BERLICUM - The reigning champion Jean Paul de Bruijn has lost his title after three glorious years at the Masters. The Zeeland billiard player reached the final of the Dutch three-cushion championship three times in a row in the last three years, winning two of them. This year's Masters title passes Zeeland’s pro player after he clashed with an improbably strong all-round player in the packed Beneluxtheatre in Berlicum last Friday night. Raymund Swertz, world class in the balk-line discipline 71/2 last weekend, now shone at the Masters in three-cushion and dethroned the champion. ’’It is especially nice,‘’ Swertz said after that match, ’’to win against Jeepee, because he is one of the best in the Netherlands in all game disciplines.‘’ The match had a rare start: Swertz went into the break with a 24-1 lead, the later final score was 40-18 in 16.
The players on the final days after the preliminary rounds in the Masters are Dick Jaspers (No.1 on the rankings with 1.846), Glenn Hofman (2nd, 1.791), Jean van Erp (3rd, 1.445), Barry van Beers (4th, 1.000), Erwin Kivits, Sam van Etten, Raymund Swertz and Adrie Demming.
The final winners and runners up ranking:
1 Dick Jaspers
2 Glenn Hofman
3 Jean van Erp
4 Barry van Beers
5 Erwin Kivits
6 Sam van Etten
7 Raymund Swertz
8 Adrie Demming.
The quarter-finals on Saturday:
12.30: Jaspers-Demming
14.30: Van Beers-Kivits
16.30: Van Erp-Van Etten
18.30: Hofman-Swertz
The preliminary rounds were concluded in the late evening session on Friday by the foursome where Dick Jaspers and Sam van Etten played their way into the knock-outs. Jaspers did so in a winning game in 17 innings against Huub Wilkowski (40-29), which he finished with a bit of a lucky shot, but the 17 innings put him number one in the standings ahead of Glenn Hofman and Jean van Erp in the preliminary rounds
Raymund Swertz (36), to name one of Friday's standouts, is a classic specialist, who switched to three-cushion a few years ago, but still plays the other disciplines. Jean Paul de Bruijn (60 this year) did the same in his younger years, but now only plays three-cushion. He is the perfect player to make the comparison with the new developments. ’’I’m not claiming that technical players, like Raymund Swertz and Sam van Etten, have an advantage by classical trainings. Dick Jaspers and I also made that move. But saying it is a big advantage is not true. The Koreans, Vietnamese and Turks never had classical trainings, but now dominate the world top in three cushion. It is an advantage, technique, but absolutely no guarantee.‘’
That's why Raymund Swertz's unusual knockout over Jean Paul de Bruijn in these Masters is exceptional. Raymund Swertz simply had a dream start (runs 3, 4, 8 and 7 for 24-1 in 7). ’’I felt it all perfectly, it's wonderful when the balls roll like that, when you can grow so focused in a match,‘’ said Swertz, who, among other things, shone with three ‘banana shots’, Frédéric Caudron's absolute speciality. ’’And when you get off like that in the first innings, of course it’s very difficult to come back, even for a wonderful player and fighter like Jeepee.’’
The title holder endured the uppercut resignedly. He made another attempt with a laborious seven, but was counted out by three four runs from Swertz in the last innings. The end for the champion, who had an excellent year with two Grand Prix victories and is allowed to go to the World Nations championship in Viersen as number 1 for the Netherlands. But anyhow, he saw the Masters slip by this year. Jeepee liked to say before his farewell: ’’We did see how much progress Raymund Swertz and Sam van Etten have made in recent years. That is wonderful and good for the development of Dutch three-cushion.‘’
It was dooms day on this Friday for Jean Paul de Bruijn, Raimond Burgman, who made another frantic attempt to get his first match points, but stumbled over Sam van Etten, for Jeffrey Jorissen and Dave Christiani, three of the better final players in recent Masters years. For participation in the World championship in Viersen, Jorissen and Christiani are out of competition. Jean Paul de Bruijn will represent the Netherlands probably with the winner of the Masters.
The final positions in the preliminary rounds:
Group A:
1 Jean van Erp 6-1,445-11
2 Raymund Swertz 4-1,422-8
3 Jean Paul de Bruijn 2-1.085-7
4 Harrie van de Ven 0-0.840-5
Group B:
1 Dick Jaspers 6-1.846-10
2 Sam van Etten 4-1,462-6
3 Huub Wilkowski 2-1,300-7
4 Raimond Burgman 0-1,088-5
Group C:
1 Glenn Hofman 6-1,791-9
2 Erwin Kivits 4-1,507-10
3 Jeffrey Jorissen 2-1.051-2
4 Kay de Zwart 0-0.857-6
Group D:
1 Barry van Beers 4-1,000-9
2 Adrie Demming 4-0.991-7
3 Joey de Kok 2-1.220-9
4 Dave Christiani 2-1,017-5.
Glenn Hofman, unbeaten, one of the main favorites for Masters win
Jean Paul de Bruiijn, farewell after three wonderful Masters
Raymund Swertz, excellent match to beat Jeepee de Bruijn
Jean van Erp, the number 3 to enter the knock-outs
Erwin Kivits, an outsider in the knock-outs
Sam van Etten, waiting for the next goal: Jean van Erp
The greatest, Raymond Ceulemans in the stands with his son Kurt Ceulemans, organizer in Belgium of the World Cup and World championship this year