GANDIA – Two Dutch women in three-cushion billiards played the final at a Grand Prix event in Gandia, Spain, late Sunday afternoon. The victory went to Therese Klompenhouwer, the winner of so many tournaments in the world; silver went to Karina Jetten. The Spanish billiards stronghold turned orange at the end of one of the European federation's Predator tournaments. Therese Klompenhouwer vs. Karina Jetten ended 30-10 in 20/19 innings. The good news afterwards was that the tournaments, intended to promote women's billiards, will continue next year. This year in Belgium (Herstal), and next year in Gandia and Bottrop, among other locations. For Therese Klompenhouwer (43, in the prime of her career), these are great opportunities to occasionally pocket a top prize, this time 1,500 euros. For the other players, still lacking major young talents, the following prizes usually remain, because the Dutch multiple winner rarely lets anything slip away.
The success in the Spanish city, in one of the favorite regions of Therese and her wife Eveline, adds a little more to her list of achievements. Anyone who knows the exact number is welcome to say so, but most connoisseurs have lost count. Therese, as her own website reveals, is the 6-time world champion, 15-time European champion (including team titles), 20-time Dutch champion, and won her tenth national or international Grand Prix tournament in Gandia. Counting another 16 victories, such as the World Games, the New York tournament, and other major events, the tally stands at 67. Things went wrong occasionally in recent years, including against Charlotte Sörensen and Karina Jetten, two players who must now give precedence to the great champion again.
It seems as if there is always awe for the mistress. For example, Karina Jetten started in Gandia this Sunday with a 7-4 lead in 5 innings, but received very bad shots from Therese after that and missed no fewer than 14 times in a row. When the champion was already preparing for the ceremony (24-7), Karina managed to score a few times: 30-10 in 20/19 innings, 1.500 for the winner, just over 0.500 for the tournament runner-up.
The general excuse for weaker averages was: "The heat and the air conditioning made the billiard tables very slippery." In other words, in billiard jargon: the cloths slide as if you are on ice.
Therese Klompenhouwer had little trouble with that in her first and last match. The Dutch player showed the only four matches with 1 for every shot and an average over 1. The top two matches of the tournament: 25 in 16 and 30 in 20. Karina Jetten was number two with averages of 0.566, 0.810, and 0.526 in her last three matches. Therese Klompenhouwer defeated Guzin Mujde Karakasli 30-16 in 22 in the semi-final, while Karina defeated Charlotte Sörensen 30-23 in 37.
Three Dutch players had qualified in the qualifiers: Therese Klompenhouwer, Karina Jetten, and Monique van Exter. Also competing were the Danish Charlotte Sörensen, the Belgian Jaimie Buelens, the Turkish Guzin Mujde Karakasli, the Spanish Estela Cardoso, and the Czech Irena Michalkova.
The final standings with the top 8:
1 Therese Klompenhouwer 12-1.054-7
2 Karina Jetten 10-0.718-6
3 Guzin Mujde Karakasli 6-0.678-6
4 Charlotte Sörensen 8-0.649-4
5 Monique van Exter 6-0.544-8
6 Jaimie Buelens 4-0.492-3
7 Estela Cardoso 4-0.477-5
8 Irena Michalkova 4-0.441-6
