LAUSANNE - The winner of the last World Cup in Guri, Belgian Eddy Merckx, defends his title in the Lausanne Billard Masters this weekend from Friday 15 to Sunday 17 November. Twelve of the world's best players from the UMB rankings will take a shot at the title. The field of participation is divided into three groups of four starting in the preliminaries for a place in the finals with eight. Marco Zanetti (2013 and 2014) and Dick Jaspers (2015 and 2017) are the double winners so far, Dani Sánchez and Eddy Merckx won the tournament in 2016 and 2018.
The intimate gaming room in the Casino de Montbénon faces three days of high class three-cushion in the prestigious invitation tournament. Diane Wild invited three spearheads of the European and world federation, both Therese Klompenhouwer and two young talents. ''It is our great goal with the CEB to promote youth and women's billiards. We also projected that on the Lausanne Billard Masters. I am extremely happy that we have a lady in the field for the first time.''
''When it comes to the choice of players, it is always difficult to decide,'' assures the CEB president. ''We have reduced the number of local players to one and can invite 11 instead of 10 players from the world top now. So we did, we are proud that six players are from the top of the world ranking list at the time of inviting. And we followed our mission to invite two youth and one female player.''
This edition is the 7th of the Lausanne Billard Masters in the Olympic capital, where the president of the CEB, European billiard federation, is the organizer. The starting list is an impressive platform, includint two four-time world champions (Dick Jaspers and Dani Sánchez), the reigning European champion (Dick Jaspers), the junior world champion (Myung-Woo Cho), the women's world champion, Therese Klompenhouwer.
Furthermore, two players who won two world titles, Eddy Merckx and Marco Zanetti, Turkish top guns Semih Sayginer and Tayfun Tasdemir, Korean Jae-Ho Cho, German Martin Horn, young Frenchman Maxime Panaia and Swiss wildcard Michel Boulaz. From the preliminaries with three groups, the best two and the two best numbers three move up to the final with eight players.
The organizing committee has made every effort to offer participants optimum playing conditions and an ideal environment. The city of Lausanne is within walking distance and all natural beauty of Switzerland is around the corner.
The group formats:
Group A: Dick Jaspers (Nl), Jae-Ho Cho (Kor), Martin Horn (Ger), Michel Boulaz (Ch)
Group B: Marco Zanetti (It), Eddy Merckx (Be), Myung-Woo Cho (Kor), Maxime Panaia (Fr)
Group C: Tayfun Tasdemir (Tr), Semih Sayginer (Tr), Dani Sánchez (Sp), Therese Klompenhouwer (Nl)
The schedule in the first preliminary rounds, Friday, November 15:
12.15: Jae-Ho Cho-Horn and Jaspers-Boulaz
2.15 pm: Merckx-Myung-Woo Cho and Zanetti-Panaia
17.00: Sayginer-Sánchez and Tasdemir-Klompenhouwer
7.15 pm: Jaspers-Horn and Jae Ho Cho-Boulaz
9.15 pm: Zanetti-Myung Woo Cho and Merckx-Panaia
Program Saturday:
10.00 am: Tasdemir-Sánchez and Sayginer-Klompenhouwer
12.15: Jaspers-Jae Ho Cho and Horn-Boulaz
2.30 pm: Zanetti-Merckx and Myung Woo Cho-Panaia
4.45 pm: Tasdemir-Sayginer and Sánchez-Klompenhouwer
19.00: Quarter-finals
9.15 pm: Quarter-finals
Program Sunday:
10.00 am: Semi-final
12 noon: Semi-final
2.30 pm: Final
All matches are played at two tables and broadcast live by Kozoom.
