A total of 149 cueists from 20 countries and territories worldwide are taking part in the tournament held from May 23 to May 29 by the World Billiard Union (UMB).

The qualifying round taking place from May 23 – 26 saw the Top 32, including Vietnamese pair Nguyen Tran Thanh Tu and Tran Quyet Chien, progress through to the next round from May 27 - 29.

Among the big names in the final round are Choi Sung Won, 2014 world billiards champion and world number 16, Kim Jun Tae who is 17th in the world rankings, Cho Myung Woo, 18th, Lutfi Cenet, 20th, and Nilkos Polychronopoulos, 21st. 

The ultimate winner of the tournament will receive a cash prize of EUR16,000 and 80 points to be added to their world’s billiards rankings.

The second and third-placed positions will win EUR10,000 and EUR6,000, as well as 54 and 36 points, respectively.

Thanh Tu and Quoc Chien gave successful performances at the recent the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31), bringing back two gold medals. They are expected to build on success and show surprise at the ongoing world tournament in Ho Chi Minh City.

Source: VOV