But him in a match for 10 dimes and you’ll see the alien reappear, he shines in action.
U.S. OPEN 2026, Frisco, Texas, August 25-30
- Thread starter jbart65
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yea, works great
Yeah, I guess eyeballing the Fargo rates would have saved me time relative to just going through the draw.
My picks are pretty chalky. Cinderella stories were not so uncommon in the early days of the US Open 9ball, most notably Tommy Kennedy, Mike Lebron and Reed Pierce. In the last twenty US Open 9ball events, however, only the Taiwanese Kevin Cheng emerged as a true Cinderella champion. To be fair, the field quality skyrocketed in 2019 once Matchroom took over the event. It's soooo hard to win the event since globalization in pool went viral about ten years ago and the title seems the sole domain of the game's superstars ever since.
Szewczyk, former World 10ball champion, may be the hardest player to handicap. When he is on, he is crazy good. I saw him live twice this year. He was brilliant in the Las Vegas Open 10ball and, despite being beaten soundly in the final, was in dead stroke all the way into the final at the UK Open. Definitely one to watch.
realtor1618
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Considered him, Grabe and Zielinski, too, but backed down from all three.
A bit under the radar, but Wiktor won two WNT ranking events this year at Super Billiards Expo and at the Prague Open. He also showed some strong play in St Louis as he and Seo Seoa won the mixed doubles, so his year has been solid.
I'm also of the mindset that the champ will be a previous winner of the title.
From that list, I would have to go with Filler.
I think he's going to win his 2nd US Open 9ball title. If Filler plays like he did in the last 3 DCC 9ball events, he is pretty much a lock. He makes 9ball look trivial at times.
Also, I think this year the crowd will play a factor. Not anywhere near Mosconi, but I suspect there will be a bit more noise than Harrah's in Atlantic City, NJ. And Filler thrives in that kind of environment. The other young up-and-comers are great, but they sometimes get the yips. I think Filler will treat this like a brand new stage, and like he usually does, he will try to dominate that stage.
Pick any single player you want against Filler's "A" game, I don't think anyone comes close.
Not much of a dark horse, but that's my pick.
My actual dark horse is LilChrisPoolPlayer from YouTube
(not sure if he's a member here)
From that list, I would have to go with Filler.
I think he's going to win his 2nd US Open 9ball title. If Filler plays like he did in the last 3 DCC 9ball events, he is pretty much a lock. He makes 9ball look trivial at times.
Also, I think this year the crowd will play a factor. Not anywhere near Mosconi, but I suspect there will be a bit more noise than Harrah's in Atlantic City, NJ. And Filler thrives in that kind of environment. The other young up-and-comers are great, but they sometimes get the yips. I think Filler will treat this like a brand new stage, and like he usually does, he will try to dominate that stage.
Pick any single player you want against Filler's "A" game, I don't think anyone comes close.
Not much of a dark horse, but that's my pick.
My actual dark horse is LilChrisPoolPlayer from YouTube
(not sure if he's a member here)Speaking of Filler, looks like we might finally get him and SVB together on Team ROW in the Reyes Cup.
I'm also of the mindset that the champ will be a previous winner of the title.
From that list, I would have to go with Filler.
I think he's going to win his 2nd US Open 9ball title. If Filler plays like he did in the last 3 DCC 9ball events, he is pretty much a lock. He makes 9ball look trivial at times.
Also, I think this year the crowd will play a factor. Not anywhere near Mosconi, but I suspect there will be a bit more noise than Harrah's in Atlantic City, NJ. And Filler thrives in that kind of environment. The other young up-and-comers are great, but they sometimes get the yips. I think Filler will treat this like a brand new stage, and like he usually does, he will try to dominate that stage.
Pick any single player you want against Filler's "A" game, I don't think anyone comes close.
Not much of a dark horse, but that's my pick.
My actual dark horse is LilChrisPoolPlayer from YouTube
agree on repeat winner. field isn't that different from the recent two MR events – biggest difference is wu kun lin and half a dozen poles (of which only wojciech is a title contender). those pockets become tighter with 100k on the line and that favors serial winners like filler, svb, carlo.
i'll go with shane thompson as a dark horse (uncle fester from ultimate pool)
A reasonable take for sure but the setup of the arena over the first five days makes the fanfare less of a factor than it will be on day six, when the arena will be set up around the one table that will remain and the crowd will get loud.I'm also of the mindset that the champ will be a previous winner of the title.
From that list, I would have to go with Filler.
I think he's going to win his 2nd US Open 9ball title. If Filler plays like he did in the last 3 DCC 9ball events, he is pretty much a lock. He makes 9ball look trivial at times.
Also, I think this year the crowd will play a factor. Not anywhere near Mosconi, but I suspect there will be a bit more noise than Harrah's in Atlantic City, NJ. And Filler thrives in that kind of environment. The other young up-and-comers are great, but they sometimes get the yips. I think Filler will treat this like a brand new stage, and like he usually does, he will try to dominate that stage.
Pick any single player you want against Filler's "A" game, I don't think anyone comes close.
Not much of a dark horse, but that's my pick.
My actual dark horse is LilChrisPoolPlayer from YouTube
SVB's day six performance at the Florida Open reminded me of Filler's (admittedly more dominant) day six performance at the UK Open. In each case, the superstar player found his very best form when the title was hanging in the balance, and that's what the game's legends seem to be able to do.
Hence, I'll agree that if Filler can navigate his way to day six, I like his chances. I suspect he'll have to break a little better than he did in the two Arizona events to win the title, but his chances must always be taken very seriously.
Finally, don't forget that the break is much easier at Derby City than at the US Open 9ball due to the use of a much wider break box.
Can he hang yes. Can he still reach the final 4 of a major tournament I say it’s unlikely. But I’ll take nothing away from him. He was clearly the best player in the world for a few years.
I like Filler to win it all as I just believe he is the best player in the world. My not so obvious picks are Roda and Wu Kun Lin.
No, he wasn't ever the best. Shane dominated Dennis for the length of his career and Dennis was approached by JL Chang and his stake-horse umpteen times to gamble and wisely turned him down virtually every time. Pagulayan was slightly the better of the two as far as all-around play. Dennis was a great player, a very deserving BCA hall of famer, but he never won either a US Open 9ball or a World 9ball, while Alex won both, so let's not get carried away here.
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That would make all of us very happy. It would be nice to see Justin have a magical run to post his first good finish in a WNT rankings event.
It's 7pm and 104 in Frisco. Fahrenheit, not Celsius. It's kind of a dry heat.
There are maybe 15 vendors including several with tables set up. Nice hotel.
I'm staying at the Drury, which is a 5 minute walk away -- hydration required! Light dinner is included with three drinks. The local craft beer pairs well with both the chili dog and the pulled pork sliders.
There are maybe 15 vendors including several with tables set up. Nice hotel.
I'm staying at the Drury, which is a 5 minute walk away -- hydration required! Light dinner is included with three drinks. The local craft beer pairs well with both the chili dog and the pulled pork sliders.
ladbrokes odds for top outright picks
Filler has not had a great U.S. tour by his standards. Lost in the last 32 at Vice City. Knocked out in the round of 16 in Florida and Arizona and sent packing in the quarters in Phoenix. He is due, you would think.
SVB is in great form. He seemed tired at the end of the last two opens, though. Getting eliminated a day early in Phoenix could help. It would be great if he got to the final with the event on ESPN2.
Gorst and Yapp haven’t been sharp in the last few months. But their names are Gorst and Yapp.
Just think: our last two winners in stacked fields were Grabe and Pecelj. My gut says we’ll get another dark horse as the winner.
If you look at the last month, other players who have played consistently well are Kledio Kaci, Atencio, Januarta, Capito, Mario He, Roda, Biado, Chang Lu Yung and … Styer. Only Biado among them is not a dark horse.
Woj and Maciol are contenders from the Polish contingent, but I think the winner will be a player who’s been on the U.S. swing.
Of course, can’t count out a vet relying on his experience. But I increasingly doubt FSR, Alcaide, Shaw and Ouschan.
As always, the draw will favor some players over others.
SVB is in great form. He seemed tired at the end of the last two opens, though. Getting eliminated a day early in Phoenix could help. It would be great if he got to the final with the event on ESPN2.
Gorst and Yapp haven’t been sharp in the last few months. But their names are Gorst and Yapp.
Just think: our last two winners in stacked fields were Grabe and Pecelj. My gut says we’ll get another dark horse as the winner.
If you look at the last month, other players who have played consistently well are Kledio Kaci, Atencio, Januarta, Capito, Mario He, Roda, Biado, Chang Lu Yung and … Styer. Only Biado among them is not a dark horse.
Woj and Maciol are contenders from the Polish contingent, but I think the winner will be a player who’s been on the U.S. swing.
Of course, can’t count out a vet relying on his experience. But I increasingly doubt FSR, Alcaide, Shaw and Ouschan.
As always, the draw will favor some players over others.