NEW YORK - The victory of Therese Klompenhouwer, this Sunday evening at the Jennifer Shim tournament in New York, made an end to all the doubts. The Dutch billiard star is simply the best in the world of women's three cushion. The final match in Flushing, where America's billiard mecca is housed, against the ruling world champion Orie Hida, was won with glamour, in the style of the real champion: 30-22 in 27 innings.
,,I needed some time to get well, but once I took the lead (8-run in the seventh inning), I controlled the match well and continued making points myself'', analyzed the unmistakable number one in the world. The scoreboard pointed 11-5 after the best run of the tournament, Therese was picked up again by the good old Japanese star (17-17), but then ran out quickly to 21-17, 26-19 to a comfortable 30-22 (averages 1.111/0.814). Orie Hida, shining in the semi-final against Ryoko Kobayashi (30-12 in 16/1.875 average), missed the good feeling and the focus for which she is so feared.
The rare and strange misstep in Therese's performances over the last two years, the loss of the world title in a match against a Danish outsider, that she usually beats 99 times out of 100, has not been fade away by the victory in New York. Orie Hida, then three-time world champion, grabbed that opportunity for a new coup. Therese remained on two world titles and still feels disappointed about that missed chance.
She showed her high class again in the New York billiards arena, in a swirling style, remained unbeaten in the qualification rounds and then was superior in the knockout stage. Karina Jetten, her fellow countrywoman, didn't have any chance in the quarters (30-10 in 24), Mi Rae Lee, the biggest talent in the new generation, was sovereignly beaten in the semi-finals (30-14 in 27) and finally, in the eternal titan battle, the Dutch glorified as in het best days: straight face, as a sign of optimal focus, scoring at the right moments, strong in position playing during the decisive early run of eight, cool-blooded in the final part of the match and not impressed by the reputation of the world champion.
,,I had the strong feeling that I could control myself and the final'', she concluded afterwards. ,,The same was for the match in the semis against Mi Rae Lee, who can be very dangerous. But after a nervous start of both, I felt better, found my rhythm and ran out to 16-3 with a few runs. And when I made the gap, I could control the match properly.''
That was illustrative for 'Terrie', the queen of Queens, in this tournament that she has won for the fourth time in a row now. Two times before in the Carom Cafe, the event was played with eight ladies, the last two editions was it named the Jennifer Shim tournament, with eight strong ladies and a field of much lower levelled outsiders.
The battle eventually turned out to be a battle between six Asian players and two Dutch ladies. Therese Klompenhouwer was on her way up, Karina Jetten had a nice start in the run-up, but missed the trench war when the medals were at stake.
Orie Hida was the best again of four Japanese, from the best country in ladie's three cushion. Natsumi Higashiuchi, also a former world champion, once again showed up at the international stage and was on average the third of the entire field. Mi Rae Lee, third on the podium, was not on her best with 0.648 and had to bow deep for Therese in the semi-finals. Namiko Hayashi was good and solide (0.729), Je-Eun Han is one of the promising new Koreans in three cushion.
The Carom Cafe is preparing now for a new start today: the Verhoeven Open with a main part of the world's men top.
The top eight field in the knock-outs of the Jennifer Shim Open
The final ranking in the Jennifer Shim Open:
1 Therese Klompenhouwer (Netherlands) 1.116-8
2 Orie Hida (Japan) 1.035-7
3 Mi Rae Lee (South Korea) 0.648-7
4 Ryoko Kobayashi (Japan) 0.613-4
5 Natsumi Higashiuchi (Japan) 0.813-7
6 Namiko Hayashi (Japan) 0.729-5
7 Je-Eun Han (South-Korea) 0.621-6
8 Karina Jetten (Netherlands) 0.681-7.
The three ladies for the podium: Therese, Orie and Mi Rae
Therese Klompenhouwer after her win against Orie Hida
Terrie in her victory speech in the Carom Cafe
Therese with the trophee and with Michael Kang, the Carom Cafe owner and organizer
Charles Brown, the sports director, waiting for another challenge: the Verhoeven Open with the men's world top.