In one of the most prestigious tournaments for the world’s nine-ball pool players, newcomer Lo Ho Sum stared straight ahead, face unreadable, on his sofa in the player’s area.
Opposite him, former world number one player Joshua Filler smiled and gave audiences a cheeky look as he took a sip from his bottle.
In the commentators’ box, then-world champion Albin Ouschan mused about the possibility of Lo, a debut player, winning the whole event. At the 2022 World Pool Masters in Gibraltar up to that point, Lo had continually beaten the odds, from earning a wild card spot to claiming victory over veteran players such as American Shane Van Boening.
A debutant taking home the gold wouldn’t have been a first: after all, Werner Duregger won the first-ever World Pool Masters in 1993.
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“Everything’s possible,” Ouschan said.
“Killer Filler” is hardly an easy opponent, but reflecting on the experience, Lo doesn’t remember being nervous. “I didn’t think I would get into the finals at all,” he told Macao News. He was just happy to be there, he said.
The Hong Kong-born pool player ended up placing second to Filler after missing a crucial shot on rack 13. Since then, Lo has consistently had strong showings on the international stage, most recently representing Hong Kong for the third time at the World Pool Championships last month, the premier event in the professional pool circuit, where he placed 17th.
Pool: a mental game
As opposed to snooker, pool involves larger pockets and different rules regarding the order in which to pot balls. While the sport continues to be dominated by the United States and Europe, past decades have seen athletes, such as those from the Philippines and Malaysia, represent Asia at the highest level. As such, Lo has come onto the scene at a time when Asia seems to be establishing its place as a breeding ground for strong medal contenders.
Now 27, Lo remains as cool under pressure. “During the year, you meet the same people at competitions,” he said, so he didn’t treat the championships as much different. That said, “the competition was extremely fierce” this year, he said.
Lo’s relaxed approach reflects his athletic philosophy. “I think your mindset affects your performance more than hard skills,” he said, and it’s this laid-back attitude that’s allowed him to continue performing well during the past few months despite not feeling his best.
For Lo, the trick is to avoid overtraining in the lead-up to a tournament: “When you train more, you want [the win] more. The stakes feel higher,” he said. When he’s less concerned about winning, that’s when he can truly enjoy the game.
How Lo Ho Sum broke through in the game of pool
It’s hard to imagine given his current level of play, but Lo has seriously faced the possibility of leaving the sport multiple times. The athlete first started playing pool after being introduced to the hobby by his dad, and soon decided to pursue the sport competitively.
As a pre-professional athlete, “you lose out on a lot of chances to interact with your friends,” Lo said. When his classmates were out playing basketball after school, he would be indoors, practising. The training even cut into his mealtimes, he said, and he would have to stay up late at the training centre as his friends slept.
“It’s a lonely path to walk,” he reflected.
At the age of fifteen, Lo dropped out of school to focus on his pool career.
“My mom was against it at the time,” Lo remembers, but he was so sure about his choice that he went ahead regardless. Lo’s parents gave him a deadline of two years to pursue the dream: he would either have to bring home a medal or give up on his dreams. “The first year, I felt under a lot of pressure, so I couldn’t do it,” he said.
The second, he earned the World Junior bronze.
Lo’s reaction to the prize? “I was relieved,” he said. Lo would have had to go back to the 4th year of secondary school if he hadn’t made the podium, a stress-inducing possibility. Even after his second-place finish at the World Pool Masters in Gibraltar, Lo still considers this the most memorable achievement of his career.
Against all odds: Lo Ho Sum’s path to the top
A major challenge came when Lo transitioned from a junior to a senior competitor. As the Hong Kong Billiard Sports Control Council (HKBSCC) focused its resources more on the junior circuit, Lo received less coaching and financial support.
“I had to go to tournaments on my own, train on my own and come back to [mentally] adjust on my own,” said Lo. “It was like getting exiled.”
Then in 2020, Covid-19 hit. “I was very lost,” he recalls – being unable to attend competitions, he had no idea how advanced his competitors were getting. “I wanted to quit,” he said.
Lo completed his bachelor’s degree just as the world was recovering from the pandemic. The diploma gave him the option to leave the sport, so he gave himself an ultimatum. “I thought, if I couldn’t get into the last four [of a major tournament] within two years, I would stop playing.”
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The rest, as they say, is history, as Lo achieved his goal in spectacular fashion in Gibraltar.
Although Lo hasn’t reached the same heights as he did in 2022, he hasn’t let his standards drop. “I think I could have gotten into the top 16 or even top eight or top four,” Lo said of his performance at the World Championships. “It was a shame.”
For now, though, Lo continues to prepare for his next big event. His greatest motivation comes from having clear targets. “You have to have a goal,” he said.
