Cho Jae-ho eyes first tour win at High1 Resort PBA Championship

After a heart-wrenching near-miss in the previous tournament, professional billiards star Cho Jae-ho is poised to make another strong bid for his first tour victory at the upcoming High1 Resort PBA-LPBA Championship. The event, set to take place from June 3 to 11 in Jeongseon, Gangwon Province, will see the top players compete for the title.

Cho Jae-ho (NH Nonghyup Card) narrowly lost the final of the previous tournament, the Woori Financial Capital Championship, with a close 3-4 set score against Koen Dong-hwi (Welcome Savings Bank). This runner-up finish marked a disappointing end to a season where Cho, a five-time champion and recipient of the Player of the Year award in 2024, had struggled to replicate his previous success, securing only two runner-up finishes.

The 128-player field for the men's division includes several other notable contenders. Kang Dong-gong (Huons) and the youngest World Champion Kim Young-won (Harim) are also set to compete. Kang, who had a strong start to the season but was eliminated in the round of 16, and Kim, who fell in the round of 32, will be looking to rebound.

Defending champion Koen Dong-hwi (Welcome Savings Bank) begins his quest for a second consecutive tour title against Cho Byeong-chan on June 5. The tournament also features emerging talent from Vietnam, including Dao Van Ly (NH Nonghyup Card), Nguyen Thanh Tan, and Ton Viet Hoang Minh. Dao Van Ly, a rising force who reached the quarterfinals of the 2023 Ho Chi Minh World Cup, joins NH Nonghyup Card as a priority registration player and will face Yusuke Mori (SY) in his opening match.