Myung Woo Cho has won the Lier World Cup, defeating Dick Jaspers 50-38 in 18 innings in the final.
For the Korean world number one, it is already his third World Cup victory of the 2026 season and the fifth World Cup title of his career. At just 28, Cho is increasingly establishing himself as the dominant player of his generation.
Cho's incredible 21
The first semi-final saw Cho face one of the revelations of the tournament, Phuong Vinh Bao.
The Vietnamese had produced a magnificent tournament and was certainly not playing badly. But Cho produced the most spectacular run of the entire event: 21 consecutive caroms.
Once the Korean took control of the table, there was little Bao could do. Cho won 50-30 in just 15 innings, averaging 3.333. The 21 is the highest run of the tournament.
Bao nevertheless leaves Lier with one of the tournament's most impressive statistics: his 4.000 match average, the highest individual match average of the World Cup.
Jaspers reaches another final
The second semi-final featured Berkay Karakurt against Dick Jaspers.
The young Turk had been one of the revelations of the week, but Jaspers' experience proved decisive. After six empty innings from Karakurt, the Dutchman took control, including a run of 10 that opened a commanding lead.
Karakurt fought back with runs of 6, 5 and 9, but Jaspers eventually won 50-38 in 23 innings, averaging 2.173.
Another World Cup final for Jaspers — and another opportunity to challenge the new generation led by Cho.
The final: the turning point after the break
The final started quietly, with Jaspers leading 15-13 after nine innings.
The Dutchman then appeared to take control. A run of 6 was followed by an important 11, giving Jaspers a significant advantage and allowing him to reach the break with a 30-19 lead.
But the match changed dramatically after the break.
Just four innings later, Jaspers found himself trailing 43-31.
Cho had completely turned the game around. From that point, the Korean needed only a few more caroms to close out the match and win 50-38 in 18 innings, at 2.777. Jaspers finished at 2.111.
The turning point of the final had arrived immediately after the break.
Zanetti finishes with the best overall average
Although Marco Zanetti was eliminated by Bao in the quarter-finals, the Italian finished the tournament with the best general average: 2.189.
Zanetti had already dominated the group stage with an extraordinary 2.307 average, before Bao stopped his run in the last eight.
The overall level in Lier was exceptional: the Top 32 tournament average was 1.712, placing this World Cup among the top five highest-level World Cups ever according to the tournament statistics.
Bao, Karakurt and the new generation
Behind the champion and finalist, Phuong Vinh Bao and Berkay Karakurt complete the podium.
Bao finishes third with a superb 2.163 general average, while Karakurt also enjoyed an exceptional week, finishing fourth at 1.952.
Karakurt's performance is particularly noteworthy after his spectacular 2.400 average in the group stage, while Bao produced the best single-match average of the entire event.
The message from Lier is clear: the established champions remain extremely competitive, but the new generation is closing the gap — and Cho is currently leading that charge.
Cho extends his lead in the 2026 World Cup race
The victory also strengthens Cho's position at the top of the 2026 UMB World Cup Overall ranking.
After Lier, Cho has 284 points, ahead of Dick Jaspers on 178 and Eddy Merckx on 170.
The final two World Cups of the season will take place in Korea in November and Egypt in December.
With three World Cup victories already this season, Cho now has a sizeable lead and another opportunity to build what could become a remarkable era of dominance.
UMB World Ranking – Top 30
The latest UMB World Players ranking is now Edition 22/2026, dated September 6, 2026. The official ranking confirms Cho at number one, while the Lier results have brought significant changes further down the list.
| # | Player | ? | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Myung Woo Cho | ?? | 499 |
| 2 | Frédéric Caudron | ?? | 372 |
| 3 | Eddy Merckx | ?? | 365 |
| 4 | Martin Horn | ?? | 345 |
| 5 | Berkay Karakurt | ?? | 317 |
| 6 | Sameh Sidhom | ?? | 312 |
| 7 | Marco Zanetti | ?? | 278 |
| 8 | Dick Jaspers | ?? | 258 |
| 9 | Tayfun Taşdemir | ?? | 252 |
| 10 | Peter Ceulemans | ?? | 250 |
| 11 | Phuong Vinh Bao | ?? | 249 |
| 12 | Jung Han Heo | ?? | 239 |
| 13 | Thanh Luc Tran | ?? | 224 |
| 14 | Haeng Jik Kim | ?? | 210 |
| 15 | Glenn Hofman | ?? | 196 |
| 16 | Hong Chiem Thai | ?? | 190 |
| 17 | Ruben Legazpi | ?? | 164 |
| 18 | Jérémy Bury | ?? | 147 |
| 19 | Quyet Chien Tran | ?? | 145 |
| 20 | Nikos Polychronopoulos | ?? | 144 |
| 21 | Tolgahan Kiraz | ?? | 134 |
| 22 | Torbjörn Blomdahl | ?? | 133 |
| 23 | Huberney Catano | ?? | 130 |
| 24 | Pedro Piedrabuena | ?? | 129 |
| 25 | Arnim Kahofer | ?? | 119 |
| 26 | Birol Uymaz | ?? | 116 |
| 27 | Mikael Devogelaere | ?? | 106 |
| 28 | Sergio Jimenez | ?? | 105 |
| 29 | Roland Forthomme | ?? | 104 |
| 30 | Wan Young Choi | ?? | 101 |
Lier ends with another statement from Myung Woo Cho: the world number one is not simply holding his position — he is setting the pace.
A big thank you to Dirk ACX for his pictures and Congratulations to Kurt CEULEMANS and his amazing team.
