Vietnamese cueists exit international billiards tournament

Chien entered the game with South Korean cueist Choi Young-won on the last matchday of the tournament’s second round. The top cueist in Vietnam with seven points was under pressure to win against Choi with a really great score to get past Turkish Semih Sayginer (10 points).

But Choi didn’t let Chien have an easy start, as the two drew 16-16 in the first set. With nothing to lose, Chien came back to win the next two sets 21-13 and 20-7.

However, this victory couldn’t help Chien take over Sayginer’s fourth place in group A, despite having 10 points too. Sayginer was better in other stats and moved onto the next round.

Also in group A, the other Vietnamese cueist, Nguyen Quoc Nguyen, was eliminated. In a must-win game against Eddy Merckx - the world’s number four cueist, Nguyen came close to advance after winning the first set 22-10. However, in the next two sets, Nguyen lost to remain sixth.

The eight cueists in group A and B will move to the final round. The top four of the final will advance to the playoffs to determine a champion. The final games will have five sets instead of three.

The winner of the UMB 3C Grand Prix 2021 will pocket $300,000.