In 2018, Hou registered with Table Tennis Canada and played in the ITTF World Tour under Canada's flag. He did so to continue playing in ITTF tournaments, without having acquired Canadian nationality or giving up his Chinese nationality. Indeed, a year later he played in the 2019 All China Table Tennis Championships, and by beating Wang Chuqin 4–0 in the final, he became the tournament's oldest ever champion. He first won the tournament in 2000.