From 2-8 November, Korea hosts the UMB World Cup in Yanggu. It is the penultimate event of 2026, followed in December by the World Cup in Hurghada, Egypt.
No country has a larger billiards economy than Korea, and the nation has produced dozens of top players in the past two decades. The qualification events in Korea are notoriously difficult to survive; totally unknown players can hit you with a 2 average match. At the same time, the Korean event has become a pilgrimage for some players from Western Europe who like to drink in the billiards culture.
A little memory refreshment: The first WC of 2026 in Bogota was won by Myung Woo Cho, the second event in Ho Chi Minh City went to Frédéric Caudron, the third event in Ankara was again won by M.W. Cho. Eddy Merckx won the fourth in Porto, Myung Woo Cho the fifth, in Lier.
The UMB has seeded the following players for Yanggu: M.W. Cho, Merckx, Zanetti, B. Karakurt, Horn, Jaspers, Sidhom, Tasdemir, Hofman, P. V. Bao, H.C. Thai, T.L. Tran, J.H. Heo and Bury.
The tables in Yanggu are Hollywood, the cloth is Simonis 330 Prestige, the balls are Aramith Prestige. The usual ranking points are at stake: 80-54-36-26-18-10-8.
The last three World Cup winners in Korea: Merckx (2023), Jaspers (2024) and M.W. Cho (2025).
All matches are streamed on Soop. Full match results are available on the websites of Five & Six and the UMB.