Like a fine wine that gets better with age. Italian Marco Zanetti was the oldest player in the main draw of the Sharm El Sheikh World Cup, and he was also the best. He captured his fourth World Cup gold medal, beating Dick Jaspers in the final: 40 – 29 in 14 innings.
Torbjorn Blomdahl of Sweden is once again king of the three cushion hill winning his seventh world championship title. The tournament held this year in Randers, Denmark was marked with moments of drama, high caliber play and heartbreak. But it was sheer joy for Blomdahl who at 57 has once again stunned the world with his grit and talent.
Belgian Eddy Merckx (2nd left above) survived one first round loss in the round robin phase of the main event to ultimately advance and reach the final match against France's Jeremy Bury (1st left above) in the Guri World Cup. Merckx, one of the toughest competitors in the professional 3-Cushion Billiard circuit proved once again why he is a multiple titleholder in Survival matches, World Cup's and World Championships with his victory.
The 27-year-old Korean Haeng-Jik Kim has won his third World Cup in his career in Veghel in the Netherlands. The former four-time junior world champion defeated the Turk Lütfi Cenet in the final in a crowded house after a miraculous come-back, 40-35 in 21 innings. The victory, after trailing 21-1 in three innings, looks even more spectacular, because Kim lost his first two matches in the tournament and returned from a precarious position. "This makes me very happy," said the amiable Korean after the ceremony in the arena. Pictured above (L to R): Duc Anh Chien Nguyen. Antonio Montes, Lütfi Cenet and the winner Haeng-Jik Kim.
Therese Klompenhouwer of the Netherlands defended her 2018 Ladies World Championship title winning for the fourth time, while in his final year as a junior Korea's Myung-Woo Cho notched his third Junior World Championship trophy. The fabulous repeat winners played in consecutive events held in Valencia, Spain from September 20 through October 5, 2019.
The 2019 Verhoeven Open in New York ended in a day of mighty triumph for Belgian Eddy Merckx. The defending champion in the event – having beaten Germany's Martin Horn in the 2018 final – was literally unstoppable in his repeat run for the trophy. Merckx finished the event unbeaten in 12 games and capped his win in the final match against Torbjorn Blomdahl with a majestic run of 18. Simply breathtaking.
World Champion and number one ranked Dick Jaspers of the Netherlands defeated Korea's Haeng-Jik Kim in a tough fought final match to win the fourth event in the series, the 2019 UMB World Cup held in Porto, Portugal.
Three times Junior World Champion Javier Palazon of Spain, at age 31 adds his first world cup victory in Blankenberge, Belgium to his list of accomplishments. Palazon defeated a favored Martin Horn of Germany in the finals with a combination of tenacious will and disciplined defensive strategy to achieve his career first victory.