1988 WPBA US Open 9-Ball Championship

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Published April 13, 2026

Ewa Laurance won the 1988 WPBA US Open 9-Ball Championship. Known by the nicknames the Striking Viking and the Leading Lady of Billiards, Laurance was a prominent competitor in women's professional pool. She became the first female European player to win a professional pool event in the United States at the 1983 Clyde Childress 9-Ball Open.

The 1988 US Open victory occurred during a successful period on the WPBA tour. The Swedish-born champion moved to the United States in 1981 at age 17 and competed in the 1980 WPBA World Straight Pool Championship in New York City. By 1988, she was among the dominant players in women's nine-ball competition. Her accomplishments led to her induction into the Billiard Congress of America's Hall of Fame in 2004.

The WPBA US Open was a major championship in women's professional pool. It operated as a separate women's division, distinct from the men's tournament that had been running since 1976. The women's division ran from 1984 to 1994, making Laurance's 1988 victory part of this ten-year period. Winners of this championship were among an elite group of players who had won the nine-ball format at the highest level of women's competition.

Laurance's victory was significant as an international player competing in American professional pool. She began playing at age four and brought European training methods to the American professional circuit. Her career included major championships in the WPA World Nine-ball Championship and WPBA National Championship, establishing her as one of the greatest female players in pool history and opening doors for future international players on the American professional tour.

Sources: Ewa Laurance – Wikipedia U.S. Open Pool Championship – Wikipedia

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