World CupVeghel (Netherlands)

Glenn Hofman shows his ambitions again in his homeland

24/10/2023

Publié par frits bakker

Glenn Hofman, the great nr. 1 in the day ranking with 2.222 on average

VEGHEL - Dutch billiard player Glenn Hofman is well on his way to a big jump in the world rankings. He is playing his second World Cup in Veghel these days after returning from the PBA, the Korean pro league. With three other Dutchmen, Hofman promoted himself on Tuesday to the final qualification sessions, in which he has a shot at the main draw. Two wins against Ayman and Soares took Glenn Hofman to the top of the day's rankings with 2.222 on average. Glenn Hofman dropped to 234th in the world rankings after his stay in PBA, where he broke off last year after a strong PBA World championship, that was not rewarded with an improved contract. The Dutchman returned, but was just too late to play the World Cup in Veghel last year. There, in his home land, after a modest role in the Porto World Cup, the 33-year-old Hagenaar is now, on the face of it, one of the big contenders to score high.

The leading role was for two Dutchmen, Glenn Hofman and Barry van Beers, followed by Van Ly Dao, Jun Hyuk Son and Burak Hashas. Barry van Beers was a great number two following Glenn Hofman with 1,818 for the second Dutchman. Burak Hashas demonstrated his high class, winning over Morales and Kiyota. Jerry Hermans was the stunt player for the Netherlands with a brilliant draw against Kostas Kokkoris: the Greek finished with 9, Hermans equalised with 9. Peter Ceulemans, who starts tomorrow, played a match not long ago against Quyet Chien Tran: Ceulemans scored a 17 and Tran 22 a few innings later. ''That’s already very unlikely,'' Ceulemans said on Tuesday after the last games. ,,But finishing with 9 and an equalizing finish with 9 has never happened before, in my opinion.’’

The overview of the groups:

Group A:

The Asians are finishing it off in this strong group, with Dustin Jäschke running into two hard knockouts. Van Ly Dao and Jeong U Park both win in 14 innings against the German (2.143), who cannot get beyond 14 and 12 points. Van Ly Dao finishes the match against Jeong U Park with 4, the Vietnamese scoring a 3 from the equalizer, but that is not enough (30-26 in 22).

Group B:

Tran Thanh Tu has the best papers after beating Turk Muammer Rahmet 30-17 in 17. Alexander Salazar is steering towards a decisive match. The Colombian also moves to a win over Rahmet, in 21 innings. TTT Nguyen and Salazar draw in 25 innings, Nguyen is the number one, Salazar is the main contender for the best number two position with three match points.

Group C:

Glenn Hofman demonstrates wonderful form on this day with two wins and 2.222 on average, running 14 and 11. The Dutchman and Jose Miguel Soares both settle with Egyptian Mahmoud Ayman, who is developing strongly in his own country, second behind Sameh Sidhom, but still lacks experience on foreign match tables. Glenn Hofman goes like a rocket: he beats Ayman among others with a run of 14, which puts him two caroms from the finish already before the break. Hofman wins 30-11 in 13. Jose Miguel puts a 30-18 on the scoreboard, but in 27 innings, half Hofman's average. In the last game, Hofman is superior with 30-13 in 14.

Group D:

Turgay Orak is slightly more favorite for the group win than Huub Wilkowski. That is evident in both games against Christos Falangas, bringing the young Greek's remarkable World Cup to an end. Orak wins in 18 innings, Wilkowski in 28. Huub Wilkowski has a rock-solid finish and becomes group winner at the expense of Orak with 4 points and 1.333.

Group E:

The illusion also ends in this round for Wilco van Wijk, who played above all expectations. The Dutchman is beaten by David Pennör (30-15 in 23) and Rui Costa (30-25 in 25). The Swede and the Portuguese meet in a match initially dominated by Rui Costa (26-14 advantage for the FC Porto player). Pennör goes on the attack with 5, 3, 3 and 5 and makes the equaliser after Rui Costa finishes in 23 innings: 30-30.

Group F:

18-year-old Korean girl Ha Eun Kim leaves the tournament after two days of survival. The third day is a hopeless mission for the last lady in the World Cup. Mehmet Goren defeats her 30-17 in 23, Yasser Shehayeb, the only Jordanian, needs one more inning: 30-14 in 24. The Turk and the Jordanian play for qualification in a match that goes painstakingly to the end. Goren has the best finish and wins 30-29 in 37.

Group G:

Turkish promise Burak Hashas, at 17 the youngest player in this World Cup, performs very well after trailing 16-7 against Japan's Atsushi Kiyota. The match goes to a stunning finish. The Japanese misses at 28-27, Hashas, under pressure, grabs his last chance with three great points: 30-28 in 23. The third player seems to be a danger for Hashas: Robinson Morales beats Kiyota 30-19 in 25, but the final game (Hashas-Morales) is a one-way match. Hashas wins 30-10 in 18.

Group H:

The final stage enters with Gökhan Salman against Lukas Mortensen as the decider. Salman beats Lukas Stam 30-28 in 28. The first fight between Stamm and Mortensen is a marathon, ending in a draw in 35 innings. Salman is far better than the young Dane in the third game: 30-17 in 15.

Group I:

Two Korean Jeongs, popularly known as Jeong I and Jeong II, start the group against each other. Ye Sung Jeong (22) wins over Sung II Jeong 30-25 in 19 innings. Lebanese Abbas Naanouh comes pretty close to Jeong II (30-22 in 30), but cannot threaten the other Jeong.

Group J:

The Zeeland player Joey de Kok lets two games slip out of his hands unhappily. First at a score of 20-20 against Jérôme Barbeillon as the Frenchman can finish with 6 and 4 (30-23 in 28), then against Ja In Kang also after 20-20 due to a final sprint by Kang with 4 and 5: 30-21 in 22. Jérôme Barbeillon plays a superior last game against Ja In Kang with 30-9 in 17 and is the generous group winner.

Group K:

Hyung Kon Kim is a strong winner over Omer Karakurt (30-13 in 12) and looks confident to Karakurt's outcome against Claus Maurer (30-24 in 19 for the Turk). Hyung Kon Kim loses his last game 30-29 to Claus Maurer, but is by far the best in average in the group with three two-point players.

Group L:

The group of death after the first two games ended in draws. Jerry Hermans and Kostas Kokkoris play the most spectacular match of the World Cup so far. The Greek leads 21-16 as the match explodes. The Dutchman reaches 21-21 with a run of 5, the Greek finishes with a run of 9, Hermans makes a frantic effort. ,,I went to 5, 6 in the equalizer, without any illusion. Then I make an impossible seventh point, the eighth is not difficult, the last, under a lot of tension, is well played and I make a draw. A wonderful ending.'' Raymon Groot, the Dutchman from New York, is executioner, but the match against Kokkoris is also a draw: 30-30 in 21. Jerry Hermans comes through his third day of play at the World Cup unscathed, as he beats Raymon Groot in the late evening round 30-18 in 24 innings.

Group M:

Jun Hyuk Son has the best start with 30-25 in 18 against Tonny Carlsen (run 11). Pierre Soumagne goes down in the second session against Carlsen (30-16 in 19), so Son starts the last against Soumagne with the best chances. The Korean runs out of trouble, winning the latter 30-23 in 19.

Group N:

Dutchman Volkan Cetin does not show his best form, losing games against Stef van Hees (30-20 in 30) and against Cengiz Karaca even 30-13 in 21: an average of 0.647 for Cetin. Stef van Hees plays a super World Cup, but fails in the last match. He loses to Cengiz Karaca, who qualifies with 30-25 in 34.

Group O:

Barry van Beers is the next Dutchman to advance to the next round. He beats Kevin Vasseur 30-17 in 14 (first 12-1 behind) after strong demarrages at a score of 13-13 with series of 5 and 8. Vasseur in turn beat Jose Maria Mas (30-28 in 25). Barry van Beers lives up to his excellent form in his last game against Mas, which he wins 30-15, finishing on 1.818.

Group P:

Jean van Erp, favorite of the home crowd, loses the first match to Ronny Lindemann 30-27. The Dutchman recovers superbly with a win against Ragay Henry (30-14 in 13), boosts his average to a fine 1.628 and may hope for a position as best number 2. Those hopes fade after Salazar and Rui Costa go to 3 match points in other pools. Ronny Lindemann, back from a forced stop, wins his last from Ragay Henry 30-17 in 29 innings.

Tuesday's ranking: