2026 Reyes Cup - October 15-18

SA96 said:
Matchroom just announced that the Reyes Cup is on ESPN +
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Nice.
SA96 said:
Promising sign that the US Open did some good numbers?
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I am looking forward to seeing some "new" faces ... including Josh and SVB. (-:

Not writing off Team Asia by a longshot. AJ lost only once last year, a team match. He was 2-1 in team matches.

Januarta is a monster in the making. He's quickly become one of my favorite players to watch. Fast around the table, but he surveys the table constantly. His defense game is also surprisingly good for a youngster. Still needs more polish in that regard, but I've seen him play a number of killer safeties.

The first two Reyes Cups seemed rushed. Not this one. It really should be the best yet and ideally a preview of its future. The first two were anything but.
 
I have to laugh at all the online debate about the wild card pick of Januarta. It's playing into exactly what Frazer wants!

I expected her to go with the safe choice of Yapp because of his overall WNT rating, his reputation, his "loyalty" to Matchroom and his participation in the first two Reyes cups.

But I personally wanted Januarta. He's arguably been better than Yapp this year, and his inclusion just freshens up the event in my opinion. He and AJ are friends, it seems, but they both want to be stars. Could be fun to watch how they interact.

A wild card pick, what's more, is exactly that. A surprise pick that might work out well, or fail miserably. A wild card pick is not meant to go to the obvious choice. Januarta was not an obvious choice.

Looking at the list of top Asian players, the pickings among qualified players is also thin given the ineligibility of the Ko brothers and Chua. I think Oi should get an invite at least once to the event, but the only other players with a decent claim are Jefry Roda and maybe Chang Yu Lung.

Januarta and Manas appear to be the region's rising young stars. So why not.
 
jbart65 said:
I have to laugh at all the online debate about the wild card pick of Januarta. It's playing into exactly what Frazer wants!

I expected her to go with the safe choice of Yapp because of his overall WNT rating, his reputation, his "loyalty" to Matchroom and his participation in the first two Reyes cups.

But I personally wanted Januarta. He's arguably been better than Yapp this year, and his inclusion just freshens up the event in my opinion. He and AJ are friends, it seems, but they both want to be stars. Could be fun to watch how they interact.

A wild card pick, what's more, is exactly that. A surprise pick that might work out well, or fail miserably. A wild card pick is not meant to go to the obvious choice. Januarta was not an obvious choice.

Looking at the list of top Asian players, the pickings among qualified players is also thin given the ineligibility of the Ko brothers and Chua. I think Oi should get an invite at least once to the event, but the only other players with a decent claim are Jefry Roda and maybe Chang Yu Lung.

Januarta and Manas appear to be the region's rising young stars. So why not.
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don't think chang has played in enough open events. but he's a fun player. i also think oi would be good in this type of event.
 
We can all enjoy the show, on ESPN!

www.azbilliards.com

ESPN To Present 2026 Roobet Reyes Cup, 15-18 October - News - AZBILLIARDS.COM

ESPN and the World Nineball Tour will showcase the 2026 Roobet Reyes Cup on ESPN+ on the ESPN App, bringing four days of electrifying team pool to fans across the United States. From October 15-18, Team Asia and Team Rest of the World will go head-to-head in one of the sport's most iconic tournament
www.azbilliards.com www.azbilliards.com

How many years has it been since pool has had national TV coverage? Now is the time! Let's hope that ESPN covering the Reyes Cup leads to a trend of pool being televised, and thereby gaining an increasing audience.
 
jbart65 said:
I have to laugh at all the online debate about the wild card pick of Januarta. It's playing into exactly what Frazer wants!

I expected her to go with the safe choice of Yapp because of his overall WNT rating, his reputation, his "loyalty" to Matchroom and his participation in the first two Reyes cups.

But I personally wanted Januarta. He's arguably been better than Yapp this year, and his inclusion just freshens up the event in my opinion. He and AJ are friends, it seems, but they both want to be stars. Could be fun to watch how they interact.

A wild card pick, what's more, is exactly that. A surprise pick that might work out well, or fail miserably. A wild card pick is not meant to go to the obvious choice. Januarta was not an obvious choice.

Looking at the list of top Asian players, the pickings among qualified players is also thin given the ineligibility of the Ko brothers and Chua. I think Oi should get an invite at least once to the event, but the only other players with a decent claim are Jefry Roda and maybe Chang Yu Lung.

Januarta and Manas appear to be the region's rising young stars. So why not.
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Agreed 100%.

I think in a scotch doubles match, a team of Yapp/Roda would wipe the floor with a team of Manas/Januarta, but that's not what matters. It has been a strange year, one in which Yapp only found his very best game at the World 8ball, and that doesn't count any more than Szewczyk's World 10ball title counts toward inclusion on Team ROW. Similarly, Roda was absolutely superhuman in winning gold at the World Team Championship in February, but that doesn't count either as it was 10ball.

Bringing back Manas, last year's MVP, and adding a rising young star in Januarta makes perfect sense. Nice job by Matchroom here.
 
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sjm said:
Agreed 100%.

I think in a scotch doubles match, a team of Yapp/Roda would wipe the floor with a team of Manas/Januarta, but that's not what matters. It has been a strange year, one in which Yapp only found his very best game at the World 8ball, and that doesn't count any more than Szewczyk's World 10ball title counts toward inclusion on Team ROW. Similarly, Roda was absolutely superhuman in winning gold at the World Team Championship in February, but that doesn't count either as it was 10ball.

Bringing back Manas, last year's MVP, and adding a rising young star in Januarta makes perfect sense. Nice job by Matchroom here.
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FYI, Januarta beat Yapp twice in recent money games. I watched the last one and he simply outplayed Yapp!
 
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