Taiwan's Chou Chieh-yu wins Wisconsin Women's Open

Taipei, May 22 (CNA) Taiwanese pool player Chou Chieh-yu (周婕妤) bagged the 2023 Wisconsin Women's Open championship in the United States on Sunday, shutting out her British competitor Allison Fisher in the final.

Chou, 36, took home a prize of US$17,000 after her win against the 55-year-old Fisher in the three-set final of the 64-player 10-Ball tournament.

During the match, the Taiwanese player found herself on the ropes after losing the first set 2-4, but she rallied with straight sets 4-2, 4-1 to take the title.

In a post-game interview, Chou, who is also the reigning women's World 10-Ball Champion, said the Wisconsin Women's Open title was beyond her expectations.

It was her second consecutive win against the British pool titan this year. The two squared off in final of the Kamui WPA Women's World 9-Ball Champion in Atlantic City in the U.S. in January, with Chou dominating 9-0.

That title in January made Chou the first female competitor to hold both the 9-ball and 10-ball world titles since Briton Kelly Fisher in 2012.

At the 2023 Wisconsin Women's Open, two other Taiwanese, Wei Tzu-chien (魏子茜) and Wang Wan-ling (王婉菱), made it to the quarter finals, but they were knocked out by Kristina Zlateva of Bulgaria and Kristina Tkach of Russia. Tkach competed in the tournament as an Authorised Neutral Athlete.