Defeats Vietnam's Ngo 4-2 in sets to claim 'V4'; career prize money surpasses 400 million won
Kim Young-won, the 18-year-old prodigy of professional billiards, lifted his fourth career PBA Tour trophy Thursday, firmly establishing himself among the sport's elite.
In the final of the 2026-2027 season's second tour — the HaiOne Resort PBA Championship — held at the Grand Hotel Convention Tower of HaiOne Resort in Jeongseon-gun, Gangwon Province, Kim defeated Vietnamese standout Ngo Dinh Nai (Huons) by a set score of 4-2 (15-8, 15-9, 11-15, 15-3, 12-15, 15-4).
The victory came 88 days after Kim won the Hana Card Hana Capital Jeju Special Self-Governing Province PBA-LPBA World Championship — the season-ending king of kings event — and brought his career total to four titles. He moved up from a tie for fourth to a tie for third on the all-time wins list. The 100 million won ($65,000) winner's check pushed his career prize money to 571 million won ($373,000), lifting him one spot to sixth on the all-time earnings list. He also jumped to first in the season rankings, overtaking season-opener winner Jo Geon-hwi (Welcome Savings Bank).
Ngo had been chasing history as what would have been Vietnam's third PBA champion, after Ma Minh Cam and Nguyen Quoc Nguyen, but fell just short. He did take home the Welcome Top Ranking award — worth 4 million won ($2,600) and given to the player who posts the highest single-match average — after recording an average of 3.000 in a 4-0 semifinal win over Kim Jun-tae (Harim).
Kim seized control early, winning the first two sets before Ngo clawed one back in the third with a long-distance shot that shifted the momentum. Kim quickly reasserted himself, taking the fourth set 15-3 to move within one of the title. With his back against the wall, Ngo fought back in the fifth — a high run of nine points in the fifth inning, followed by a six-point long shot to go from 9-12 to 15-12, pulling the set score to 2-3.
Kim allowed no further comeback in the sixth set. He raced out to a 12-2 lead with five points in the second inning, in effect sealing the match. Ngo added two points on a bank shot in the third inning, but Kim answered with three more to close out the set 15-4 and the match 4-2.
Born in 2007, Kim entered the professional ranks at 16 through the PBA Dream Tour — the second division — in 2022. He reached his first tour final from the very first event of the 2024-2025 season, announcing himself as a rising star. He ultimately claimed his first title in just his sixth tour appearance, becoming the youngest champion in PBA history at 17 years and 23 days. He added two more titles last season — the sixth-tour Huons Championship and the World Championship — to become the youngest world champion in the tour's history.
Speaking at the awards ceremony, Kim said his average had improved significantly over the past two years but acknowledged he still had room to grow. "There are still many players with higher averages than mine," he said. "My target average is 1.7 or above."
With the second tour of the season now complete, the PBA will take a short break before resuming with the third tour in late July. In the interim, the Welcome Savings Bank PBA Team League 2026-2027 will be held at Gwangmyeong Gymnasium in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi Province, from July 5 to 9, keeping the professional billiards calendar active.
yjc@heraldcorp.com
