SEOUL – Vietnamese Nguyen Quoc Nguyen won his first PBA tour title thanks to a 4-3 victory over his Spanish idol Dani Sánchez. The victory came thanks to a strong comeback in sets by Nguyen, who moved to the PBA three years and seven months ago, lost one final, and now qualifies for the upcoming PBA World Championship with this victory over Sánchez. Nguyen (44) expressed his joy. "Winning a PBA tour is impossible without luck. To win, you have to survive seven rounds in a field where the 128th-ranked player (last in the rankings) can beat the number one. It's the toughest competition in the world. I feel very happy that I finally succeeded after my loss in the final two years ago to Murat Naci Coklu, my team mate.’’
The winner also expressed his admiration for Dani Sánchez, whom he defeated 4-3 by set scores of 11-15, 8-15, 15-3, 15-9, 4-15, 15-2, and 11-4. Nguyen: “Dani is a great player. I know him for many years; he’s a legend. I consider him my best European friend and my master. I watched him many times and learned a lot, so it was so wonderful that I could now play a final against him.” Nguyen Quoc Nguyen also pointed to a moment in the final that was later respected by the entire Korean billiards world. “Dani made a touché (double shot) in the seventh set. The referee hadn't seen it, but Sánchez pointed out the mistake. The referee gave the turn to Nguyen, who finished with 8. "I respect Dani’s great honesty. He is the best player in my heart."
The Vietnamese winner feels very much at home in the PBA. He lives a five-hour flight from Seoul and finally a one-hour bus ride. Nguyen is married to Tran Hang, has a 38-month-old daughter (Bella), and his wife is expecting their second child. "I feel very happy here and can bring my family to have a wonderful time together."
Dani Sánchez is having the best year in his career with 5 finals in 9 regular Tour events: 2 titles and 3 runner-up finishes. He remains the leader in the prize money rankings. Nguyen Quoc Nguyen, with 100 million Korean won (60,000 euros), moves into 6th place in the rankings and has now earned a total of 200 million Korean won in his career. He is the second Vietnamese to win a PBA tour, after Minh Cam Ma. Besides his first PBA tour victory, Nguyen Quoc Nguyen also won the team league twice with his Hana Card team.
Dani Sánchez defeated Sang Yong Lee, Jae Hong Lee, Jae-guen Kim 3-0 in the quarterfinals, and Duc Anh Chien Nguyen 4-1 with a score of 2,143 in the semifinals. Nguyen Quoc Nguyen defeated Jong Won Kim in the semifinals and Byeong Chan Noh in the quarterfinals.
The best match of this tour was played by Javier Palazón with an astonishing 3.750 against Juan David Zapata, a trophy Palazón had won for the fifth time.
The women's final was won by 45-year-old Kyoung-jin Lim, who was playing her third final but had never won. She lost those finals to Se-yeon Kim and Ga-young Kim, the top earners in the LPBA. Kyoung-jin Kim defeated Su-bin Chung 4-3 in the final, 9-4 in the seventh set. Lim defeated Bo-mi Kim 3-2 in the semifinals, and Chung defeated MJ Baek 3-0.
Kyoung-jin Kim received the grand prize of 40 million won, or 23,000 euros. She qualified for the World Championships, which will be played on Jeju Island next month.
Vietnamese Hoang Yen Nhi Nguyen, who played in the UMB World Championship two years ago, made history in the PBA. She played the best women's match ever with 3.571 on average.
Kyoung-jin Lim defeated 26-year-old Su-bin Chung, considered the rising star of women's billiards in the LPBA, 4-3 in this final.
PBA winner Nguyen Quoc Nguyen with his wife and daughter
Happy winner Nguyen Quoc Nguyen
The lady-winner Kyoung jin Lim