ISTANBUL - The world of Semih Sayginer, one of the big stars in billiards, looks very different today than it did roughly five years ago. The now 55-year-old Turkish ball wizard, as he is often called, won the European title in three cushion in 1999 and the world title in 2003, but disappeared from the world circuit some ten years ago for a long stop in his career. Sayginer, who was in a fight with the Turkish federation, went into show business and became famous in his country as a singer, entertainer and show master, performing for big audiences. Semih left his billiards career behind as well as thousands of disappointed fans. More than two years ago, when global three cushion entered a new era, he returned to the sport that he loves so much. "I finally saw a future for billiard players to live as a professional sportsman," he said when he announced his come-back. The return to the top is still in full swing. Semih Sayginer climbed to the fifth place on the world ranking in two years with strong performances in tournaments and is hungry to win big international tournaments again as the figurehead of Turkish billiards.
He will be at the start this week (today, Wednesday 21 of August until Saturday 24) of the Survival 3C Masters in Istanbul, a tournament organized by Kozoom International, in cooperation with the UMB, the world federation. It is the first Survival Masters in Europe after the successful start in Korea, the country where the game format (four players together in one match with special rules) originated.
Kozoom had an interview with the Turkish magician of billiards in the run-up to the Survival: about his sport, his come-back, the future of billiards, his private life and developments in global billiards. "We have made good progress, but it can be even better and more attractive to promote our sport world wide on TV."
Kozoom/Frits Bakker: The short summer break is over, ready for a new start this week with the Survival in your home land. How do you look forward to this special event?
Semih Sayginer: I really like it to perform in my own Istanbul with the world top after I returned from New York. I could deal after some days with the New York jetlag and I prepared very well for the Suvival with daily, long practice sessions. I must say that we did not have a good time privately with my wife Senay in the months of March, April and May due to my wife's physical problems. That's why I decided to participate in New York, with the main goal to play many games. I am satisfied with my results there, but unfortunately, I could not win. My match against Torbjörn turned into his favor after his high run to enter the decisive part, but we all know how very close and high levelled we are all together. You can lose control of a match without being able to turn it into your favor.
Kozoom/FB: How did you feel, how did you like the first Survival events? Did you enjoy the format, are the tactic and strategy completely different?
SS: Yes, it's different, of course, to not play a one-to-one match, but I like it. When you play well or badly in a normal match, it's the same in a game with four players. The mission is: you must score many points and make it difficult for the opponent who's playing after you. The format is nice, but in such a strong field, everyone can win and lose.
Semih Sayginer: the format is nice, the level is high
Kozoom/FB: Can you have a review with us on the previous year, 2018, and the start in 2019: playing a lot of strong tournaments, often in top 4 or top 8, a World Cup final, still chasing for a big win? Are you satisfied?
SS: My season was good, I made a big step, but actually, after this year, 2018, being back and on my way to the top, I expected more in terms of more wins. I went into a battle with the world top after a seven-and-a-half-year stop. The new year, 2019, has not yet shown the progress that I wanted and expected. I'm not looking for an excuse, but things happened in our lives, for my wife Senay and me, that have disrupted my rhythm and my focus. We moved from Bodrum, a city some 800 kilometers from Istanbul, back to Istanbul, after having lived there for a year and a half. We felt at home there, but eventually we decided to rent out our house. We have a few apartments in Istanbul that we rent out. And now we rented a very nice house with a garden, also because we have a dog, a German shepherd, that we want to give more space than living in an apartment. We now stay in a wonderful place close to the new airport. It feels like holiday for us and the dog feels at home. We now rent our house in Bodrum to a famous composer who has written lots of wonderful music.
Kozoom/FB: Your love for Senay is very intense and important to you. She often joins you, travelling to the tournaments to support you. What can you tell us about your life together?
SS: My wife's name is Senay Gürler, she has a 36 year old daughter named Duygu and Simya is her grand daughter. We are living together for five-and-a half years now, we're not officially married, but we don't need that. We love each other very much and she started loving billiards since we met. Senay is an actress allready for a long time doing action movies, tv series and known as one of the best voice overs for commercials like for Turkish airlines and tv companies. She is famous with her voice in Turkey. Before we met, she knew me from tv, but she had no idea about billiards. I taught her to shoot and enjoy the game. Now she loves the game and she feels good with all the people around in the arena's. She can shoot now, make 5 cushion points and she has a very good stroke, like me (laughing).
Semih with his wife Senay, her daughter Duygu and grand daughter Simya
Kozoom/FB: At this year's tournaments, she was walking around with a stick due to her physical problems. Is she doing well again?
SS: She's not perfect, but it's going better and better. Both the accidents she had, were very unlucky. She fell down in our house in Bodrum on 31st of March hitting the television unit with her forehead. The result was that she had big problems in her neck and her head. She was just getting a little better, when we were at the European championship in Brandenburg. I saw that she looked bad just before my semifinal match. The evening before she felt from the stairs and suffered a lot of pain in her foot. She could not walk for a long time, only with a stick or with me to help her. All these physical problems took more than 5 months. And she still is not perfect.
Kozoom/FB: To return to billiards, how do you see the Semih in 2019 compared to the Semih in the previous year and after your come-back in the circuit?
SS: My first year after the come-back, and following the seven years in which I stopped playing billiards because of my lack of confidence towards the Turkish federation, was promising. I played some excellent matches against world top players, I won, I lost, I played some stupid games, but I allowed myself more time to return to the top. This year, the private circumstances had an impact on further growth. But still, I give it all for myself to win matches and finally I want to win titles and big tournaments. By playing many matches and having long practice sessions, a lot of them with Tayfun, Murat Tüzül and others in the Max billiard club, the biggest in Istanbul. I feel that my power, my stroke, my focus and confidence are there, now it's time to win.
Semih Sayginer: I feel that my power, my stroke, my focus and confidence are there, now it's time to win
Kozoom/FB: Two years ago, at your come-back, you said in an interview: from now on I start a new life as a professional player. What does that mean to you? Do you have time for a life besides billiard, like performances, activities in show business, which was a part of your life?
SS: Billiards is my life now. In my earlier years, before my long break, I played billiards, but couldn't make a living, so I was not a professional player at all. I did many things to make money for my living, speaking at events and motivation sessions, singing, I performed on television, in shows. I used my talents, most of all, because it was impossible to live from the billiards money. Making good money in these years, was only for Europeans. Players from Holland, Belgium, Germany, France could play in team leagues and were well paid. But actually, it is ridiculous: billiard players who have to play in four, five different countries to earn their living. We, the Turks, Greeks, players from other continents, didn't have these opportunities. But of course, I played in the Dutch league as well, for nine years, because I wanted to make some money there. If you did not, you could earn a few thousand euros by winning a World Cup or a World championship. But I realized, that nobody can win 7 World Cups in a year. And even if you did, you could not make a living. That's why it was impossible to be a professional and it was another reason for my decision to stop. I didn't see a future. When the new era was coming up for the UMB, with more prize money, better tournaments, and thanks to Kozoom being able to watch our sport in the whole world, it was more attractive for me to come back and try to focus on a real, professional career. I told myself: come on, Semih, this is your chance, there is light at the end of the tunnel. We could finally start living as professional athletes.
Kozoom/FB: You are in the top five on the world ranking now, what are your ambitions for the next season? What is needed to keep on growing to a higher level?
SS: I can only say that I will give it all to realize my ambitions. Work hard, practice a lot and prepare for tournaments. I want to win and still improve my game. But being top five in the world is not a guarantee for many wins in billiards. The competitions are hard and unpredictable. Therefore, it is hard to say what you expect. We are at least with ten, fifteen top players, who can all win major tournaments. And because the level is so close, nothing is predictable.
Kozoom/FB: What you say is, when Jaspers, Blomdahl, Merckx, Caudron, Zanetti, Coklu, Tasdemir and other top players are facing each other, nobody can predict who's the winner. That makes it exciting and fascinating, but even world class players are vulnerable. You can lead 30-0 after three innings, you can also be 30-0 down. All players, no matter how famous, run into their ups and downs. The player who can win a bad match, can win a tournament.
SS: The main thing is, is the match running in your favor: the positions, a little luck, a little bad luck, one of the two players who can score a big run and play a fantastic match. Look at Eddy Merckx in New York. He really couldn't be stopped by anyone in his last two matches. What a level, 4 to 5 on average. But we all know what can happen to all of us: we can play 1 average in the next match. There are so many examples. I beat Dick Jaspers 40-25 in six innings in La Baule, but my next game was bad and I was out for the World Cup. I played against Frédéric Caudron in Blankenberge and finished at 40-28. He made an unbelievable twelve in the equalizer after a bad start of his match. And I lost the shoot-out, because of a bad break shot. And because I had to wait in my chair for so long and lost the feeling to restart the game. That's what I mean: we all play world matches and high runs play a poor level, even on the same day. I can speak about my expectations for my season, but it depends on so many circumstances. Form, feeling, focus, how the balls run for you and for your opponent: impossible to predict a winner before a match. I know it's hard to beat me, but I can play matches as well in which everyone can beat me. Three cushion is a very difficult and unpredictable game. That's why we all love this sport so much.
Semih Sayginer: Three cushion is a very difficult and unpredictable game, that's why we all love it so much
Kozoom/FB: The new start after this summer takes place in the billiard stronghold Istanbul. What can you say about the current state of Turkish billiards with so many strong players and tournaments?
SS: Much better in all areas than five or ten years ago. The best years of Turkish three cushion were in the late 90's with Tasdemir, Coklu, Yüksel, Cenet coming up, until the early 2000 years. Bad management in the board has made it worse for all players. But we are lucky, with this board we are back on the right track. I hope that my come-back was one of the reasons for that. I know that I can motivate people. Both when I speak for a company with a 1000 people crowd and in billiards. Players like Coklu, Tasdemir, Cenet and others have improved their level in recent years, because we came into a better situation. We win tournaments now, we are the world champions with Cenet and Coklu in the national teams, young players are coming up, big events. I am very confident that we will continue growing under the leadership of this board. And I'm happy that we are now organizing the first Survival Masters in Europe.
Kozoom/FB: How important is it for you to be in good physical shape? Do you have your training schedules besides practicing in billiards?
SS: I have to confess, that it's two years ago that I went to the gym for the last time. I feel that my body is changing. I urgently need to do more physical training to be in a better shape. Walking around with the dog every day is not enough. Billiard players have to be in a perfect shape to feel mentally and physically strong in long, heavy matches. I decided to go to the gym again (smiling).
Kozoom/FB: How do you like it, living as a professional player in these years, with much travelling and many tournaments?
SS: Of course, it's tiresome no wand then, but it's my job. If I didn't want this, traveling around the world, I should start a shop in Istanbul and stay home. The new era in three cushion requires a lot of efforts. We did want it and we must not complain. It's my job and I like it.
Kozoom/FB: Was there time for a short holiday break this summer?
SS: The summer was too busy with tournaments and travelling to plan a short stop for ourselves. I played in Blankenberge, Porto, New York, all events in a short time. And now, we run into the Survival and the LGU Cup in Korea one week later. In the old years, we had the Crystal Kelly event in the summer and two months stop after that. But it is as it is now. I would like a short stop in summer, like every athlete should have his relax time. Imagine that football players, tennis players, and other athletes should play major tournaments throughout the year without any rest. We play 5 Survivals, 7 World Cups, World championship, European championship, invitation tournaments. The calendar is so well filled now, that we have to play two tournaments every month. There is very little time for a break. The best for us should be that we, as professional athletes, could earn our money in ten months. And take a two months rest in a year.
Kozoom/FB: Which players do you often spend time with during the major tournaments: players from the world top, Turkish players? Or is the focus on billiards so strong, that there is little time for hanging around with other players and friends?
SS: I have a very close relation with Dani Sánchez, whom I consider to be a true friend. But if there is more time, if the schedules of the matches allow it, we often talk to each other: with Torbjörn, Dick, Marco, Eddy, the Koreans and Vietnamese, of course with the Turkish players and others. We are competitors in the arena, but the atmosphere among players is very good in tournaments.
Kozoom/FB: How do you see the development of three-cushion in the next three to five years? The averages are still going up, the calendar is attractive and well-filled, the prize money has risen spectacularly. Three-cushion can be watched in the entire world thanks to TV and internet. How do you see the future for the professional UMB players in the coming years?
Semih Sayginer: The situation in billiards has become better for everyone, of course, with more opportunities for all players, more big events, more chances, more money. I made my choice to play for the UMB and I feel at home there. The world federation has made big steps, it looks like we are on the right track, but beware, there are many more steps to be taken. We must realize that we can get into troubles. For the big part of money, we depend on Korea with its many TV broadcasts, sponsors, clubs and players. The danger is: if we lose the money from Korea, we can get into trouble. We have to take care, that's what I actually want to say. In case if there is any kind of better organizing parties, let's say, today it can be PBA, tomorrow any other kind of organizer, little by little they can capture the money from Korea instead of UMB and Kozoom. That can bring us into danger. What I mean to say is, we have to be careful as UMB to organize better scenes for tournaments for television, like it is going to be shown in Korea with wonderful settings, spotlights, live comments, interviews. If we keep on doing the same as we do now, maybe, we might lose the interest from the tv companies for the World Cups and championships. That's what makes me scared. We must not be relieved, neither the boards of UMB or CEB, nor the players. We need just the opposite to make it better and better in organizing events for television. Because what we see on tv exactly now, is not the way it should be. We are often playing in sports halls. That looks bad and amateurish. We are on the good way like in Blankenberge, Porto, in the Survivals. But if we call ourselves professionals, we should take care. That's my point of view, to not to lose any interest of tv channels from Korea. That's what makes me worry. It has nothing to do with criticizing any tournament organizers or Kozoom or UMB, or anybody. This is the truth. I mean, now we are trying something which maybe looks a little bit more professional. But we also need the professional look for the outside world. We have the money now, good money, comparible with many other sports, but still we have a way to go to take care of our professionalism.
We need the professional look for the outside world
Semih Sayginer after the New York tournament with Michael Kang's daughter at the ceremony
Semih, his wife Senay and the dog named Gece (Turkish for night)