Semih Saygıner is one of those who has shown our generation what can be achieved with perseverance and dedication. Pool, which was quite popular in Turkey during the 1990s, has always been more popular due to its simplicity and the sheer joy of putting the ball in the pocket. Beyond what we call American pool and the official tournaments we watch under the name ‘Snooker,’ a variation of American pool, there has always been a special respect and affection in the pool community for the masters of three-cushion pool, which serious pool players refer to as “purely the product of intelligence and hard work.”
The effort required to achieve a good level in snooker is vastly different from that required in three-cushion pool. While it’s generally thought to be more tedious for us, scoring a point in three-cushion pool feels like you’ve reached the highest level. That’s why I took up three-cushion pool for a while. While it may sound simple to try to hit at least three cushions before or after hitting your own ball and then hit the third ball on the table, it’s a discipline where intelligence and creativity soar.
Saygıner’s life story
Now, we’re talking about a man who won the world championship in the 1990s, making his name among Turkey’s legendary athletes. After countless achievements, tournament championships, and world championships, he took a 10-15-year break and then returned to become the world champion in 2021. Let’s first get to know Semih Saygıner, a legend in the pool community who has shed light on all other aspects of life. (See: https://tr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semih_Sayg%C4%B1ner ):
Semih Saygıner (born 12 November 1964, Adapazarı) is a professional 3-cushion pool player.
Having won the first World Pool Championship in 1994, Saygıner is known worldwide as “Mr. Magic” or “The Turkish Prince.” He is credited with establishing a federation for pool in Turkey. Saygıner, who played professionally for nine years in the Dutch league and three years in the Portuguese league, possesses 42 special shot techniques, known in pool lore as “Semih Saygıner Magic Shots,” and is one of the most important figures in the game. To help you visualize, I’m sharing examples of Semih Saygıner’s so-called magic shots:
Saygıner was born in Adapazarı on 12 November 1964. His father was Faruk Bey, a tailor, and his mother was Süreyya Hanım. He lost both his parents in a traffic accident in 1978. Following his parents’ death, he dropped out of high school and began playing pool at the age of 16.
His first world championship came in 1994.
At the age of 17, persuaded by his friend Tezcan Şen, he participated in the Istanbul Championship and won first place. For a while, he finished second in Turkey behind Bora Karatay in national championships; he won his first Turkish championship in 1987. He opened a pool hall in Istanbul and taught pool to hundreds of people. He placed 9th in the 1991 German Open and the 1991 Istanbul Efes Pilsen Grand Prix, and in 1992, he defeated world champion Raymond Ceulemans 3-0 in Berlin, finishing 8th in the world.
Saygıner won his first world pool championship in 1994, and subsequently became a world champion several times, achieving countless successes. I list these achievements, each of which required considerable effort, in the final section of this article. Now, let’s turn to the important lessons Semih Saygıner taught.
The Importance of Resisting Laziness
In his interview, which you can watch at https://www.instagram.com/reel/C2aHNlGozhF/?igsh=cGNmaXUzYWxyaXJo ,
Semih Saygıner offers the following lesson:
Resist laziness.
Take action.
Life doesn’t come to you, you go to life!
Get what you want.
People who demand something from life take action.
From this statement, we understand that Semih Saygıner’s global success is no coincidence. We’re talking about someone who, after losing both his parents in a terrible accident at 16, began to struggle for survival on his own. He achieved his best by working at a coffeehouse and spending hours playing pool. Despite all the obstacles, he took English lessons at 26 to improve his foreign language skills. The life he built, slowly and diligently, each day, has brought him to a point. He became known internationally as Mr. Magic and a man with a very distinct place in the pool community. Just as he had dreamed. After a long break from pool, Semih Saygıner returned to his training more than 10 years later and once again became a world champion. I’m sharing the news of his last world championship:
Take it, fix it, make it beautiful.
Atatürk’s words, “We only need one thing: to be hardworking,” confirm the lesson Semih Saygıner wants to teach.
If a person works hard towards their own goals, they shape their own destiny. Semih Saygıner has another beautiful quote on this. He says, “You have a blank canvas, they give you paint. First, others paint on your behalf. Sometimes they paint very poorly… You still have paint, you still have time. Take it, fix it, make it beautiful. It’s your life. You paint it! Don’t let others paint it.”
So, what are you waiting for? Set a goal, start painting your own canvas without caring about others, and determine the course of your life through hard work.
Semih Saygıner’s historic achievements:
1994 World Cup champion (Gent, Belgium)
1994 Olympic Torch relay winner (Istanbul, Turkey)
1994 World Cup series winner (6 legs)
1995 Korea Open Three-Cushion champion (Suwon, Korea)
1995 Mersin International Tournament champion (Mersin, Turkey)
1996 Mersin International Tournament champion (Mersin, Turkey)
1998 World Cup champion (Göynük, Turkey)
1998 World Cup runner-up (Antwerp, Belgium)
1998 Dutch International Tournament champion (Zundert, Netherlands)
1999 World Cup runner-up (Las Vegas, USA)
1999 US Open Three-Cushion champion (San Jose, USA)
1999 Dutch Grand Prix champion (Barendrecht, Netherlands)
1999 European champion (Porto, Portugal)
2000 World Cup Series (5-Leg) Runner-up
2000 Denmark Open Three-Cushion Champion (Denmark)
2000 US Open Three-Cushion Champion (Boston, USA)
2000 US Open Three-Cushion Champion (Atlanta, USA)
2000 Mexico Open Three-Cushion Champion (Mexico City, Mexico)
2000 Metropolitan Diamond Cup Champion (Antwerp, Belgium)
2000 European Championship Runner-up (Madrid, Spain)
2000 World Cup Champion (Bogotá, Colombia)
2000 Greek Open Three-Cushion Champion (Athens, Greece)
2000 Japan Cup Champion (Tokyo, Japan)
2001 World Cup Champion (Bogotá, Colombia)
2001 Metropolitan Diamond Cup Champion (Antwerp, Belgium)
2002 European Club Champion (with the Dutch League Vanwanrooij pool team) (Oporto, Portugal)
2002 Japan Cup champion (Tokyo, Japan)
2003 World Cup champion (Las Vegas, USA)
2003 World Champion (Valladolid, Spain)
2003 World National Team Championship champion (with Tayfun Taşdemir) (Germany)
2003 Zaman Newspaper Special Athlete of the Year Award (Istanbul, Turkey)
2004 World National Team Championship champion (with Tayfun Taşdemir) (Viersen, Germany)
2004 World Cup champion (Athens, Greece)
2004 World Cup series (5-leg) runner-up
2004 World Player of the Year award (Antwerp, Belgium)
2004 Super Cup winner (Antwerp, Belgium)
2004 Milliyet Newspaper Special Athlete of the Year Award (Istanbul, Turkey)
2005 European Club Championship bronze medal (with FC Porto in the Portuguese league) (France)
2005 World Games bronze medal (Duisburg, Germany)
2006 European Championship silver medal
2006 European Club Championship second place
2016 World National Team Championship second place (with Lütfi Çenet)
2016 World 3-Cushion Pool Championship third place (Bordeaux, France)
2018 World National Team Championship third place (Viersen, Germany)[15]
2018 World Cup third place (France)
2018 World Cup second place (Belgium)
2018 World Championship third place (Egypt)
2021 World Championship champion (Egypt)
2023 World National Team Championship champion (with Tayfun Taşdemir) (Viersen, Germany)
Tag: education
