Jung Soo-bin, 27, a rising star in South Korea's women's professional billiards league, claimed her first career title four years after turning pro.
Jung, who plays for NH NongHyup Card, defeated Lee Mi-rae of High1 Resort 4-2 in sets (11-1, 11-10, 10-11, 11-7, 8-11, 11-5) in the LPBA final of the Crown Haitai PBA-LPBA Championship, the fourth event of the 2026-2027 season, held on the 11th at the PBA Stadium in KINTEX, Goyang, Gyeonggi Province. Lee had been chasing her sixth career title.
Jung, who debuted at the third event of the 2022-2023 season, lifted her first professional trophy four years and one month into her career. Her best previous result was a runner-up finish at the ninth event of last season. The 40 million won ($28,000) winner's purse lifted her season ranking to third from 25th. Lee, meanwhile, fell short at the threshold of a sixth title.
Jung seized the early advantage in the final, closing out the first set 11-1 in just four innings after scoring eight points in the third inning on the strength of two bank shots. She also took the second set 11-10, then traded sets with Lee before sealing the win in the sixth.
Jung first encountered billiards while studying statistics at Sookmyung Women's University, when she filled in for a friend at a part-time job at a billiard hall. "At first I knew nothing and felt lost, and I even wondered whether I could really reach the top," she said. "I practiced harder looking forward to a moment like this." She added: "I won, but there is still so much I lack. I will keep building a solid foundation."
The men's PBA semifinals and final follow on the 12th. David Martinez of Spain, who represents Crown Haitai, faces Cho Gun-hwi of Welcome Savings Bank at 12:30 p.m., and Nguyen Quoc Nguyen of Vietnam, who represents Hana Card, meets Noh Jong-hyun at 3:30 p.m. The final, with a winner's purse of 100 million won ($70,000), begins at 9 p.m.