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Posted by Bert VAN MANEN on May 2, 2016

Every other year, I like to take a closer look at the UMB world ranking list, and see if the balance of power has shifted. Not so much between the top players, but between countries and continents. Even without checking, we all know Korea and Vietnam are on the rise, but we also know most of the World Cup tournaments are still won by players from Western Europe. So do these two facts cancel each other out? The results of my little evening’s homework may surprise you. Continue reading Should we learn how to say “축하 해요”, or “tebrikler”? →

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Posted by Bert VAN MANEN on April 18, 2016

You don’t have to be an expert in politics to see that the best and brightest minds will not be found on the extreme right or extreme left. Both ignore valid arguments made by the other camp, which makes them part of the problem, not the solution. To think in black and white is easy, it takes an effort to see nuances.

It’s no different in the age-old debate about music at billiard tournaments. The simple souls are far left and far right. We’ll call one flank Church Memorial Service, the other will be known as Carnival in Rio.  Continue reading Should we turn the music down? Or turn it up? →

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Posted by Bert VAN MANEN on April 1, 2016

I love the World Cups, and I spend hours (sometimes days) watching Kozoom when our Grand Slams are being played. But with regret, I have to say that something seems to be missing from these events. It’s not at the top of the pyramid: the world’s privileged 12 and those in contention to join the elite will always show up, and they treat us to mouth-watering 3-cushion. It’s not at the base either: there’s no lack of appeal to recreational players. They are always there, even if they know they’ll never make it to the main draw. Never speak badly of the “billiard tourists”! They are an important link in the food chain. Continue reading Let’s re-invent the Satellite tournament →

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Posted by Bert VAN MANEN on March 18, 2016
© Kozoom

The German Bundesliga is currently the strongest league in Europe, but the Dutch division of honor still produces great matches from time to time. Last weekend, two recent World Cup winners met: Murat Naci Coklu and Frédéric Caudron. It turned into a feast of heavy scoring. Murat ran ten in his first inning, Frédéric caught up with a ten of his own, later even running a thirteen.  Final score: 50-47 in 15, to Caudron.

In this case – sorry Fred – the loser’s average is even more remarkable than the winner’s average. We are getting used to 3+ matches, you’ll see a handful of those every month now. But to average over 3.000 and not win, that only happens once in a blue moon.

I have fourteen such matches on record, and I will give you the list, in ascending order of combined average. Continue reading Three average. Not good enough. →

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Posted by Bert VAN MANEN on March 4, 2016

The most successful international TV franchise of all time has aired in more than a hundred countries. Yet, it is nothing more than a quiz show, a guy in a chair who gets tested with questions of increasing difficulty. 3-cushion players often find themselves in a chair too, because they were unable to come up with the right answers. What are we doing wrong? A closer look at “WWTBAM” gave me some clues. Continue reading Who wants to be a millionaire? →

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Posted by Bert VAN MANEN on February 19, 2016

There’s no need to tell Daniel Sánchez Galvez how good he is. He knows. But for twenty years now, he’s had this label of “the modest one”, amongst the top players. Is he the nice guy, who is liked, plays well and ends second? Absolutely not. Dani is a congenial fellow, but also a stone-cold winner.

Three time world champion (1998, 2005 and 2010), player of the year in 2004, 2005 and 2006, winner of the most recent World Cup in Guri (2.739 general average), winner of the overall World Cup for 2015 and currently the nr. 2 on the UMB world ranking list. Continue reading Fourteen minutes of Dani magic →

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Posted by Bert VAN MANEN on February 5, 2016

The Belgian, Dutch, French and German leagues have contributed as much to the 3-cushion sport as the World Cups, in the past thirty years. Caudron made 50 in 9 (three times over) in team play. Merckx played his world record of 50 in 6 in the Bundesliga. Blomdahl was the first player to average over 2.000 for a season (2.017 in 1998). Our history would be beheaded and cut in half, without the league results.

But is it all splendor? Do we want to keep it this way, because it works so well? Personally, I have my doubts. The individual nature of 3-cushion is inherent, the team aspect is manufactured. There is a downside to this manipulation. Continue reading Europe’s 3-cushion leagues are both a blessing and a curse →

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Posted by Bert VAN MANEN on January 22, 2016

The beauty of an uphill walk is, that the view gets better with every corner you turn. Becoming a better 3-cushion player is like that. Start your climb, put a little effort into it, and you’ll quickly begin to see a bigger picture.

This is what you need, to educate yourself and raise your game: a piece of paper, a pen, one disciplined finger and a Kozoom premium pass. All things you already have, right?  Continue reading The Padeware practice routine →

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Posted by Bert VAN MANEN on January 8, 2016

With the Dutch National championships around the corner (14-17 Jan), I would like you to take a closer look at the record Dick Jaspers has built up in his home country, because it’s rather impressive. These are the two key facts: 104 Grand Prix events were played in the Netherlands since 1986, Jaspers has won 56 of them, 26 Masters tournaments were held, Jaspers has won 16.

Here’s how it all started. Continue reading The reign of King Jaspers I →

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Posted by Bert VAN MANEN on December 25, 2015

As 2015 comes to a close, an obvious question needs to be asked. Who dominated this year in 3-cushion? The answer is straightforward. Nobody.

We’ll have to get used to it. No player is strong enough to win a world title and two, three World Cups in the same year, because the others are just too good. And how can you dominate, when everything is decided in a sprint to forty points? One mistake, and the other guy can control the match for a few innings. He’ll run a five, a two, an eleven and a four (Yes, two dozen guys can do that). All he left you was a half-chance and three impossible positions. What are you going to do? Continue reading All the mighty tenors sang in 2015 →