3-Cushion
LIMA - Hey, hello, Therese Klompenhouwer, you know what you must do to beat Jae Ho Cho, isn't it? Yes, she knows, the Dutch billiard star, because she has done what Marco Zanetti, Sung-Won Choi and Jef Philipoom couldn't doe in the World Cup in Matosinhos and Eddy Merckx couldn't do in Lima today. The Korean is a player with many ups and a few downs, a coming-man, a player with a great potency, a winner of three tournaments this year and in the ranking of his country the number one.
He also was the player who lost to Paolo Andrade in Matosinhos and who defeated Marco Zanetti in a curious way. With six caroms to go, the Korean made a lucky shot that's rarely been seen and without even blinking with his eyes, he finished the match with six.
The 31-year-old Jae Ho Cho, from the same generation of Kyung-Roul Kim, has the potential to compete with the Korean top players. He is not impressed by reputations, as he showed against Eddy Merckx, the Belgian former world champion.
The impressive start of Cho, with a run of eleven in the first set, actually was the start of an easy match. Merckx couldn't take over the initiative, always looked at a disadvantage and lost in straight sets: 15-11 (7), 15-8 (9), 15-5 (7).
Marco Zanetti had a strong showing too in his match against Sung-Won Choi. The Italian has taken his form of his fabulous performance in the European Cup with Agipi apparently to Lima. The Korean couldn't continue his victory march after winning the Agipi Master.
Zanetti had a breakaway in his first set to 15-1 in four innings. He won the second after the Korean had missed a setbal by a kiss. Zanetti then finished at 15-14. In the third set he dominated from the start again. His opponent was by far not the big hitter he was earlier this season: Zanetti played 2.368, his opponent 1.470.