3-Cushion
MAGDEBURG - Dick Jaspers is more than the deserved and worthy winner of the Bernd Friedel Memorial in Magdeburg. Even in the late hours of the final, between Dick Jaspers and Markus Schönhoff, there were lots of spectators in the billiard room of BC Magdeburg. The tournament was a wonderful tribute, not only to Bernd Friedel, who died last year, but also to the perfect organization.
The players, most of all the top guns Dick Jaspers and Dion Nelin, who play in the league for Magdeburg, glanced over three days in a few world class matches. The draw for the semi-finals brought these two players facing each other. Jaspers won the game in 22 innings after a very hard battle (40-33).
The Dutchman was leading 24-8 after seven innings, Nelin came back in the match with a ten run. In the final sprint, Jaspers however stunned his opponent.
Markus Schönhoff, local celebrity, played himself to the delight of the home crowd in the final by a simple victory in the semifinal against Stefan Scheler from Naumburg. Schönhoff finished the game with an excellent run of ten and won 40-12 in 26 innings.
Dick Jaspers finished off in style in the final with his friend and opponent. The final victory was a fact after 21 innings, with a wide margin: 50-18.
Nelin and Scheler shared third place. The Dane sparkled in the final round with 1.715 average.
The Magdeburg players shone with high ratings. Jaspers, Schönhoff, Nelin, Zölner and Eder finished 1, 2, 3, 5 and 11. They show to be in a good form for the upcoming competition.
Dick Jaspers praised the warm atmosphere in his speech after the ceremony. The Dutchman recorded 2.164 in the tournament. He played his best match against Czech Radek Novak: 25-3 in 7 innings (average 3.571).