The illustrious list of winners of the title of 3-cushion billiards world champion has been enriched by a completely new name. Phuong Vinh Bao, until recently a totally unknown billiard player from Vietnam, grabbed the 2023 world three cushion billiard title at the tournament held in Ankara, Turkey.
In a demonstration of skill and class, Tayfun Tasdemir has won the 2022 UMB 3-cushion world title. In Donghae City, South-Korea, he defeated Ruben Legazpi in a one-sided final: 50-14 in 15/14 innings. For Turkiye, it had been a nineteen-year wait since Semih Sayginer was world champion in 2003.
Pedro Piedrabuena defeated long-time rival and former champion Miguel Torres to win his 11th USBA 3-Cushion National Championship title.
His play throughout the event was nearly perfect and included an incredible come-from-behind victory against Kang Lee in the penultimate Semi-final round.
The UMB Men's 3-cushion World Championship - the major event held at year-end - has had both conflict and drama over the years. And what better way to relive some of those great moments than with a stroll down memory lane guided by Bert Van Manen, one of the game's greatest writers.. Enjoy Bert's story of 2001 - 2018 which first appeared in Kozoom, as you prepare to watch the next chapter unfold in the world championship.saga.
A compendium of laments, explanations, excited utterances, alibis and excuses
There are sighs, monosyllabic grunts and groans, breathless mutterings. There are references to God. There are curses, of course, and sometimes long vituperative whisperings, best said in a foreign language, questioning the heritage of the table or the balls, or questioning why fate has turned cruel or why we ever took up this infernal game. The vernacular of the billiard world is rich in the things we say when we miss or when others miss.
In a recent interview with Yonhap News Agency, World No. 1 ranked Torbjorn Blomdahl declared South Korea as a 3-cushion billiards utopia. With five World Union of Billiards (UMB) World Championships, nine European titles and 43 World Cup wins, Blomdahl is regarded as one of the greatest carom billiards players of his generation. He now lives near Stuttgart, Germany, but the three-time UMB Player of the Year feels South Korea is his real home.