The US Open Pool Championship takes place from September 25-30 at Harrah’s Resort and Casino in Atlantic City and the blue-ribbon event has a tendency to produce fairytale stories and give players a platform to make a name for themselves.
Francisco Sanchez Ruiz emerged triumphant twelve months ago and secured a Mosconi Cup debut in the process, while runner-up Max Lechner overcame his quarter-final hoodoo and thrusted himself into the limelight.
256 players will be competing in the $300,000 tournament in an attempt to seal the iconic Barry Behrman trophy, and pool writer Ben Hudd has selected ten names to watch out for in Atlantic City.
MORITZ NEUHAUSEN
German teenager Moritz Neuhausen is undoubtedly the man of the moment, having emerged as a strong title contender in recent weeks following back-to-back World Nineball Tour ranking finals including a Connecticut Open triumph.
Neuhausen was a dominant force during both of those tournaments and emerged victorious against plenty of household names. The 19-year-old has competed at the US Open previously but now knows how to hold his nerve and prove a tough match for anyone.
ANTON RAGA
Few onlookers knew very much regarding Anton Raga a couple of months ago but the Filipino sensation has become a regular on the WNT circuit. His fairytale run to the European Open final last month created shockwaves and he backed that up by making the WPA China Open final in Shanghai.
Raga was unfortunate not to become the European Open champion, with a crucial mistake ultimately costing him against David Alcaide. The 25-year-old now has that experience in the nineball arena under his belt and is one of only five players in the tournament in the 830-plus FargoRate club.
TYLER STYER
Tyler Styer will be a lock for December’s Mosconi Cup either through the rankings or as one of Jeremy Jones’ wildcards so that shouldn’t really be on his mind ahead of the US Open, although the Wisconsin-based ace will want to impress on home soil.
More consistency in Styer’s game has become apparent in recent times. He defeated Mosconi Cup teammates Shane van Boening and Skyler Woodward to win the Texas Open earlier this month, and form of that calibre could witness him enjoy a deep run in Atlantic City.
SHANE WOLFORD
In contrast, Shane Wolford will be setting his sights on a Mosconi Cup debut. He has been spectacular at times this year, beating Mario He to reach the UK Open last 16 in May as well as overcoming Woodward 11-9 to win his maiden ranking title in June.
Wolford opted against travelling to the Spanish Open and the European Open but has kept in stroke by playing in local American events. His play has been extremely promising this season and the US Open is his chance to highlight that further.
DUONG QUOC HOANG
Vietnamese number one Duong Quoc Hoang is quickly developing into a national hero in his pool-obsessed home country. He has reached both the World Championship and the Spanish Open quarter-finals this year alone, denying Van Boening in a hill-hill classic at the former.
Perhaps Hoang missed an incredible opportunity in Spain when missing out in a deciding rack against eventual runner-up Marc Bijsterbosch, although Vietnam’s finest has all the strokes and has all the qualities needed to be wearing the green jacket on Saturday.
ALEKSA PECELJ
There’s plenty of European players who are extremely capable who have headed stateside and Aleksa Pecelj is another of them. The Serbian has showed his capabilities in glimpses this year after reaching his maiden major quarter-finals at last year’s UK Open in London.
Pecelj often brushes aside players who are a similar standard to himself but then struggles when facing one of the world’s elite. Should the Serbian manage to overcome that hurdle, there’s no reason that he can’t go deep.
VITALIY PATSURA
Whilst the vast majority of Vitaliy Patsura’s most notable results have come in the 10-ball discipline, with the Ukrainian having reached two Predator Pro Billiard Series semi-finals in twelve months, he also won the Texas Open Championship last year.
Patsura also mounted a valiant defence on the that accolade earlier this month, reaching the final following wins over the likes of Van Boening, Shane Wolford and John Morra. His lack of experience in the Matchroom arena may be telling but the know-how is there.
EMIL-ANDRE GANGFLOT
Norwegian youngster Emil-Andre Gangflot defeated both Johann Chua and Joshua Filler on his way to the Spanish Open last 16 in the summer and continues to make huge strides as he develops into a top level player.
Gangflot recently secured a fifth-placed finish at the Raxx MVP Tour Open, only narrowly being denied in a 9-7 defeat at the hands of Fedor Gorst. His overall game is one which still requires fine tuning but he’s a young talent with potential that could come to the fore this week.
CARLO BIADO
Carlo Biado needs no explanation. A former world champion and US Open champion shouldn’t really be included in a ‘ones to watch’ feature, although the Filipino has created a love affair with Hurrah’s Resort and Casino in recent years.
Having emerged as a somewhat surprise champion two years ago and subsequently mounted a valiant defence of his crown by making the semi-finals, recent ranking event winner Biado has found his form at the perfect time once again.
JOEY TATE
American teenager Joey Tate created the moment of last year’s US Open for all the wrong reasons. He potted the wrong colour ball at a crucial juncture in his closely-contested match against Van Boening but his performance overall was breathtaking.
Tate was teased after sinking the purple five instead of the pink four ball, however that is now firmly behind him and he will be vying to gain more experience in the Matchroom arena with his family watching on.
One Comment
I think ANTON Raga has more capable to take the lead of those new comers ,he is no .1 in money game in his country. most notably with thier series games of carlo biado and dennis orcollo.