Zhou Jieyu wins the World Women's 9-Ball Championship for the second time
"Big-eyed girl" Zhou Jieyu defeated South Korean player Xu Xuya 3:1 in the final and won the highest prize money in her career
Quick Look
- Taiwanese billiards star Zhou Jieyu, who is about to turn 40, defeated defending champion Xu Xuya 3:1 in the final of the 2026 World Women's 9-Ball Championship.
- She was sealed for the second time in her career and received a bonus of US$55,000.
- Although she suffered from shoulder and neck injuries and fever before the game, she still won the championship with a stable mentality.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
Zhou Jieyu is a senior pool player in Taiwan and won the China Nine-Ball Tour Championship in 2016. During this tournament, she suffered from shoulder and neck injuries and fever.
Zhou Jieyu won the World Nine-ball Championship for the second time in her career. (Provided by Zhou Jieyu)
[Reporter Xu Mingli/Taipei Report] The "big-eyed girl" Zhou Jieyu, who is about to celebrate her 40th birthday in December, defeated South Korean female player Seo Su-ah 3:1 in the final of the 2026 World Women's 9-Ball Championship tonight. She won the No. 9-Ball World Championship for the second time and earned a career-high US$55,000 (approximately NT$1.75 million) in prize money, which surprised her.
Zhou Jieyu, who has suffered from shoulder and neck problems in the past two years, has been recuperating. She spends 3 to 40 minutes relaxing after each game. In addition, she suddenly had a fever the night before she faced Chinese star Huang Qingning in the top 8 and fell asleep for more than ten hours. In the top 4 match against Japanese master Chihiro Kawahara, She was in poor condition, made frequent mistakes, and narrowly passed the test. In addition, Xu Xuya, who was fighting for the second consecutive championship, was in excellent condition this time. Before the final, Zhou Jieyu had no expectations of winning. She just kept a normal mind and focused on making every shot well. On the contrary, Xu Xuya may have wanted to defend the title too much, and played a bit impatiently in the final.
Zhou Jieyu said, "I didn't expect that the last game was the best game I played in this tournament!" She also revealed that she seemed to win the championship every time she had a fever. This was also the case at the Jiaxing Station of the CBSA China Nine-Ball Tour in 2016. She also told her sister Zhou Jiajia this time when she had a fever, "Maybe I will win the championship this time too!" In the end, the prediction came true.
Zhou Jieyu won the No. 9 ball world championship at the age of 39 years and 10 months, second only to the Filipino star Lubilan at 42 years and 11 months and the British star Carrie Fisher at 41 years and 3 months. She said that she is really happy to win the championship at this age and hopes to continue playing. After all, she is still passionate about billiards. She still likes to watch games and study different playing styles. Even if she is not a player in the future, she can still pass on her skills and experience to young people.
