 |
| Tran Quoc Vinh competing at the 3-Cushion Carom Billiards Tournament “Hue Sports Festival” 2025 |
“Keeping the Flame”
In 2017, to the surprise and admiration of both the domestic and international billiards community, all attention turned to a cueist from the ancient capital. With a calm playing style and sharp tactical thinking, Tran Quoc Vinh (Quoc Vinh Billiards Club – Hue) made his mark by defeating five strong Korean cueists to reach Round 3 of the World Cup. After that, with steady form, Vinh continued to place in the top 10 at the California Open — where he scored a 17-point series and won the title of “Best Cueist” — and entered the top 20 at the U.S. Open, a tournament gathering nearly all of the world’s top cueists.
Before shining on the international stage, Tran Quoc Vinh was already the “pioneer” of Hue billiards, winning many achievements in domestic tournaments: champion of the Hoi An City Open, runner-up of the Da Nang City 3-Cushion Carom Open, second place at the Molinari Gia Lai tournament. Notably, Vinh once defeated the veteran Ly The Vinh at the 2010 National Sports Festival to win the silver medal — the first medal ever for central Vietnam in the 3-cushion carom event — and also received the title of National Elite Athlete in 2010.
More than just achievements, what makes Vinh memorable to many is his perseverance in this rather “rough” arena. It is called rough because, in reality, billiards still faces prejudice from many people. Nevertheless, for more than 20 years, Vinh has quietly trained, competed, and contributed as a tournament promoter, spending his own money to organize events, supporting teammates in competitions, and keeping the sport alive — something not all top athletes in Hue can accomplish.
Potential
At the 3-Cushion Carom Billiards tournament (August 1–4) held as part of the Hue Sports Festival 2025, in addition to support from the authorities, Vinh used his wide network to connect with Arena Company and Hollywood Billiards Tables to organize a tournament featuring numerous continental and world titleholders, such as Nguyen Duc Anh Chien — runner-up at the 2019 World Championship (Vietnam’s highest achievement in 3-cushion carom billiards); Do Nguyen Trung Hau — 2019 Asian bronze medalist; along with Mai Tan Huyen, Nguyen Phuoc Minh Dien, Le Dinh Sy, Le Dinh Dung, Huynh Xuan Chau, Duc Toan — all big names in Vietnamese billiards.
Not only did the event gather top class cueists, but with more than 150 million VND in prize money for the top three — including over 80 million VND for the champion — the tournament organized by Vinh and his partners became the highest-awarding billiards event in Vietnam so far.
At the end of the tournament, although the championship went to Le Thanh Tien from Ho Chi Minh City, Hue still had three cueists earning high placements: Tran Quoc Vinh came second, Thanh Ha came third, and Kinh Cuong won the Series prize. This not only affirmed Vinh’s capability but also showed the potential of Hue billiards.
An open path
Hue’s high-performance sports development plan for 2021–2025, with orientation toward 2030, identifies billiards as one of the socialized sports to be prioritized for development. This is a correct policy, in line with current trends. However, in terms of boosting performance, it is also necessary to ensure no talent is overlooked.
With what has been shown so far, at the 2026 National Sports Festival, it will be no surprise if Hue billiards once again pins its hopes on Tran Quoc Vinh in the 3-cushion carom event. But as has been assessed, Hue’s billiards potential is great, and there are several cueists whose skill and technique are no less than Vinh’s, yet due to circumstances they cannot participate or shine at top-class tournaments. This is a pity for Hue sports.
So, how can we “balance” continuing the policy of socializing billiards while avoiding the loss of talent, in order to raise the achievements of Hue billiards in particular and Hue sports in general?
Since entering major arenas, billiards has no longer been a casual, spontaneous sport for recreational practice and competition. On the contrary, it requires long-term preparation, with coaches and well-planned investment strategies. Therefore, in normal times, cueists may “freely disperse,” self-funding their training and competition if they wish. But when participating in certain arenas such as the National Sports Festival or SEA Games, the sports sector should issue a “call to arms,” plan selections, form a team for centralized training, and implement strategies and tactics under a coach chosen by the sports department. During this time, businesses could be encouraged to sponsor equipment and training venues.
This can be considered an open approach, one that does not consume too much of the state budget, yet still provides cueists with conditions to maximize their talent, helps Hue billiards become more professional, reach farther, and stay aligned with the city’s policy of socializing the sport.