2026 U.S. Open 9-ball Championship
The 2026 U.S. Open Pool Championship was the 49th edition of the U.S. Open Pool Championship. Organized by Matchroom Pool as part of the World Nineball Tour (WNT), the tournament took place from August 25 to 30, 2026, at the Embassy Suites by Hilton in Frisco, Texas. It marked the first time in the tournament's nearly 50-year history that the event was hosted in the state of Texas.
Spanish professional player Francisco Sánchez Ruiz won the title by defeating Hong Kong's Robbie Capito 13–12 in a hill-hill final match. The victory earned Sánchez Ruiz his second U.S. Open Championship title (following his 2022 triumph) and the $100,000 winner's prize from a total purse of $500,000.
Format
The tournament featured a 256-player field comprising international professionals and open qualifiers representing over 40 nationalities. The competition was conducted in two main phases:
- Opening Phase: A double-elimination tournament format was utilized until the field was narrowed down to the final 64 players.
- Knockout Phase: The remaining 64 competitors transitioned into a single-elimination tournament format to determine the champion.
Matches in the final single-elimination stages were played as a race to 10 racks, culminating in a race-to-13 championship final.
Tournament summary
Defending champion Aloysius Yapp of Singapore was eliminated in the round of 64 after a 10–7 loss to Spain's David Alcaide. Five-time champion Shane Van Boening reached the round of 32 before being eliminated 10–7 by fellow American Fedor Gorst.
Robbie Capito advanced to his first U.S. Open final after winning knockout matches against Billy Thorpe (10–7), Fedor Gorst (10–8), and Aleksa Pecelj (10–5). Sánchez Ruiz reached the final after overcoming Joshua Filler (10–9) in the quarter-finals and David Alcaide (10–6) in the semi-finals.
In the final, broadcast live internationally and on ESPN2 in the United States, Sánchez Ruiz defeated Capito in a decider (13–12) to secure the championship.
Prize fund
The total prize pool for the event was $500,000, distributed as follows:
Placement |
Prize Money (USD) |
|---|---|
Winner |
$100,000 |
Runner-up |
$50,000 |
Semi-finalists (×2) |
$25,000 |
Quarter-finalists (×4) |
$15,000 |
Last 16 (×8) |
$8,000 |
Last 32 (×16) |
$5,000 |
Last 64 (×32) |
$3,000 |
Total Prize Fund |
$500,000 |
Final stages bracket
The results from the quarter-final stage onwards are shown below: