Thanh Tao edges Turkish star in comeback win to claim debut PBA Tour title

The victory earned the 1997-born cueist his maiden PBA Tour title alongside the 100 million won top prize (around US$70,000).

Thanh Tao's championship run proved thoroughly convincing as he overcame a series of big names. In the earlier rounds, he defeated Turkey's Lutfi Cenet (3-1), South Korea's Shin Jung Ju (3-2), and Turkey's Burak Hashas (3-2). In the semifinals, he pulled off a major upset by sweeping past 2014 UMB World Champion Choi Sung Won 4-1, starting with a dominant 15-3 set powered by an 8-point run before securing three straight set wins (15-6, 15-5, 15-13).

In the championship match, Thanh Tao faced Semih Sayginer, the Turkish veteran famously dubbed the "Magician" of 3-cushion carom. Despite repeatedly trailing at critical moments, the Vietnamese cueist maintained composure to draw level before winning a nail-biting deciding set to stand on the top step of a PBA Tour podium for the first time.

Thanh Tao joined the PBA Tour ahead of the 2026-2027 season alongside Dao Van Ly and Thon Viet Hoang Minh, raising Vietnam’s total representation in South Korea's premier professional 3-cushion carom circuit to a record eight players. His triumph follows previous titles won by compatriots Ma Minh Cam and Nguyen Quoc Nguyen, thereby further consolidating the standing of Vietnamese cueists on the professional PBA stage.

Vietnamese cueist Tran Quyet Chien advances to World Games semi-finals

VOV.VN - Four-time world champion Tran Quyet Chien of Vietnam on August 12 defeated his longtime opponent Jeremy Bury of France to advance to the semifinals of the 3-cushion carom billiards at the 2025 World Games currently taking place in Chengdu, China.