WC Donghae City: Tayfun Tasdemir is the New World Champion

Donghae City, November 13th, 2022.

In a demonstration of skill and class, Tayfun Tasdemir has won the 2022 UMB 3-cushion world title. In Donghae City, South Korea, he defeated Ruben Legazpi in a one-sided final: 50-14 in 15/14 innings. For Turkiye, it had been a nineteen-year wait since Semih Sayginer was world champion in 2003.

There were two surprising semifinals this Sunday. Eddy Merckx, twice world champion, was a firm favorite against Ruben Legazpi. But the Belgian couldn’t get into his stride and looked frustrated with his positions and his own game. The tall Spaniard made a few mistakes and showed how much he had grown in the past few seasons. His win in the Kozoom Challenge confirmed his new status, and he doubled up on that with his semifinal win over Merckx. The Belgian showed his mentality with a late run of 11, but he couldn’t close the gap.

In the other semi, the title holder and world number one Dick Jaspers was the favorite, but his opponent Tayfun Tasdemir had other ideas. The two played a superb match, with Jaspers mostly in the hunt. At 47-47, the Dutchman made a half-mistake, but it could also be called an unlucky moment. Tasdemir coolly finished with a 3. As always, the Turk relied heavily on his high runs and impeccable position play. A spell of 13, 9, and 6 in the space of four innings brought him to the win.

The final between Tasdemir and Legazpi was never a match. The Turkish player dominated from start to finish. Nine in the first inning, an eight later on, another nine in the penultimate inning, and an eight to finish. It was a masterclass.

After “Donghae”, Jaspers remains the leader in the world ranking. The new world champion Tasdemir is now in 3d place. His countryman Murat Naci Coklu drops out of the protected top-14, and Nikos Polychronopoulos is now one of the seeds.

The best match played in Donghae City was the 40 in 11 by Dick Jaspers (3.636). The tournament’s high run was 16, by Dion Nelin and Quyet Chien Tran.

All detailed results are available here: https://www.umb-carom.org/PG344L2/Union-Mondiale-de-Billard.aspx

UMB.