<Billiards> Seulong Piavi wins the women's title for the first time in 1 year and 5 months & Martinez wins the men's title for the second consecutive year = ”Hana Card PBA-LPBA Championship”

Cambodia's Seulong Piavi (Woori Financial Capital) topped the Hana Card LPBA (Ladies Professional Billiards Association) Championship, becoming the first LPBA player in 1 year and 5 months.
The PIAVY team won their eighth championship overall. The team won the championship on the 6th at the Kintex Stadium in Goyang, Gyeonggi-do.
The second tour of the 2025-2026 Professional Billiards Season was held at the PBA Stadium.
In the LPBA finals of the Hana Card PBA-LPBA Championship, she defeated Kim Bo Ra with a set score of 4-1.
It will be his first win in 511 days, since his victory in the eighth tour of the 2023-2024 season.
With this, Piavi is now second in the LPBA all-time wins, following "Billiards Queen" Kim Ga-young's 15th win.
In addition to the 40 million won (approximately 4.27 million yen) in prize money for the first place in the tournament, her total prize money has reached 322.82 million won (approximately 34.5 million yen), surpassing Kim Ga-yeon (721.8 million won).
After the match, Piavi said, "I haven't won in a while, so I was feeling anxious. I'm no longer a player who can win.
I was worried about whether I would be able to win. I had some personal reasons, but now I'm in an environment where I can concentrate solely on billiards. I want to continue to enjoy the games and win."
Meanwhile, Kim Bo Ra, who defeated Hida Orie in the quarterfinals and attempted to win her first title in 39 tournaments since her professional debut, was unable to overcome Piavi's barrier and ended up in second place.
Despite this, he made a strong impression on billiards fans with his bright and positive attitude. In the early stages of the match, the atmosphere was intense, with Piavi winning 11-18 innings in the third set.
He won the match in the fourth set, but was trailing 5-10. He then turned the game around to win 11-10 in the fourth set and took a 3-1 lead.
Piavi regained his composure and scored eight runs on the first pitch of the fifth set, widening the lead to 8-1.
After that, they added three more runs in the third inning, including a bank shot, to take an 11-2 lead and secure a 4-1 set score, securing the championship.
On the 8th, the defending champion, Debi, won the men's PBA finals at the same venue.
Martinez (Spain/Crown Haitai) defeated Cho Jae-ho 4-2 to win his eighth individual championship trophy and earn a total prize of 1 billion won (approximately 168 million won).
Cho Jae-ho, who advanced to the final stage for the first time in a long time, aimed to win the championship for the first time in 477 days, but unfortunately lost.
Until now, the Hana Card PBA Championship has been dominated by Spanish players.
The Hana Card Championship was won by David Zapata (Woori Financial Capital), the following season by Javier Palazon (Huons), and last season by Martinez.
Martinez, the winner of the previous tournament, achieved his second consecutive victory this time. He tied the record for most wins held by "PBA legend" Frederick Caudron and rose to the top of the PBA prize money rankings.
In the first set, Martinez hit seven extra-base hits in the fifth and sixth innings, winning the first set 15-5.
Cho Jae-ho scored 13 high runs in the first inning of the second set, seizing the opportunity early on and scoring consecutively in the second and third innings to bring the game back to square one.
The two players were locked in a tight third set, with Martinez hitting a bank shot in the sixth inning while leading 7-6.
He extended his lead with six more runs, including one in the seventh inning, and finished the set 15-9 with a bank shot in the seventh inning. In the fourth set, Cho Jae-ho hit a seven-run extra-base hit in the fourth inning when he was leading 6-4, and finished with a 1-run lead.
MARK 3-4. Martinez also hit hard in the third inning with a nine-run extra-base hit to tie the game. Cho Jae-ho had a chance to end the set in the fourth inning, but only managed to add one more run.
Martinez took advantage of the opportunity and added the remaining two points to win the match 15-14. The fifth set was also a close match. Cho Jae-ho was trailing 6-9, but he was defeated in the seventh set.
He scored seven points in the first inning, including a bank shot, and then hit another bank shot in the eighth inning to take a 15-11 lead in the set.
The sixth set was a close match. Martinez, who started the first round, took the lead with a six-point long hit.
After winning the first inning, Cho Jae-ho also scored 8 points, including 2 bank shots, and quickly turned the game around. Martinez scored 3 points in the 3rd inning and 3 points in the 4th inning to turn the game around, but
Cho Jae-ho added three more runs in the fourth inning to tie the game. The two players fought a very close game, but Martinez won. Martinez scored in the fifth inning.
Martinez added three more points to win the sixth set, 15-12, and claim the tournament victory. Martinez is the third player in PBA history to simultaneously win the tournament and receive the top ranking.