SEA Games champion makes mistake, 'drops' more than 200 million VND

The highlight of the final day of competition (January 11) of the 2025 Keight 8-ball pool championship held at Ho Xuan Huong Stadium (District 3, Ho Chi Minh City) was the two championship matches in the men's and women's categories. The men's 8-ball pool final ended late that day with a match between Ho So Phat and Do Hoang Quan. Ho So Phat has been playing pool for more than 20 years but has not had any significant achievements. Meanwhile, Hoang Quan is a veteran who has won many national and SEA Games titles (gold medal in men's 9-ball pool doubles in 2009 with Luong Chi Dung).

Entering the match, Ho So Phat started well to take an early lead with a score of 5-1. Hoang Quan showed the mettle of a veteran player, when he shortened the gap to 3-5, before equalizing the score to 7-7.

Ho So Phat surprisingly won the championship, after a thrilling victory over Do Hoang Quan (2nd from left)

The match started with a tense tug-of-war. When the score was 8-7, Hoang Quan forgot to declare a loss, allowing So Phat to increase the gap to 9-7. Continuing his winning streak, Ho So Phat increased the gap to 11-7. But then, Hoang Quan once again brought the match back to balance, with the score at 12-12.

Entering the deciding game, Hoang Quan, although he cleared the ball well, made a regrettable mistake in the situation of hitting the last target ball. Taking advantage of the valuable opportunity, So Phat cleared the table to win a thrilling victory with the final score of 13-12.

Duong Yen Vi convincingly won the women's category.

Ho So Phat won the men's 8-ball event and received 388,888,888 VND in prize money. Do Hoang Quan, runner-up, received 180 million VND. Lo Van Xuan and Nguyen Khanh Hoang tied for third place, receiving 48 million VND each.

The final match of women's 8-ball pool billiards took place before the clash between Bui Xuan Vang and Duong Yen Vi. Yen Vi won 7-4 against the reigning national champion Xuan Vang to be crowned. Duong Yen Vi won the 8-ball pool championship and received 40 million VND in prize money. Bui Xuan Vang received 20 million VND for the runner-up position. Le Hong Nhung and Doan Thi Ngoc Le tied for third place, receiving 8 million VND each.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/billiards-sea-games-champion-won-200-million-dong-185250112002257688.htm