2024 U.S. Open set to get underway in Indianapolis on Saturday
January 25, 2024
ARLINGTON, Texas – For the third straight year, Royal Pin Woodland, previously Woodland Bowl, will play host to a major championship on the Professional Bowlers Association Tour where 108 bowlers will be competing all week for a chance at the coveted green jacket.
The 2024 U.S. Open presented by Go Bowling! will begin on Saturday at Royal Pin Woodland with a pre-tournament qualifier and wrap up on Feb. 4 with the live television finals on FOX.
This is the second event on the PBA schedule after the PBA Players Championship, which saw Bill O’Neill of Langhorne, Pennsylvania, win his third major championship. He will look to ride that momentum into the U.S. Open.
This year’s tournament looks to be another exciting one with some major storylines to keep an eye on throughout the week:
Tackett looks to complete successful title defense
Last year’s champion and Indiana native EJ Tackett of Bluffton will be looking to repeat as the U.S. Open champion and complete the first successful title defense since USBC and PBA Hall of Famer Dave Husted accomplished the feat in 1995 and 1996.
Meanwhile, Anthony Simonsen of Las Vegas will be looking to get back on top after winning in 2022 and placing fourth in 2023.
Both Tackett and Simonsen had successful 2023 campaigns on the PBA Tour with Tackett taking home Player of the Year honors.
Tackett won last year’s tournament by defeating Kyle Troup of Taylorsville, North Carolina, 221-208, to earn the $100,000 first-place prize and secure his third major and become the ninth bowler to complete the PBA’s Triple Crown.
Other Indiana natives looking to etch their names in U.S. Open history this year are Munster’s Kevin McCune, Fort Wayne’s Wes Malott, Noblesville’s Ronnie Russell and Nathan Smith and Evansville’s Matt Sanders.
International players look to make their mark
It’s not just American bowlers looking to win, however, as many international players like 2020 champion Jason Belmonte of Australia, two-time (2016 and 2019) champion Francois Lavoie of Canada and 2018 champion Dom Barrett of England will all be looking to win the major championship. In total, at least seven different countries will be represented at the 2024 U.S. Open.
Belmonte will look to break his own record for major championships as he currently sits at 15 with his last major win coming at the 2023 PBA Tournament of Champions.
Family affairs
The sport of bowling continues to bring families together, and the 2024 U.S. Open is no different as three sets of brothers and one father-son duo will be competing this week. That list includes the following players: Brandon and Justin Bohn of Jackson, New Jersey, Sean and Anthony Lavery-Spahr of Pasadena, Texas, EJ Tackett of Bluffton, Indiana, and Zac Tackett of Huntington, Indiana, and Chris and Ryan Barnes of Denton, Texas.
Chris and Ryan Barnes just competed at the PBA Players Championship and faced each other in match play where Ryan narrowly defeated his father, 196-194, en route to making the TV finals and placing third overall in the tournament.
Brandon and Justin Bohn continue to compete in the collegiate ranks with Brandon now at Webber International and Justin at Savannah College of Art and Design-Savannah. Both teams rank in the top 10 in the USBC Collegiate Ranking System.
Kevin McCune looks to continue to build upon the legacy created by his father, Eugene, and grandfather, Don, who both had success at the professional level. McCune is hoping to add a second major to his resume after winning the 2023 PBA Players Championship.
Bill O’Neill looks to continue great start
By virtue of his win at the season-opening PBA Players Championship, a lot of eyes will be on O’Neill to see if he can win back-to-back events and add a fourth major championship to his resume.
The U.S. Open is always tough, and it is made even tougher because it is contested on four different, challenging oil patterns, so O’Neill has his work cut out for him if he hopes to continue the momentum into this event and throughout the PBA season.
Tournament action gets underway Saturday morning when 108 bowlers bowl the eight-game PTQ, which is scheduled to start at 9:30 a.m. Eastern.
At least 21 bowlers will advance from the PTQ to the tournament’s main field, which will also have 108 bowlers competing.
Sunday will be the official practice sessions, which will run from 9 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Eastern and give athletes the opportunity to familiarize themselves with all four oil patterns that will be utilized at the 2024 U.S. Open.
Tournament competition will officially begin Monday morning at 8 a.m. Eastern when the bowlers on A Squad hit the lanes for their first eight-game qualifying block. B Squad and C Squad will follow at 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. Eastern, respectively. All qualifying squads will bowl on fresh oil.
All competitors will complete 24 games of qualifying over three days on three different lane conditions before the first cut is made from 108 bowlers down to 36. Those 36 will bowl a fourth eight-game block on the tournament’s fourth oil pattern.
Pinfall totals for 32 games will determine the 24 players who earn the right to compete in three rounds of round-robin match play, and 56-game totals, including 30 bonus pins for each win during match play, will decide the final five bowlers for the stepladder finals, which will take place live on FOX on Feb. 4 at 4 p.m. Eastern.
The 2024 U.S. Open will be a collaborative effort between the United States Bowling Congress and Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America and will be considered a major on the PBA Tour. The total prize fund for the event will exceed $275,000.
For more information about the U.S. Open, visit BOWL.com/USOpen.
The 2024 U.S. Open presented by Go Bowling! will begin on Saturday at Royal Pin Woodland with a pre-tournament qualifier and wrap up on Feb. 4 with the live television finals on FOX.
This is the second event on the PBA schedule after the PBA Players Championship, which saw Bill O’Neill of Langhorne, Pennsylvania, win his third major championship. He will look to ride that momentum into the U.S. Open.
This year’s tournament looks to be another exciting one with some major storylines to keep an eye on throughout the week:
Tackett looks to complete successful title defense
Last year’s champion and Indiana native EJ Tackett of Bluffton will be looking to repeat as the U.S. Open champion and complete the first successful title defense since USBC and PBA Hall of Famer Dave Husted accomplished the feat in 1995 and 1996.
Meanwhile, Anthony Simonsen of Las Vegas will be looking to get back on top after winning in 2022 and placing fourth in 2023.
Both Tackett and Simonsen had successful 2023 campaigns on the PBA Tour with Tackett taking home Player of the Year honors.
Tackett won last year’s tournament by defeating Kyle Troup of Taylorsville, North Carolina, 221-208, to earn the $100,000 first-place prize and secure his third major and become the ninth bowler to complete the PBA’s Triple Crown.
Other Indiana natives looking to etch their names in U.S. Open history this year are Munster’s Kevin McCune, Fort Wayne’s Wes Malott, Noblesville’s Ronnie Russell and Nathan Smith and Evansville’s Matt Sanders.
International players look to make their mark
It’s not just American bowlers looking to win, however, as many international players like 2020 champion Jason Belmonte of Australia, two-time (2016 and 2019) champion Francois Lavoie of Canada and 2018 champion Dom Barrett of England will all be looking to win the major championship. In total, at least seven different countries will be represented at the 2024 U.S. Open.
Belmonte will look to break his own record for major championships as he currently sits at 15 with his last major win coming at the 2023 PBA Tournament of Champions.
Family affairs
The sport of bowling continues to bring families together, and the 2024 U.S. Open is no different as three sets of brothers and one father-son duo will be competing this week. That list includes the following players: Brandon and Justin Bohn of Jackson, New Jersey, Sean and Anthony Lavery-Spahr of Pasadena, Texas, EJ Tackett of Bluffton, Indiana, and Zac Tackett of Huntington, Indiana, and Chris and Ryan Barnes of Denton, Texas.
Chris and Ryan Barnes just competed at the PBA Players Championship and faced each other in match play where Ryan narrowly defeated his father, 196-194, en route to making the TV finals and placing third overall in the tournament.
Brandon and Justin Bohn continue to compete in the collegiate ranks with Brandon now at Webber International and Justin at Savannah College of Art and Design-Savannah. Both teams rank in the top 10 in the USBC Collegiate Ranking System.
Kevin McCune looks to continue to build upon the legacy created by his father, Eugene, and grandfather, Don, who both had success at the professional level. McCune is hoping to add a second major to his resume after winning the 2023 PBA Players Championship.
Bill O’Neill looks to continue great start
By virtue of his win at the season-opening PBA Players Championship, a lot of eyes will be on O’Neill to see if he can win back-to-back events and add a fourth major championship to his resume.
The U.S. Open is always tough, and it is made even tougher because it is contested on four different, challenging oil patterns, so O’Neill has his work cut out for him if he hopes to continue the momentum into this event and throughout the PBA season.
Tournament action gets underway Saturday morning when 108 bowlers bowl the eight-game PTQ, which is scheduled to start at 9:30 a.m. Eastern.
At least 21 bowlers will advance from the PTQ to the tournament’s main field, which will also have 108 bowlers competing.
Sunday will be the official practice sessions, which will run from 9 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Eastern and give athletes the opportunity to familiarize themselves with all four oil patterns that will be utilized at the 2024 U.S. Open.
Tournament competition will officially begin Monday morning at 8 a.m. Eastern when the bowlers on A Squad hit the lanes for their first eight-game qualifying block. B Squad and C Squad will follow at 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. Eastern, respectively. All qualifying squads will bowl on fresh oil.
All competitors will complete 24 games of qualifying over three days on three different lane conditions before the first cut is made from 108 bowlers down to 36. Those 36 will bowl a fourth eight-game block on the tournament’s fourth oil pattern.
Pinfall totals for 32 games will determine the 24 players who earn the right to compete in three rounds of round-robin match play, and 56-game totals, including 30 bonus pins for each win during match play, will decide the final five bowlers for the stepladder finals, which will take place live on FOX on Feb. 4 at 4 p.m. Eastern.
The 2024 U.S. Open will be a collaborative effort between the United States Bowling Congress and Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America and will be considered a major on the PBA Tour. The total prize fund for the event will exceed $275,000.
For more information about the U.S. Open, visit BOWL.com/USOpen.