After ‘perfect’ end to 2025, pool ace Aloysius Yapp targets an even better 2026

SINGAPORE – After a successful season that saw him rack up one victory after another as he became the first player to win three Matchroom major titles in a row, Singapore’s top pool professional Aloysius Yapp is not about to rest on his laurels.

Having described 2025 as his best season yet, the 29-year-old told The Straits Times that he is gunning for an even better 2026, which is shaping up to be another busy year.

On Dec 28, Yapp wrapped up his season in style when he was crowned the World Nineball Tour (WNT) Player of the Year for the first time.

In a social media post that announced his crowning, Matchroom Pool said: “Unanimous across the board, it just had to be Aloysius Yapp.”

The WNT world No. 3 was the choice of a panel that includes Matchroom Multi Sport chief executive officer Emily Frazer, pundits and commentators.

Yapp, who is currently on a week-long break in Japan, said winning the award “means everything” to him, adding: “Because I know I worked really hard over the years to have the kind of year I had in 2025. I never expected to have a year like this, so it feels like a dream come true.

“It feels like the perfect end to an amazing year for me.”

Yapp enjoyed his most prolific season yet in 2025 in which he racked up 10 titles.

He became the first player to win three consecutive Matchroom major titles, triumphing at the UK Open, the inaugural Florida Open and the US Open to establish himself as a force on the Tour.

Yapp also won the International 9-ball Open, International Open Big Foot 10-ball Challenge, National Nine-ball and 10-ball Open Championships, Formosa Cup Taipei Open, Anti-Drug Cup and Reyes Cup.

Before that, his most successful campaign was in 2023 when he won six titles.

Reflecting on 2025, Yapp said that he was looking only to improve on a disappointing 2024, where “I felt like I struggled a lot”.

Yapp added: “I definitely did not expect the year to have gone the way it has because I came into it just hoping to do better than last year, where I actually struggled a lot. I didn’t play well at all throughout 2024 until the last part of the year, so coming into 2025, I was hoping to better my performance and try to win a major title, but winning all these major titles, I really did not expect it.”

While he credits some luck, working on his weaknesses and the support from his family, friends, girlfriend and sponsors for his rise in 2025, Yapp is already looking ahead to how he can have an even better 2026.

Yapp, who has set a New Year’s resolution of “continuing to work hard and try to be more consistent”, will begin his new campaign with the Jan 8-11 Chinese Taipei Open.

Displaying the work ethic that has propelled him to success in 2025, Yapp has found time to work on his game in between visiting shrines and enjoying Japanese cuisine while on holiday in Tokyo and Kyoto with his girlfriend.

One aspect of his game which he feels he can still improve on is his equipment selection, along with building his mental strength and performing better under pressurising situations.

He said: “In 2025, I began to keep changing my equipment and I felt that it was a big help to my game. I’m starting to find out more about what kind of cue I like. I kept tinkering with the weight of my cue.”

Even the humidity of the venue plays a part in deciding what kind of cue he uses, with his choice determined by experience and gut feel.

“I am beginning to understand the importance of equipment a lot more and I hope to get better at that aspect in 2026,” he added.

Yapp will hope that fine-tuning his game and eking out marginal gains can bring him closer to another dream: winning the World Pool Championship.

At the 2025 edition in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in July, Yapp suffered a last-64 exit. The date and venue for the 2026 tournament have yet to be announced.

“If I can win that, it will mean the world to me, because it will mean that I have fulfilled my ultimate dream,” he added.