Aloysius Yapp thanks mum after winning pool's UK Open on Mother's Day
Singapore's Aloysius Yapp celebrates winning his first major title after beating Spaniard Jonas Souto 13-1 in the UK Open final in Telford, England. PHOTO: MATCHROOMPOOL/INSTAGRAM
SINGAPORE – Aloysius Yapp was just 14 when he wanted to stop school to pursue pool full-time.
Against conventional wisdom, his mother Angie Tay, a single parent then after his father died when Yapp was only nine, agreed and invested hundreds of thousands of dollars over the years to support his development in the sport.
Their efforts came to fruition when he reached the summit of the World Pool-Billiard Association rankings in 2021.
And on Mother's Day, Yapp celebrated on top of the pool table after capturing his first major title by obliterating Spaniard Jonas Souto 13-1 in the final of the US$200,000 (S$259,000) UK Open in Telford, England on May 11.
The World Nineball Tour's (WNT) world No. 5 plans to treat his mother to a staycation after pocketing US$40,000.
He said: 'It feels amazing and that all my hard work and sacrifice, as well as that of those around me, from all these years have paid off.
'I sacrificed my youth for this game and it has worked out... I feel so happy and relieved because to win an event like this has been a huge part of my dreams. I would also like to dedicate this win to my mother and thank her for all that she has done for me.'
Yapp has been in fine form, finishing second in Glasgow a week earlier. As part of the promotions for the April 30-May 4 Scottish Open, the Singaporean star was nicknamed Majin Buu by tournament organiser Matchroom Pool for his likeness to the character in Japanese comic Dragon Ball.
The 29-year-old shared that he was first given the moniker by Indonesian fans years ago, and he is happy to hear it resurface during his winning run.
Interestingly, Yapp has also channelled the character's absorption and mimicry powers to deadly effect this season.
He said: 'The balls have been breaking differently this season, maybe due to the different table conditions. So, I watched how the better breakers like Joshua Filler, Robbie Capito, Mickey Krause and Tyler Styer were breaking and tried to figure out in my practice sessions how to make my own breaks better.'
Yapp's breaking was near perfect in the latter stages of the UK Open, which was crucial under the winner-break format.
After overcoming Greece's Dimitri Siampanis (9-2), Britain's Anthony Ginn (9-3) and Vietnam's Nguyen Anh Tuan (9-4) to reach the last 64, he went on to overcome Hong Kong's Robbie Capito (10-7), compatriot Nicholas Tan (10-5), the Philippines' Carlo Biado 10-2 and Vietnam's Phuong Nam Pham (10-3).
In his 11-8 semi-final win over WNT world No. 26 Styer, he had 10 successful breaks and just one dry break as he potted 92 balls out of 101 attempts.
In the final, he improved to 12 successful breaks against only one dry break and had just one missed pot – a long shot on the 3-ball in the eighth rack – in 108 attempts as he raced to a 12-0 lead before winning the title.
Following the drubbing, WNT world No. 18 Souto said: 'I didn't enjoy this final a lot. His level is up there and I only have good words for this guy.'
Yapp had earlier said that he had struggled with confidence issues for months before he was named Most Valuable Player in Team Asia's 11-6 victory over Team Europe in the inaugural Reyes Cup in October 2024. He captured the International 9-Ball Open title a month later, and has carried over the momentum to 2025.
He said: 'I may get negative at times but I do believe in myself. Never once did I feel I couldn't play well and win again, I just needed to work on a lot of things, which I did.
'It feels great when everything comes together like it did in this final, and I felt so in the zone like I did at the Reyes Cup.'
After enjoying a late dinner at Nando's, Yapp caught a flight home for an exhibition game with Spaniards Francisco Ruiz and Jose Delgado, who are third and 77th respectively in the WNT ranking, at the Klassic Club at Textile Centre in Jalan Sultan on May 21. He will play in tournaments in Indonesia and is targeting victory at the World Pool Championship in Saudi Arabia in July.
Cuesports Singapore president Christopher Chuah said: 'We are extremely proud of our golden boy Aloysius Yapp who has finally clinched his first WNT major trophy. Since the Reyes Cup, he has been growing from strength to strength, and this win will be a big confidence booster going into the world championship.'
David Lee is senior sports correspondent at The Straits Times focusing on aquatics, badminton, basketball, cue sports, football and table tennis.
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