Korean and Vietnamese players are dominating the 2026-27 PBA Tour three-cushion billiards rankings after five legs, according to Thanh Nien. South Korea's Cho Keon-hwi leads after winning the first and fifth legs, while Vietnam's Nguyen Quoc Nguyen and rookie Nguyen Tran Thanh Tao sit third and fourth. Together with second-placed Kim Young-won of South Korea, each of the chasing trio has won one title this season.
The top four
| Rank | Player | Country | Prize money | Points | Titles this season |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cho Keon-hwi | South Korea | 216 million won | 242,000 | 2 (legs 1 and 5) |
| 2 | Kim Young-won | South Korea | 111.5 million won | 141,000 | 1 |
| 3 | Nguyen Quoc Nguyen | Vietnam | 110 million won | 133,000 | 1 (leg 4) |
| 4 | Nguyen Tran Thanh Tao | Vietnam | 102.5 million won | 111,000 | 1 |
Cho tightened his grip on first place by beating Spain's David Martinez 4-3 in the most recent final and now has 216 million won in prize money and 242,000 points. Quoc Nguyen won the fourth leg in early October, beating the same Martinez 4-1, and has 110 million won and 133,000 points, 8,000 points behind Kim Young-won (111.5 million won, 141,000 points). Thanh Tao, in his first season, has 102.5 million won and 111,000 points.
Martinez is fifth with 74 million won. Places six to ten belong to Cho Jae-ho (South Korea), Semih Sayginer (Turkey), Ngo Dinh Nai (Vietnam), David Zapata (Spain) and Kim Jun-tae (South Korea). Nguyen Huynh Phuong Linh is 12th and Thon Viet Hoang Minh 38th.
Spain's stars still waiting
Spanish players, long regarded as a major force on the PBA, have yet to win a title this season. Martinez, whom Thanh Nien calls the best player in PBA history so far, reached back-to-back finals in the fourth and fifth legs but lost both, first to Quoc Nguyen and then to Cho. Zapata has yet to make his mark, and veteran Daniel Sanchez has suffered a string of early exits and is down in 49th.
Timeline: Vietnam's PBA titles
The first five legs mark the most successful spell yet for Vietnamese three-cushion players on the PBA. With the season only around halfway through, Vietnamese players have already won twice; before this run, fans waited more than three years for a second title.
- Late 2022, 2022-23 season: Ma Minh Cam becomes the first Vietnamese PBA champion.
- February 2026, end of the 2025-26 season: Nguyen Quoc Nguyen wins Vietnam's second title and his first.
- 2026-27 season: rookie Nguyen Tran Thanh Tao wins one title.
- Early October 2026, fourth leg: Quoc Nguyen wins again, beating Martinez 4-1.
That makes three Vietnamese PBA titles since the start of 2026, and Quoc Nguyen, with two, is now the most successful Vietnamese player on the tour.
What comes next
Four or five legs remain in the 2026-27 season, leaving Vietnamese players plenty of chances to add to that tally. Beyond Quoc Nguyen and Thanh Tao, Thanh Nien says rookies Thon Viet Hoang Minh and Dao Van Ly are adapting well, while regulars Ngo Dinh Nai and Nguyen Huynh Phuong Linh are highly rated and often go deep in events. With two players in the top four, Vietnam's challenge to the Korean pack is the storyline to follow in the second half of the season.