Seven Vietnamese cueists on August 9 stormed into the semi-finals round of the Verhoeven Open, a three-cushion billiards tournament held annually in Flushing, Queens, New York, according to the Vnexpress online newspaper.

They are Nguyen Quoc Nguyen, Tran Quyet Chien, Duong Anh Vu, Ngo Dinh Nai, Nguyen Duc Anh Chien, Ma Minh Cam, and Tran Quoc Vinh. 

In the semi-finals, there are 56 players – eight groups of seven players who will play in a round robin – with 35-point matches.

The top two from each group will advance to the finals based on win/loss, average finals 16 players single elimination (knockout) 40-point matches.

The Verhoeven Open Tournament is the premier three cushion billiard tournament held in the US. The event takes place each summer at Carom Cafe Billiards in Flushing, New York and attracts the very top of 3-cushion billiard talent from around the globe.

Originally conceived in 2005 to posthumously honour twelve-time USBA National Champion Sang Chun Lee the tournament was renamed the Verhoeven Open when the table manufacturer agreed to begin sponsoring the event in 2012.

The 2017 event, August 7-13, is already shaping up to be one of the best instalments ever.

VOV