Saudi Arabia’s Abdul Rahman Al Amar is part of wave of young Middle Eastern players notching victories on Day 1 at the World 9-ball Championship

 By Ted Lerner
WPA Press Officer

Photos Courtesy of Bo Bader

(Doha, Qatar)–The moments before the first rack on the first day of the World 9-ball Championship are never easy, even for the best of players. The tables and conditions are new and untested. Players know they only have to win two race-to-9matches to qualify for the final 64, but things in pool can easily go array as you may come out flat, or the balls might conspire against you. Even the top players realize that just because you haven’t heard of the guy you’re paired against, it doesn’t mean you’re going to waltz into the money rounds.

Indeed while 15 of the WPA’s top 20 players won their opening matches on day 1 in Doha, several big names suffered setbacks, suddenly finding themselves on the one loss side of their groups, and one more loss from unceremoniously exiting pool’s biggest stage.

After 8 hours of pool at its highest level at the Al Arabi sports club, several things stand out loud and clear. The sport of pool has never seen this many highly skilled players from so many different countries. This fact, combined with the new rule this year of racking the balls with the 9-ball on the spot instead of the 1-ball, thereby toughening up the opening break shot, means that the 2016 World 9-ball championship will surely see the world crown contested at the highest level we have ever witnessed.

All 128 players saw action in the double elimination group stages today and, as usual, it seems the Taiwanese are ready to contend yet again. Defending champion Ko Pin Yi had a layup of a match to get things started as he cruised to a 9-1 win over Algeria’s Mohamed Elraousti. As the day progressed, the Taiwanese kept notching up impressive wins, going 8 out of 10; Chang Jun Lin, Chu Hong Ming, Ko Ping Chung(Pin Yi’s younger brother), Hsieh Chia Chen, Li Wen Lo, Wu Kun Lin and Cheng Yu Husan all saw victory. Only Chang Yu Lung and veteran Yang Chin Shun lost.

Many people believe that a European will be standing in the winner’s circle next Thursday because the Europeans have been playing with the 9-ball on the spot on the Euro tour for years, and already understand this breaks shot’s unique complexities. One player in particular with good odds is 2014 World 9-ball Champion Niels Feijen of the Netherlands, who didn’t face a difficult task as he waltzed past Qatar’s Abdul Latif Al Fawal, 9-3. It’s rumored that the Dutchman has put in 1000’s of hours perfecting the break shot and has even unlocked a certain secret about its configuration.

Other notable Europeans notching victories today include two time World 9-ball Champion Thorsten Hohmann of Germany, Greece’s Nikos Ekonomopoulos, Austria’s Albin Ouscan, and 2012 World 9-ball champion Darren Appleton.

Jayson ShawFans looking for a relatively new European face to break through should pay attention to Britain’s Jayson Shaw. The Scotsman recently topped two very strong fields in Europe and is currently leading the points race for the European Mosconi Cup team. This is a young player who is clearly on the rise and anxious to make some waves.

“My game is about as good as it’s ever been,” Shaw said after besting Iraq’s Karar Abdulwahed, 9-3. “I’m not putting any pressure on myself. There’s some seriously good players here so I’m just taking it one match at a time and trying to enjoy this atmosphere. My goal is to get into the final 16 and from there, anything can happen.”

It was a solid day for Spain as David Alcaide, Francisco Pizaarro Diaz, and Francisco Sanchez Ruiz all won. Ruis squeaked by last year’s surprise quarterfinalist from Singapore, Aloysius Yapp.

The day proved downright miserable for the USA, as 5 out of six Americans in the field went down to defeat. Last year’s runner up, Shane Van Boening drew a very difficult opponent in 2011 World 9-ball champion Yukio Akagariyama of Japan. The match was close halfway, but Akagariyama, who earned entry into the tournament by winning a qualifier, pulled away to win, 9-5. Only Oscar Dominguez saved the day for the USA, but barely as he squeaked by Poland’s Mateusz Sniegocki, 9-8.

As usual the Philippines has one of the largest contingents in the tournament and can be expected to go deep. Dennis Orcollo, Lee Vann Corteza, Johann Chua, Jeffrey Ignacio, Ramil Gallego, Alex Pagulayan(representing Canada), and Jeffrey De Luna were some notable Pinoys who notched wins today. World number 6 Carlo Biado lost to Czech’s Roman Hybler, 9-5.

China’s powerhouse lineup performed solidly today. Former world 9-ball champion Wu Jiaqing, world number 3 Lui Haitao, Li Hewen, Dang Jinghu and three others saw victory.

One of the early revelations of this year’s world championship is just how far players from the Middle East have truly come in competitive 9-ball. In years past Middle Eastern players were just entering these big events for the experience. Now it is clear they are truly on a world class level and will soon start contending and even winning big events. And they are coming from some very surprising places.

Nobody thought Iran’s Ali Maghsoud had much of a chance against Hall of Famer and multi world champion Mika Immonen, especially being down 8-5 in the race to 9. But the 27 year old from the Iranian city of Kermanshah buckled down, held his nerve and stormed back to win by a thread, 9-8.

“When I was down 8-5, I just knew I was going to come back,” Maghsoud, who owns his own pool club in Iran, said afterward. “He’s a world champion but I was very positive.”

MD AlimSaudi Arabia showed they are a rising pool nation today as Abdul Rahman Al Amar beat American Justin Campbell 9-7, while Abdulla Al Shemmari took down the USA’s Hunter Lombardo, 9-5. Eritrean Hamzaa M Saeed Ali, who was born and raised in Saudi and still lives there also won, defeating Japan’s Naoyuki Oi, 9-8.

The 27 year old Al Almar is clearly knocking on the door to success. Last year he defeated the Philippines Johann Chua in the group stages and made it to the final 64. The former snooker player informed us that pool is actually backed by the government in Saudi and that there are currently over 14,000 registered pool players in the Kingdom. Yes, you read that right; Saudi Arabia is one of pool’s hot spots.

Even Bangladesh rode the winning wave today as MD Alim handily defeated Swedish veteran Marcus Chamat, 9-4.

The group stages at the 2016 World 9-ball Championship continue on Saturday at the Al Arabi Sports beginning at 10am local time(GMT +3.) All 128 players will again see action on Day 2, with 32 players advancing into the final 64 Knockout rounds, and another 32 players heading for the exits.

**The 2015 WPA World 9-ball Championship takes place at the Al Arabi Sports Club Sports Club in Doha, Qatar from July 30-August 4, 2016. The winner of the 2015 World 9-ball Championship will receive $40,000. The runner up will receive $20,000. The total prize fund is $200,000.

The players will be competing on Wiraka DYNASTY Tables with Simonis 860 Cloth, Electric Blue Color and using Aramith Tournament Pro cup TV Pool Balls featuring the new Duramith Technology.

The 2016 World 9-ball Championship is being hosted by The Qatar Billiard and Snooker Federation(QBSF), and is sanctioned by the The World Pool Billiard Association, the governing body of the sport of pool.

The WPA will be on hand in Doha throughout this year’s World 9-ball Championship providing up to the minute information, live scoring, photographs and in depth articles with insights and analysis from WPA Press Officer Ted Lerner.

Fans can interact with us through the WPA’s official Facebook Page for the event at this link;https://www.facebook.com/worldpoolbilliardassociation/

The WPA is also on Twitter; @poolwpa

 

DAY 1 RESULTS , GROUP STAGES, DOUBLE ELIMINATION

Winners need 1 more win to advance to the Final 64.

Losers still have to win 2 games to advance

Group 1

Ko Pin Yi(TPE) 9 – 1 Mohamed C. Elraousti(ALG)

Mario He(AUT) 9 – 5 Mazen Berjuai(LEB)

Thorsten Hohmann(GER) 9 – 4 Shahbaz Adil Khan(IND)

Jeong Young Hwa(KOR) 9 – 5 Waleed Majid(QAT)

Group 2

Chang Jun Lin(TPE)9 – 5 Lo Ho Sum(HKG)

Jeffrey Ignacio(PHL) 9 – 4 Karol Slowerski(POL)

Petri Makkonen(FIN) 9 – 0 Abdul Aziz Alawadhi(QAT)

Johan Chua(PHL) 9 – 8 Francis Crevier(CAN)

Group 3

Darren Appleton(GBR) 9 – 4 Bruno Muratore(ITA)

Chu Hong Ming(TPE) 9 – 2 Henrique Corriea (POR)

MD Almin(BAN) 9 – 4 Marcus Chamat(SWE)

Ruslan Chinakov(RUS) 9 – 4 Omar Al Shaheen(KUW)

Group 4

Francisco Sanchez Ruiz(ESP) 9 – 8 Aloysius Yapp(SIN)

Cristopher Tevez(PER) 9 – 6 Daryl Peach(GBR)

Antonio Gabica(QAT-PHL)9 -7 Mohannad Al Ghumayz(KSA)

Albin Ouschan(AUT)9 – 6 Roberto Gomez(PHL)

Group 5

John Morra(CAN) 9 – 5 Artem Koshovoj(UKR)

Zhou Long(CHN) 9 – 2 Aoki Ryoji(JPN)

Alex Pagulayan(CAN)9 – 5 Mohammad Al Kashawi(KUW)

Luong Chi Dong(VIE) 9 – 8 Yang Ching Shun(TPE)

Group 6

Karl Boyes(GBR)9 – 5 Mohammed Saeed(QAT)

Hamzaa M Saeed Ali(ERI) 9 – 8 Naoyuki Oi(JPN)

Toh Lian Han(SIN) 9 – 6 Armin Mahmoudi(IRN)

Jeffrey De Luna(PHL) 9 – 6 Wang Can(CHN)

Group 7

Dennis Orcollo(PHL) 9 – 5 Abdullah Mohd Karmastaji(UAE)

Ramil Gallego(PHL) 9 – 6 Imran Majid(GBR)

Irsal Nasution(INA) 9 – 2 (Ali Abdulhadi Almeri(QAT)

David Alcaide(ESP) 9 – 4 Christian Goetmann(GER)

Group 8

Nikos Ekonomopoulos(GRE) 9 – 4 Konard Juszczyszym(POL)

Jayson Shaw(GBR) 9 – 3 Karar Abdulwahed(IRQ)

Abdul Rahman Al Amar(KSA) 9 – 7 Justin Campbell(AUS)

Ko Ping Chung(TPE) 9 – 1 Robert Hart(USA)

Group 9

Lui Haitao(CHN) 9 – 6 Andrew Kong Bu Hong(HKG)

Jalal Yousef(VEN) 9 – 6 Shaun Wilke(USA)

Niels Feijen(NED) 9 – 3 Abdul Latif Al Fawal(QAT)

Alexander Kazakis(GRE) 9 – 7 Satoshi Kawabata(JPE)

Group 10

Chu Bing Jie(CHN) 9 – 3 Nadim Okbani(ALG)

Ruben Bautista(MEX) 9 – 5 Hiroshi Takenaka(JPN)

Hsieh Chia Chen(TPE) 9 – 7 Mieszko Fortunski(POL)

Ali Maghsoud(IRN) 9 – 8 Mika Immonen(FIN)

Group 11

Waren Kiamco(PHL) 9 – 5 Omran Salem(UAE)

Oliver Ortmann(GER) 9 – 5 Skyler Woodward(USA)

Wojciech Szewczyk(POL) 9 – 2 Sayeem Hossain(BAN)

Wu Kun Lin(TPE) 9 – 6 Ralf Souquet(GER)

Group 12

Hayato Hijikata(JPE) 9 – 7 Nick Van Den Berg(NED)

Francisco Pizaarro Diaz(ESP) 9 – 7 Abdulla Yousif(KUW)

Muhammad Bewi Simenjuntak(INA) 9 – 8 Fahad Khalaf Al Jassas(BAH)

Roman Hybler(CZE) 9 – 6 Carlo Biado(PHL)

Group 13

Wu Jiaqing(CHN) 9 – 3 Ali Al Obaidli(QAT)

Ryu Ceung Woo(KOR) 9 – 8 Manual Chau(PER)

Oscar Dominguez(USA) 9 – 8 Mateusz Sniegocki(POL)

Dennis Grabe(EST) 9 – 2 Toru Kuribayashi(JPN)

Group 14

Li Hewen(CHN) 9 – 4 Mohammed Berjaui(LEB)

Francisco Olita Felicilda(QAT-PHL) 9 – 7 Marco Teutscher(NED)

Li Wen Lo(TPE) 9 – 3 Ariel Castro(ARG)

Yukio Akagariyama(JPN) 9 – 5 Shane Van Boening(USA)

Group 15

Lee Vann Corteza(PHL)9 – 5 Salah Eldeen Al Remawi(UAE)

Abdulla Al Shemmari(KSA) 9 – 4 Hunter Lombardo(USA)

Rogelio Belleca Sotero Jr(PHL) 9 – 6 Do Hoang Quan(VIE)

Konstantin Stepanov(RUS) 9 – 8 Chang Yu Lung(TPE)

Group 16

Bashar Hussaiin(QAT) 9 – 6 Abder Rehman Mebarki(ALG)

Dang Jin Hu(CHN) 9 – 8 Joshua Filler(GER)

Han Hao Xiang(CHN) 9 – 8 Ahmed Mohammad Salah(JOR)

Cheng Yu Husan(TPE) 9 – 3 Himanshu Jain(IND)

 

FIT, FRESH AND FABULOUS-

Day 2 Report From the 2016 World 9-ball Championship

Greece’s Nikos Ekonomopoulus plays perfect pool to book his place with 31 others in the knockout rounds at the World 9-ball Championship.

By Ted Lerner
WPA Press Officer

Photos Courtesy of Bo Bader

(Doha, Qatar)–Misery and joy danced a sultry tango  today at the Al Arabi Sports Club in Doha on Day 2 of the 2016 WPA World 9-ball Championship, as 32 players headed for the exits, while another 32 players booked their place in the final 64 knockout stage.

As on Day 1, all 128 players saw action, but unlike the opening rounds, much more was at stake.  All 32 losers-side matches in the group stage were do-or-die.  All 32 winners-side matches offered the victor a massive sigh of relief, and a day off as they await the start of the single elimination knockout stage which begins on Tuesday.

For the 64 players remaining in this year’s World 9-ball Championship, that means Monday is the dreaded Judgement Day, when every roll of the ball could spell the difference between a career defining run at glory, or a career sullying walk into the lonely Qatari desert, head in hand, never wanting to show your face in public again. Yes, pool at this level can deliver the ultimate prize and the ultimate shame, and all at the same time. It’s why fans around the world love world championship 9-ball.

The day started early at 10am inside the icy cold Al Arabi Sports Club with the losers side matches.  A second loss meant an instant out, while a win meant one more chance at qualifying. You could sense the tension straight away as nobody, especially the top players, wanted to go 2 and out in a world championship.

Easily the biggest shock of the tournament so far came when former World 9-ball Champion and Hall of Famer Mika Immonen quickly got the big boot. Surprisingly the always ready for prime time Finn couldn’t get himself into the thick of the action this year. Today he fell behind early to Poland’s Mieszko Fortunski and never contended, getting blown out, 9-4.

Day 1 had been a terrible day for the USA, but Shaun Wilke, Skylar Woodward and Shane Van Boening kept hope alive for the American side with impressive wins. Van Boening in particular looked the goods as he broke magnificently in his 9-2 drubbing of Argentina’s Ariel Castro. Fans will recall it was Van Boening’s sensational break shot last year that saw him storm into the finals.

2007 World 9-ball Championship Daryl Peach bounced back from a big collapse on day 1 and played perfect in a 9-5 win over Singapore’s Alyosius Yapp, who had made a run to the quarterfinals last year.  Interestingly Peach will play a Judgement Day match against the Philippines Roberto Gomez, the very man he beat in Manila in 2007 to win the world title.

Other notable names who survived to play another day include Germany’s Ralf Souquet, China’s Wang Can, the Philippines Carlo Biado, Poland’s Karol Skowerski and Japan’s Naoyuki Oi.

The winners side matches in the afternoon presented some brilliant face offs that would be worthy of a semis and even a finals any day of the week. Defending Champion Ko Pin Yi once again looked completely impervious as he took down Austria’s Mario He, 9-5.

China’s Zhou Long and Canada’s John Morra squared off in a battle of young rising stars. Morra has been one of pool’s rising bright lights in the last two years and even made it to the quarterfinals last year in Doha with a sensational run.  But Zhou made a case for his superb skills today, playing what could be the match of the tournament so far, as he beat the Canadian handily, 9-2.

Perhaps the biggest matchup on the winners’ side took place between Greece’s Nikos Ekonomopoulus and Great Britain’s Jayson Shaw. Ekonomopoulus has been one of Europe’s best players over the last three years. Shaw recently won two straight events in Europe and currently leads the points race for the European Mosconi Cup squad.

Today, however, belonged to the Greek as he played absolutely perfect pool and beat the determined Scotsman, 9-5. Afterward, Ekonomopoulus attributed his stellar play to the fact that he has recently put aside his usual high life living and taken up a training regime.

“I played a perfect set,” the friendly Greek said. “The last two months I made a good workout program for myself. I go to the gym every day, I practice pool for two hours, and I eat good. So I feel better.  It’s the first time in my life I have made a program like that so I feel really comfortable at the table.”

Fans and future opponents should pay attention as Ekonomopolous new focus on fitness is clearly paying off. He’s reached the final in the last Euro Tour event, made two finals in other recent open European tournaments, and won an event in Cyprus. And now he’s in the Final 64 in Doha.

Also deserving a good look are the Russians, as veterans Konstantin Stepanov and Ruslan Chinakov barged into the Final 64 undefeated.  It should be noted that both Stepanov and Chinakov have spent the last year under the tutelage of coach Johan Ruysink, the Dutch pool coaching guru who led the European Mosconi Cup team to victory seven times.

Several big names failed to qualify today as 2012 World 9-ball Champion Darren Appleton and the Philippines Dennis Orcollo both went down to defeat.  Appleton couldn’t fend off the spirited play of Taiwan’s tiny Chu Hong Ming-nicknamed “Peter Pan”-losing 9-7. Orcollo faced fellow Filipino in veteran Ramil Gallego. Orcollo couldn’t get a groove and got swept aside, 9-4. Both players will be back for another go on Judgement Day.

The Philippines will be well represented in the knockout stages as along with Gallego, Lee Vann Corteza, Warren Kiamco, Alex Pagulayan(Can-Phl) and young gun Johann Chua all advanced.

Former world champion Wu Jiaqing(formerly Wu Chia Ching) once again looked superb and moved on. Already seven Chinese players, including Liu Haitao and Li Hewen, have made it through to the final 64.

Other notable players qualifying include two time World 9-ball Champion Thorsten Hohmann, Austria’s Albin Ouschan, Great Britain’s Karl Boyes, and Chang Jung Lin of Taiwan.

Play in the final day of the group stages begins tomorrow at 10am(GMT +3).

**The 2015 WPA World 9-ball Championship takes place at the Al Arabi Sports Club Sports Club in Doha, Qatar from July 30-August 4, 2016. The winner of the 2015 World 9-ball Championship will receive $40,000. The runner up will receive $20,000. The total prize fund is $200,000.

The players will be competing on Wiraka DYNASTY  Tables with Simonis 860 Cloth, Electric Blue Color and using Aramith Tournament  Pro cup TV Pool Balls featuring the new Duramith Technology.

The 2016 World 9-ball Championship is being hosted by The Qatar Billiard and Snooker Federation(QBSF), and is sanctioned by the The World Pool Billiard Association, the governing body of the sport of pool.

The WPA will be on hand in Doha throughout this year’s World 9-ball Championship providing up to the minute information, live scoring, photographs and in depth articles with insights and analysis from WPA Press Officer Ted Lerner. 

Fans can interact with us through the WPA’s official Facebook Page for the event at this link;https://www.facebook.com/worldpoolbilliardassociation/

The WPA is also on Twitter; @poolwpa

 

DAY 2 RESULTS, GROUP STAGE, LOSERS SIDE
Winners get one more chance
Losers are out of the tournament

Group 1
Mazen Berjuai(LEB) 9 – 3 Mohamed C. Elraousti(ALG)
Waleed Majid(QAT) 9 – 7 Shahbaz Adil Khan(IND)

Group 2
Karol Skowerski(POL) 9 – 5 Lo Ho Sum(HKG)
Francis Crevier(CAN) 9 – 2  Abdul Aziz Alawadhi(QAT)

Group 3
Bruno Muratore(ITA) 9 – 5 Henrique  Corriea (POR)
Omar Al Shaheen(KUW) 9 – 4 Marcus Chamat(SWE)

Group 4
Daryl Peach(GBR) 9 – 5 Aloysius Yapp(SIN)
Roberto Gomez(PHL) 9 – 2 Mohannad Al Ghumayz(KSA)

Group 5
Artem Koshovoj(UKR) 9 – 8 Aoki Ryoji(JPN)
Mohammad Al Kashawi(KUW) 9 – 5 Yang Ching Shun(TPE)

Group 6
Naoyuki Oi(JPN) 9 – 2 Mohammed Saeed(QAT)
Wang Can(CHN) 9 – 7 Armin Mahmoudi(IRN)

Group 7
Imran Majid(GBR)9 -2  Abdullah Mohd Karmastaji(UAE)
Christian Goetmann(GER) 9  – 6 Ali Abdulhadi Almeri(QAT)

Group 8
Konard Juszczyszym(POL) 9 – 5 Karar Abdulwahed(IRQ)
Justin Campbell(AUS) 9 – 2 Robert Hart(USA)

Group 9
Shaun Wilke(USA) 9 – 1 Andrew Kong Bu Hong(HKG)
Satoshi Kawabata(JPE) 9 – 6 Abdul Latif Al Fawal(QAT)

Group 10
Hiroshi Takenaka(JPN) 9 – 3 Nadim Okbani(ALG)
Mieszko Fortunski(POL) 9 – 4 Mika Immonen(FIN)

Group 11
Skyler Woodward(USA) 9 – 3 Omran Salem(UAE)
Ralf Souquet(GER) 9 – 4 Sayeem Hossain(BAN)

Group 12
Nick Van Den Berg(NED) 9 – 7 Abdulla Yousif(KUW)
Carlo Biado(PHL) 9 – 1 Fahad Khalaf Al Jassas(BAH

Group 13
Ali Al Obaidli(QAT) 9 – 7 Manual Chau(PER)
Mateusz Sniegocki(POL) 9 – 7 Toru Kuribayashi(JPN)

Group 14
Marco Teutscher(NED) 9 – 1 Mohammed Berjaui(LEB)
Shane Van Boening(USA) 9 – 2 Ariel Castro(ARG)

Group 15
Salah Eldeen Al Remawi(UAE) 9 – 6 Hunter Lombardo(USA)
Chang Yu Lung(TPE) 9 – 2 Do Hoang Quan(VIE)

Group 16
Joshua Filler(GER) 9 – 0 Abder Rehman Mebarki(ALG)
Ahmed Mohammad Salah(JOR) 9 – 6 Himanshu Jain(IND)

 

Winners side matches
Winners advance to the Final 64, Losers get one more chance 

Group 1
Ko Pin Yi(TPE)  9 – 5 Mario He(AUT)
Thorsten Hohmann(GER) 9 – 7  Jeong Young Hwa(KOR)

Group 2
Chang Jun Lin(TPE)  9 – 7 Jeffrey Ignacio(PHL)
Johan Chua(PHL)  9 – 4 Petri Makkonen(FIN)

Group 3
Chu Hong Ming(TPE) 9 – 7 Darren Appleton(GBR)
Ruslan Chinakov(RUS)   9 – 4 MD Almin(BAN)

Group 4
Francisco Sanchez Ruiz(ESP) 9 – 6  Cristopher Tevez(PER)
Albin Ouschan(AUT)  9 – 8 Antonio Gabica(QAT-PHL)

Group 5
Zhou Long(CHN)   9 – 2 John Morra(CAN)
Alex Pagulayan(CAN) 9 – 4 Luong Chi Dong(VIE)

Group 6
Karl Boyes(GBR)   9 – 3Hamzaa M Saeed Ali(ERI)
Toh Lian Han(SIN)   9 – 5 Jeffrey De Luna(PHL)

Group 7
Ramil Gallego(PHL)  9 – 4 Dennis Orcollo(PHL)
David Alcaide(ESP)  9 – 8 Irsal Nasution(INA)

Group 8
Nikos Ekonomopoulos(GRE)  9 – 5  Jayson Shaw(GBR)
Ko Ping Chung(TPE) 9 – 8 Abdul Rahman Al Amar(KSA)

Group 9
Lui Haitao(CHN) 9 – 1 Jalal Yousef(VEN)
Alexander Kazakis(GRE) 9 – 6 Niels Feijen(NED)

Group 10
Chu Bing Jie(CHN) 9- 1  Ruben Bautista(MEX)
Hsieh Chia Chen(TPE)  9 – 5 Ali Maghsoud(IRN)

Group 11
Waren Kiamco(PHL)  9 – 7 Oliver Ortmann(GER)
Wu Kun Lin(TPE) 9 – 3 Wojciech Szewczyk(POL)

Group 12
Francisco Pizaarro Diaz(ESP) 9 – 3 Hayato Hijikata(JPE)
Roman Hybler(CZE)  9 – 6 Muhammad Bewi Simenjuntak(INA)

Group 13
Wu Jiaqing(CHN) 9 – 5  Ryu Ceung Woo(KOR)
Dennis Grabe(EST)  9 – 4 Oscar Dominguez(USA)

Group 14
Li Hewen(CHN)  9 – 4 Francisco Olita Felicilda(QAT-PHL)
Li Wen Lo(TPE)  9 – 5 Yukio Akagariyama(JPN)

Group 15
Lee Vann Corteza(PHL) 9 – 7 Abdulla Al Shemmari(KSA)
Konstantin Stepanov(RUS) 9 – 6 Rogelio Belleca Sotero Jr(PHL)

Group 16
Dang Jin Hu(CHN)  9 – 3 Bashar Hussaiin(QAT)
Han Hao Xiang(CHN)  9 – 3 Cheng Yu Husan(TPE)