3-Cushion
ISTANBUL - Torbjörn Blomdahl was the last player to join the final field for the Survival Masters on the day of the second chances. The Swede received the bonus of the best runner-up and accompanied Martin Horn, Jae-Ho Cho and HaengJik Kim to the final table with sixteen players. The four matches with four players for the quarter-finals can be followed on Friday from 12:00 Turkish time, broadcast by Kozoom, the organizer of this Survival.
The matches show the following line-up:
12:00: Myung-Woo Cho, Dani Sánchez, Dick Jaspers and Torbjörn Blomdahl
14:00: Sung-Won Choi, Dion Nelin, Lütfi Cenet and Jae-Ho Cho
16:00: Tayfun Tasdemir, Eddy Merckx, Roland Forthomme, Martin Horn
18.00: Semih Sayginer, Turgay Orak, Quiet Chien Tran and HaengJik Kim.
HaengJik Kim was the best in his match for a second chance thanks to a strong second half with runs of two times seven and six. The Korean finished at 92 points and an average of 2,692, ahead of Torbjörn Blomdahl, who scored 64 and was slightly better than two other runners-up: Tolgahan Kiraz and Can Capak, both with 61 points. Kim's performance differed starkly from the previous game: from 0,272 on average to 2,692.
Martin Horn grabbed the win in his group with 89 points and 2.133 on average. Jae-Ho Cho crowned himself as the winner in the third and final game with 85 points and 1.875 on average. Tolgahan Kiraz, Jérémy Bury and Marco Zanetti were eliminated in this match.
Torbjörn Blomdahl's comment after his match in which he escaped: ''We played a fantastic game: the four of us together finished on two average. HaengJik, with 2.6, played great: he could hardly miss at the end. It was not so strange that he was very bad on the previous day. He was sick and had to throw up. When we were facing our next game, I did not ask him if he felt better. That is psychologically incorrect: every answer he gives, is not good for me."
''I was very happy with my game, but I didn't expect to eventually continue with 64 points'', Blomdahl confessed. ''I think it never happened in the previous two Survivals with that score. I did not watch the third game, because I learned that from my father. He told me: it will always work out better for you if you don't look. I went into town in a taxi with my son. When we arrived later in Gökhan Salman's billiard room, there was still one and a half minute to play and I saw the outcome."
How do you like playing in the Survivals? Torbjörn: ''It's really fantastic to play it and very fascinating for the audience. You don't want to miss five minutes of the game. I play completely free, as in practice: attack on every shot, because it makes no sense to defend. Most players go straight into the game, so you only see great matches. My match today, the first of the quarter finals, has an incredible line-up: with Dick Jaspers, Dani Sánchez and Myung-Woo Cho. It couldn't be better: I'm really looking forward to it. Since New York I am completely fit and in a good shape again. And I must say: I always like playing billiards, so let's start the game."
The final rankings in the second chance matches:
Group A:
1 Martin Horn 89-2,133-7
2 Can Capak 61-1,666-5
3 Sameh Sidhom 53-1,533-8
4 Nguyen Quoc Nguyen 37-1,266-6
Martin Horn
Group B:
1 HaengJik Kim 92-2,692-7
2 Torbjörn Blomdahl 64-2,153-8
3 Jung-Han Heo 48-1,846-6
4 Murat Naci Coklu 36-1.615-5
HaengJik Kim
Group C:
1 Jae-Ho Cho 85-1,875-10
2 Tolgahan Kiraz 61-1,500-6
3 Jérémy Bury 49-1,312-10
4 Marco Zanetti 45-1.250-6.
Jae-Ho Cho