3-Cushion
HALLE-ZOERSEL - On the first day at the World championship three cushion for ladies, four players remained unbeaten. Japanese three fold world champion Orie Hida was the best to launch the tournament in the field with sixteen players. In two rounds, Hida was the only player with an average over one in two laps: 1.136. Hida's best match over 25 caroms was finished in 17 innings. In doing so, she showed that she wasn't hindered by a jet lag.
The four players with two victories and the maximum match points are Orie Hida, the title holder Therese Klompenhouwer and two Korean players: Mi Rae Lee and Shin Young Lee.
In the four groups, the winners of the first sessions met each other in the second round. Therese Klompenhouwer defeated Marianne Mortensen from Denmark 25-16 in 30 innings Shin Young Lee left the European number two, Gülsen Degener, behind 25-17 in 32. Orie Hida knocked down the Belgian favourite Jaimie Buelens (25-13 in 27) and Mi Rae Lee, who won silver at the last World championship, sealed victory against home player Danielle le Bruyn 25-21 in 34.
The opening day at the World Cup was marked by a great ambiance in the playing room after UMB President Farouk Barki declared the tournament for opened and the spectators could witness the first performances at the blue tables.
The two big favourites, Therese Klompenhouwer and Orie Hida, could adapt quick to the new cloths on the billiards. Mi Rae Lee, the big talent from South Korea, had a somewhat lesser start with a win in 46 innings, but showed progress in her second match in 34 innings.
The ranking after two rounds:
Group A:
1 Therese Klompenhouwer 4-0.926-4
2 Karina Jetten 2-0.639-5
3 Marianne Mortensen 2-0.603-4
4 Miriam Pruim 0-0.483-5
Therese Klompenhouwer, one of four players who remained unbeaten
Group B:
1 Shin-Young Lee 4-0.676-5
2 Gülsen Degener 2-0.545-4
3 Soledad Gomez 2-0.365-5
4 Irena Hambalkova 0-0.347-2
Group C:
1 Mi-Rae Lee 4-0.625-6
2 Danielle le Bruyn 2-0.568-4
3 Namiko Hayashi 2-0.539-5
4 Johanna Sandoval 0-0.500-4
The young Korean talent, two wins in two performances
Group D:
1 Orie Hida 4-1.136-6
2 Jackeline Perez 2-0.661-5
3 Jaimie Buelens 2-0.528-4
4 Helga Mitterböck 0-0.381-3