the ball so I lost position a few times and due to that I lost my confidence. But I’m still happy that I managed to win this match as Henrique missed a 100 per cent 9-ball for 8-7 up.
“Instead of that I was 8-7 up so I took a time out and probably he was thinking about it. He broke illegal and I took advantage of it for the win. It was very tough and a close one. I have two chances to qualify for the single elimination round and if I had lost this one, I think I’d have to win a few matches.
“It’ll be a normal day tomorrow. I’m trying to get my work done so it will be a normal day in the office. It’ll also be a long day tomorrow as you need to win four matches to reach the semi-finals so that will be tough.”
Thorsten Hohmann
From one of the younger stars of the Euro Tour to one still plying his trade, having won a host of international titles in a stellar career, Thorsten Hohmann also navigated the opening day, winning two from two to advance into the winners’ qualification.
Firstly, he beat veteran Andreja Klasovic by 9-3 on the main table and he followed that up with a 9-8 nail-biter against Austria’s Markus Pfistermuller.
Hohmann said, “My game is inconsistent and that showed in my last match. I had at least three or four misses that I’m not supposed to make at this level and it seems to happen too often. But I kept it together, used my opportunities, got a little lucky here and there at the end and I’m just super happy that I have two chances to qualify for the final stage tomorrow.
“I’m still very competitive and there are so many tournaments on the horizon that’s worth looking forward to so I want to play my game again. One factor is that I’m getting older, but I have some ideas of what I want to do. I have to be more structured when it comes to my training.
“I teach a lot in New York and that takes time away from my own practice and my focus on my own game. I’ve got to enjoy it as I get a bit too tight and when I was younger, I was more free and it was all fun, now it’s all serious and it seems like I can’t move. I’ve got to get more loose!
“I’ve played in a lot of Matchroom events in the arena and you guys put me on the TV table. I’ve had some good results – I finished fifth in the World Championship but just looking at all my matches, even the ones I won, there’s just too many unforced errors which you can’t make on that level. I believe that to win tournaments, you don’t have to make the ‘hero’ shots, you just have to reduce the unforced errors.
“I travelled half way round the world to be here but not just to participate. I want to do well and prove that I’ve still got it. I’ve never been the most consistent player in my career but I did have peaks so I just hope I can do it again, and I’m willing to work on my game,” added the German star.
As well as the prize money, there are Tour ranking points on offer as well as world ranking points, so there is everything to play for. All Euro Tour tournaments are 9-ball and players compete in a double-elimination format, playing down to the last 32 competitors, and then single elimination until the finish. All matches are races to 9 racks with alternate break.
All the matches can be viewed live at www.kozoom.com as well as selected
matches on Facebook Live on the EPBF page. In addition, the semi-finals
and final, played out on Monday night, will be live or highlights on the
following television stations across Europe;
SportKlub HD – Serbia, Slovenia, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedonia,
Bosnia Herzegovina, Greece
Eyecons – Netherlands)
SportKlub – Poland
ORF – Austria
B1B Box – Bulgaria
Results, live scoring and draw are available at www.epbf.com
In the final day’s play on the 2021 EPBF calendar, the destination of the 9-ball medals was decided at the EPBF / Dynamic Billiards European Seniors Championships, taking place at the BHR Treviso Hotel in Italy. In the men’s, it was Portugal’s Jorge Tinoco who won his third gold medal of the championships, while Alexandra Cunha (Great Britain) ruled the ladies division.
For Jorge Tinoco, 44, it was the culmination of a magnificent week in Treviso as he won the opening discipline, the straight pool, as well gaining gold as part of Portugal’s winning squad in the emotion-packed team event.
He said, “I’m feeling awesome and I don’t have words. I didn’t expect to win three medals and to win this one was special as I played against Paquito (Diaz-Pizarro) and he is an amazing player. I think I played very well in the semi-final and the final I enjoyed my game and took great joy playing pool so three gold medals are amazing for me.”
Facing off against Spain’s Francisco Diaz-Pizarro, the Portuguese won the lag, but a dry break immediately got the Spaniard to the table and wasting no time, he ran through the balls but leaving himself a slightly more difficult angle on the 9 ball than he would have liked, he missed it to hand the rack to Tinoco.
With four balls clustered around the 1 spot there were multiple visits as each player searched for an opening. Diaz manged to split them but the white unfortunately rolled into the centre pocket. With ball in hand and the table open, Tinoco cleared for a 2-0 lead.
A terrific bank shot from Diaz saw the 1 ball pocketed in the next and he was able to lay the cue ball behind a cluster leaving his opponent reaching for the jump stick. Tinoco scratched with his escape and from there Diaz ran out for his first rack of the match.
In the next, Diaz committed a shirt foul, whereby his garment rested on a ball whilst bridging, and Tinoco took full advantage to take a 3-1 lead. There was more jump stick action from Tinoco in the next and he got lucky leaving the 1 ball behind the 8. Diaz escaped but left the object ball on. Tinoco, who has been the star player of the championships, made no mistakes as he cleared up for 4-1.
An illegal break from Diaz piled on the misery for him and facing one or two problems in the layout, Tinoco played it perfectly for a 5-1 lead. An illegal break from Tinoco saw Diaz back at the table, facing no margin for error given his predicament, and he played the rack perfectly to keep his dreams alive.
A terrific jump shot under the pressure of the clock saw Tinoco pocket the 1 ball but with no available pocket for the 2 ball he played a safety. A difficult pot was missed by Diaz and that gave Tinoco all the space he needed to run out for a 6-2 lead.
Another illegal break from the Portuguese left a cut on the 2 ball on for Diaz but he over cut it. Tinoco uncharacteristically missed the 3 ball and Diaz won the rack with a 4/9 combination. A successful break from Diaz gave him a chance in the tenth game and he played his best rack of the match to get back to 6-4.
Tinoco, though, broke and ran the next to get himself to the hill at 7-4 and disastrously, Diaz scratched when breaking to save the match. With the balls out in the open, the gold medal was there for Tinoco’s taking and he executed the run out perfectly to cement his place as player of the tournament with an excellent 8-4 victory.
Tinoco added, “My head was very focused and I could control my emotions. In the semi-final, I was losing 4-1 but I still kept my composure and turned the game in my favour. In the final I just tried to play my best and I didn’t feel any pressure. I’m going to have a big celebration with friends and family when I get home.”
In the ladies’ final, both Karin Michl (Germany) and Britain’s Alexandra Cunha were looking to add gold to the bronze medals they won in the 8-ball and 10-ball divisions respectively. It was a cagey match with neither player asserting themselves with so much on the line.
Michl had gone into a 2-0 lead in the race-to-six match but Cunha fought back to level the match. They shared the next two to leave the title finely poised at 3-3. The German lady looked set for 4-3 with four balls left on the table but ran the cue ball into the black 8 to lose position.
She subsequently missed the 8 into the top left pocket. Cunha made it but left herself with a very tough 9 ball and to her credit, she potted it to lead 4-3 in the race to six. With two balls left on the table in the next, a long 7 ball failed to drop for Cunha, but Michl’s pot saw the cue ball cannon into the 9 to make the shot more difficult than she would have liked but with rest in hand, she rolled it in to level.
With two balls left on the table in the ninth game, Michl failed to pot the 8 ball and then scratched with ball-in-hand, and Cunha took them both to reach the hill at 5-4. The British representative saved her best till last as, under some pressure, she ran the remaining five balls on the table to record a 6-4 victory and with it her first ever European Championships gold medal.
Cunha was delighted with her win; “I’m really emotional as I can’t believe this just happened. I’m so pleased! I’ve been having some coaching and I’ve been trying to rely on the things I’ve been learning.
“I’ve tried to improve my game and keep my head away from the score. I was 5-1 down in the semi-final and got it back so I was really pleased with my focus given the circumstances I always want to learn more and improve more and try and be the best I can be,” she added.
Medals – Ladies 9-Ball
Gold – Alexandra Cunha (POR)
Silver – Karin Michl (GER)
Bronze – Ina Helvik (NOR)
Susanne Wessel (GER)
Team Portugal – Henrique Correia, Manuel Pereira and Jorge Tinoco
The Portuguese trio of Jorge Tinoco, Manuel Pereira and Henrique Correia took the team gold medal today at the EPBF / Dynamic Billiards European Seniors Championships in Treviso, Italy in a thrilling encounter with Italy. With three matches played simultaneously in 8, 9 and 10 ball, the first team to win two took the crown and it was Portugal who prevailed after a drama-packed evening.
The Italians got to the scoreboard first in the 10 ball before wins in the 6 ball and 9 ball gave the Portuguese the coveted gold medal.
For Tinoco it was his second gold medal of the week following his straight pool victory and it meant more than anything; “This is the main objective, that we come here to win the team event. I have no words as this is my first European Seniors and I have two gold medals, but this one is the most important for us. It’s for us and it’s for Portugal and it was our dream to win this.”
With the tension mounting, at the mid-point of the three matches, the Portuguese were in the ascendancy, leading 3-2 and 4-1 in the 8 ball and 9 ball and trailing 2-4 in the 10 ball. However, there were plenty of twists and turns to come.
In the 10 ball, Henrique Correia was 4-1 down to Gianluca Boni but got back to 4-3 to take the wind out of the Italian’s sails. A dry break from Boni was his downfall in the eighth game as Correia cleared to level it at 4-4. That was to be the Portuguese player’s last meaningful contribution to the match as shot-maker extraordinaire, Gianluca Boni, took the necessary three racks to seal the first point for Italy.
In the remaining two matches, Portugal was on the hill. Straight pool gold medallist Jorge Tinoco sealed the levelling point for his country, beating Fabio Petroni with three racks to spare in the 8-ball match.
That left it all down to the 9 ball and Portugal’s Manuel Pereira had reached seven racks first with a couple to spare in the race-to-eight match. The speedy Andrea Grosso, though managed to find something as he levelled the match at 7-7 to leave the destination of the gold resting on a final rack.
A dry effort from Grosso left the table to the excellent Pereira. However, he couldn’t quite make position from the 2 ball to the 3 but his safety left it on for the Italian. He made it, but with no pot on the 4 ball, Grosso played a weak safety. It was nail-biting stuff with so much depending on the rack.
The 4 was on for Pereira but he missed a difficult attempt and left a tough jump shot which Grosso slammed home. With the title within his grasp, inexplicably, the Italian scratched into the centre pocket, potting the orange 5 when anywhere else on the table would have done the job.
With the remaining balls out in the open, but no formality under the circumstances, Pereira held himself together to win the gold for the Portuguese. Unsurprisingly, the moment got to him and he went absolutely wild with joy and relief. It was a fitting conclusion to an absolutely thrilling contest.
A delighted Henrique Correia commented, “What can I say? I really tried. I came from 4-1 to 4-4 and then he made amazing shots so I could only congratulate Gianluca. But thank God, I have the two most amazing guys in the world next to me and they did the job this time. We always wanted to win this one as it’s all about our country.”
Finally, match-winner Manuel Pereira said, “My fifth title in eight finals in ten years which is incredible but this gold was our main objective so we are so delighted to succeed!”
Team Sweden Ladies and Team The Netherlands Seniors
The team competitions at the Dynamic Billard European Championships for Seniors & Ladies 2019 have been decided. Team Sweden won the ladies division while team The Netherlands took the title in the seniors division.
The final match in the seniors division was played between The Netherlands and Portugal. Jesse Thehu took a quick victory in his 8-ball match over Sergio Silva 7-4. The other two matches were very close. Jim Telfer was at hill-hill 6-6 with Henrique Correia in 10-ball when Rene Peeters pocketed the winning 9-ball in his match with Manuel Pereira 8-4 to win the team match and the title 2-0.
Top 4 Seniors Teams
1. Netherlands
2. Portugal
3. Germany
Switzerland
The ladies final between Sweden and Germany was very exciting. Ann-Sofie Lofgren took the first point for Sweden, defeating Anja Hehre 5-2 in 8-ball. Annika Nilsson fell to the sharp blade of Susanne Wessel 2-6 in 9-ball. It came to a shoot-out where the Swedish ladies took the title, winning the final match 2-1 over the Germans.
Top 4 Ladies Teams
1. Sweden
2. Germany
3. France
4. Switzerland
Medal table after 3 of 5 events
Rank
Nation
Gold
Silver
Bronze
Total
1
NED
2
1
3
2
GER
1
2
2
5
3
POR
1
1
2
4
SWE
1
1
5
SUI
1
2
3
6
FRA
1
1
2
7
NOR
3
3
8
AUT
1
1
Earlier today, several round of the 8-ball individuals were played. One interesting match was the clash between Jim Telfer (NED) and Mats Elfroos (SWE). Nerves were getting the better of both players early on as they both missed easy shots. It was Telfer however, who found his rhythm first and took control of the match. Elfroos couldn't put up much of a fight against Telfer and in the end, the final score was a clear 7-2 result that put Telfer to the round of the 32 player single elimination while Elfroos needs another victory on the loser’s side.
The Dynamic Billard European Championships for Seniors and Ladies 2019 will commence tomorrow morning at 09:00 CET with matches in the 8-ball individuals competition.
The Championships are played on 24 tables which are all streamed LIVE throughout the whole event. In order to be able to follow all the action LIVE, premium membership can be obtained at www.kozoom.com. Once a premium membership is held, all events for the respective period of time can be viewed LIVE. Additionally, a huge video gallery is contained in the website.
The event is hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organized by International Billiard Promotion (IBP). For further information and reference please go to the federation website www.epconline.eu or visit us on Facebook for regular news clips or contact our press office press@epbf.com.
The titles in the 10-ball competition of the Dynamic Billard European Championships for Seniors & Ladies 2019 have been awarded. Susanne Wessel (GER) won the ladies event while Henrique Correia (POR) took the crown in the seniors event.
The final match in the seniors division between Henrique Correia and Timo Hofmann (GER) was determined by several uncharacteristic mistakes. Correia came out strong and went up 2-0, but then was plagued by multiple errors that Hofmann benefitted from. The German took the lead at 3-2 before he too, saw errors get the best of him. With three major mistakes in three consecutive racks, Hofmann gave the match away. allowing Correia to take racks which he should have won himself. Instead of being 6-3 in front, Hofmann found himself trailing 3-6 before he won another rack to get to 4-6. Then, in the 11th rack, both players disregarded an 8-ball in a precarious position. Correia missed the 7-ball, leaving it for Hofmann, but it was Hofmann who quickly discovered that the 8-ball could not be sunk in the side pocket. Hofmann missed a difficult shot and left 3 easy shots remain for Correia who used this chance to win his 11th title on a European Championship level.
In the final of the ladies division, Susanne Wessel met Nathalie Rohmer (FRA). Wessel was favoured and it looked like she was living up to that expectation when she took a quick 4-0 lead over Rohmer. The nerves of being one game away from the title then seemed to get to her, as she missed important shots. In rack six, she missed an easy 10-ball which left the fans wondering if she would lose the match to her nerves. Finally, in rack seven, Wessel sealed the deal and cleared the table, winning the final match 5-2 over Rohmer for her 8th Gold Medal on European level.
The Dynamic Billard European Championships for Seniors and Ladies 2019 will commence tomorrow morning at 09:00 CET with matches in the 9-ball individuals competition.
The Championships are played on 24 tables which are all streamed LIVE throughout the whole event. In order to be able to follow all the action LIVE, premium membership can be obtained at www.kozoom.com. Once a premium membership is held, all events for the respective period of time can be viewed LIVE. Additionally, a huge video gallery is contained in the website.
The event is hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organized by International Billiard Promotion (IBP). For further information and reference please go to the federation website www.epconline.eu or visit us on Facebook for regular news clips or contact our press office press@epbf.com.
In the seniors division of the Dynamic Billard European Championships for Seniors & Ladies 2019, Jesse Thehu (NED) won the Gold Medal over Sascha Specchia (SUI) 100-91 in an entertaining final match.
Thehu had the better start and the better ending in the match. He ran out and took a huge lead at 93-3 over Specchia. While everybody thought the match would be over soon, Thehu then committed several easy mistakes which brought Specchia back into the match. The Swiss fought his way back into the match and trailed by only one at 92-91 with 9 balls remaining on the table. It was Specchia's turn to make a mistake though and he missed a relatively easy 1-ball in a decisive moment. Thehu made the most of the opportunity and ran the table to win his 2nd European Championship title in Straight Pool.
Top 8 Finishers
1. Jesse Thehu NED
2. Sascha Specchia SUI
3. James Telfer NED
Michael Stark AUT
5. Henrique Correia POR
Riccardo Sini ITA
Steffen Gross GER
Kent Karlsson SWE
Medal table after 1 of 5 events
Rank
Nation
Gold
Silver
Bronze
Total
1.
NED
1
1
2
2
SUI
1
1
3.
AUT
1
1
The Dynamic Billard European Championships for Seniors and Ladies 2019 will commence tomorrow morning at 09:00 CET with matches in the 10-ball individuals competition.
The Championships are played on 24 tables which are all streamed LIVE throughout the whole event. In order to be able to follow all the action LIVE, premium membership can be obtained at www.kozoom.com. Once a premium membership is held, all events for the respective period of time can be viewed LIVE. Additionally, a huge video gallery is contained in the website.
The event is hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organized by International Billiard Promotion (IBP). For further information and reference please go to the federation website www.epconline.eu or visit us on Facebook for regular news clips or contact our press office press@epbf.com.
Timo Hofmann (GER) has advanced to the quarterfinals of the 10-ball individuals with a 7-3 victory over Espen Andersen (NOR)
Today, in the final round 16 players senior’s 10-ball competition of the Dynamic Billard European Championships for Seniors & Ladies 2019, Espen Andersen encountered Timo Hofmann. Both players came into the match undefeated and had both displayed strong play in the event so far. Neither player will want this match on their highlight reel, as the pressure got to both players early in the match. Both players were guilty of mental errors and the match was deadlocked at 3-3 after six racks. Hofmann managed to get himself together first and that was the deciding factor as he found his stroke and consequently took rack after rack from Andersen who seemed a bit helpless at times. The Norwegian was not able to win another rack which meant that Hofmann sailed through to a nice 7-3 victory over Andersen. This victory booked the German a seat in the quarter-final of the 10-ball seniors which will be played tomorrow morning at 09:00 CET. His opponent will be Sascha Specchia (SUI), the runner-up in the straight pool competition.
In the ladies’ 10-ball competition, the two German players Karin Michl and Susanne Wessel made their way through the winner’s qualification round. Michl took down Ine Helvik (NOR) 5:1 while Wessel defeated Nathalie Rohmer (FRA) 5:2.
Later in the day, the team competition got started. One close match in the winner’s qualification round of the seniors was the encounter between France and Portugal. Sergio Silva took the first point for Portugal with a 7-1 victory over Betrand Deloriol in 8-ball. Then, both of the other matches went hill-hill at the same time. It was Henrique Correia who snatched the second and game-winning point for the Portuguese by winning his 10-ball match 7-6 over Michel Natali.
The Dynamic Billard European Championships for Seniors and Ladies 2019 will commence tomorrow morning at 09:00 CET with matches in the 10-ball individuals competition. The 10-ball finals will be played at 13:00 CET.
The Championships are played on 24 tables which are all streamed LIVE throughout the whole event. In order to be able to follow all the action LIVE, premium membership can be obtained at www.kozoom.com. Once a premium membership is held, all events for the respective period of time can be viewed LIVE. Additionally, a huge video gallery is contained in the website.
The event is hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organized by International Billiard Promotion (IBP). For further information and reference please go to the federation website www.epconline.eu or visit us on Facebook for regular news clips or contact our press office press@epbf.com.
"The Terminator" Niels Feijen (NED) thrashed "The Hitman" Thorsten Hohmann (GER) with 9:3 in a very single sided match of the Dynamic Billard St. Johann im Pongau Open 2019.
The match was expected to have two ingredients: high class pool and close combat action. Both players are known to be able to perform on the highest level and have plenty of titles under their belt. In the early stage of the match, that promise was broken by a mile and spectators were disappointed a bit since the two contestants committed many mistakes and took wrong decisions. This unforeseen course of the match lead to a 3:1 lead for Feijen. However, during the match it was "The Terminator" who composed himself and got to his normal performance while Hohmann struggled. Hohmann kept on missing shots and playing bad positions and safeties while Feijen got to "normal mode". The logical consequence was Feijen running away on the scoreboard, taking a 7:2 lead after nine racks played. Then, a curious situation occurred. Feijen broke the 9-ball and went on the hill with 8:2. The rack was made for Hohmann who went in there and also broke the 9-ball! Two 9-ball breaks in a row, that does not happen so often. However, after that the match was over. Feijen cleared the table once more to achieve his deserved 9:3 victory over Hohmann.
Another remarkable match was the encounter between #5 ranked player Mark Gray (GBR) and Fabio Petroni (ITA) in the first winner’s round. Gray as the favoured player was seeded and had a walk-over in the first round while Petroni needed to overcome his first obstacle in the person of Denver Amoyo (AUT). Petroni wasted no time with his Austrian opponent and won the match quite comfortably with 9:4. Then, the experienced Italian met Gray. That match stayed open until the first six racks have been played. The scoreboard displayed a 3:3 score when Petroni shifted into overdrive and took the next five consecutive racks from Gray. He was simply outplaying the Brit who only achieved one more point before Petroni sealed the deal and hammered Gray with 9:4 to the loser’s side. "Long slog time starts now here in Austria!!!! Lost 9-4 to Italy’s Fabio Petroni he played decent and I didn’t!!!! Back on in a couple hours time…." was Gray’s comment on his public facebook page. Gray faced unheralded Sascha Ratz (GER) in his next match. There, he wiped the floor with the German and won 9:1 to get to the next round.
In an "iberian battle" in winner’s round 1, Francisco Sanchez-Ruiz (ESP) outfought Henrique Correia (POR) with 9:5. An unexpectedly clear defeat was handed to young Pijus Labutis (LTU). He was trounced 2:9 by Mats Schjetne (NOR). Imran Majid (GBR) steamrolled former World Champion Oliver Ortmann (GER) with 9:2.
Every day, up to two matches will be streamed LIVE over the EPBF Facebook page. Check for updates and announcements.
The Dynamic Billard St. Johann im Pongau Open will commence tomorrow, June 14th, at 09:00 CET with matches from winner’s round 2.
The Dynamic Billard St. Johann im Pongau Open are played in the Sporthotel Alpina Alpendorf in St. Johann im Pongau, Austria, on up to 24 tables which are all streamed LIVE throughout the whole event. In order to be able to follow all the action LIVE, premium membership can be obtained at www.kozoom.com. Once a premium membership is held, all events for the respective period of time can be viewed LIVE. Additionally, a huge video gallery is contained in the website.
The event is hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organized by International Billiard Promotion (IBP). For further information and reference please go to the federation website www.eurotouronline.com or visit us on Facebook for regular news clips or contact our press office press@epbf.com.
Left to right: Mario He, Wiktor Zielinski, Eklent Kaci, Denis Grabe and Albin Ouschan
The first day of the Dynamic Billard Treviso Open 2018 did not provide too many surprises.
#1 of the Euro-Tour rankings Eklent Kaci (ALB) had a walk in the park today. Smooth and easy victories over Finish young talent Micke Strom (FIN) with 9:0 and Wilhelm Georg (GER) 9:3 did not take too much of an effort from Kaci. The Albanian will meet Mariusz Skoneczny (POL) tomorrow at 14:00 in the winner’s qualification round.
Just like Kaci, Mario He (AUT) was not really challenged today. He played Germany’s Thomas Lindloff and delivered almost perfect pool. „I’ve barely seen such perfect pool“, stated Lindloff on his facebook page after the match. „Mario has not missed any shot until he was 7:0 ahead of me, including 4 jump shots.“ „What a performance from Mario!“ He will play Daniele Corrieri (ITA) tomorrow morning at 09:00 local time in winner’s round 2.
Albin Ouschan (AUT), Mario He’s teammate and friend, also did not undergo too much pressure today. He wasted no time against Eric Geppert (ITA) 9:1 and Michele Bianchi (ITA) 9:3 and will now join Kaci in the winner’s qualification round. His opponent there will be Radoslaw Babica (POL).
Wiktor Zielinski (POL), currently ranked #4 in the Euro-Tour rankings, was the exception to the rule today. The young Polish lost his opening match surprisingly clear against Germany’s Tobias Bongers with 4:9. On the loser’s side, Zielinski took down Jere Virtaranta (FIIN) 9:3 and is now up against Giovanni Di Martino (ITA). Zielinski will need to win many more matches to make his way to the round of the last 32 players single elimination. However, last year in November he demonstrated almost perfect pool here in Treviso so everyone knows that Zielinski is capable of coming back and far from being eliminated yet.
Denis Grabe (EST), who is currently on 5th place in the rankings, had two tough opponents today. In his first match, he had to deal with Henrique Correia (POR) who is always good for a surprise. Today, Grabe remained the upper hand and took the match 9:7 against the Portuguese senior player. Then Grabe went up against Imran Majid (GBR) in winner’s round 2. He quickly gained the lead in that match and achieved a 7:3 advantage over „The Maharaja“. Majid tried to come back but his attempt failed. After 13 racks, the match was over with a clear 9:4 victory for Grabe. The Estonian will now be up against Mieszko Fortunski (POL).
Friday through Sunday, EPBF will show two feature matches LIVE on the EPBF Facebook page. The complete tournament is shown on kozoom.com for premium pass holders.
The event is hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organised by International Billiard Promotion (IBP). Play starts Thursday at 09:30 local time, for further information and reference please go to the federation website eurotouronline under the Eurotour tab. You can also visit us on our Facebook page or check out the EPBF YouTube channel for regular news clips or contact our press office press@epbf.com.
