FOLLOWING A GREAT run of events, Shane Van Boening raced to the top of the USA Mosconi Cup ranking, building up a 39 point lead over second placed Rodney Morris. The South Dakota man enjoyed a fruitful spell in Las Vegas as he took both the US Open 8 Ball and 10 Ball events for 35 points apiece.
He then moved onto Qatar and the WPA World 9 Ball Championship where he grabbed 67 points for finishing runner-up for the second consecutive year. Morris, who enjoyed a great start to the 28 event series, maintains his spot among the top three with a 45 point cushion.
Making up the automatic spots is Oscar Dominguez, who is looking to add to his 2009 Mosconi Cup winners medal. He is 28 points clear of Mike Dechaine in fourth. The other significant points tally belongs to Skyler Woodward in fifth position.
Shane Van Boening (USA) – Photo © Matchroom Sport/JP Parmentier
With 15 events played, there are a further 13 to go including five 7 foot events, five Level Two 9 foot event and three Level One events. These are the China Open later this month, followed by the two closing tournaments in the series – the US Open and then the WPA Kuwait 9 Ball which concludes the series.
The 2016 Mosconi Cup takes place at the Alexandra Palace in London from 6th to 9th December. Three of the five spots on Team USA will be allocated to the three highest placed players on the ranking list following the conclusion of the US Open in October. A full list of all ranked players is available at http://www.matchroompool.com/mosconi-cup/#teamUSA
The roster of events has been significantly expanded from 2015 and this year there are now a total of 28 events which carry Mosconi Cup points. These events have been grouped into three categories: Category One is major international events both in the USA and overseas; Category Two is events played on 9 foot tables in the US and Category Three is events taking place in the US played on 7 ft tables.
| Ranking after 15 events | ||
| 1. | Shane VAN BOENING | 217 |
| 2. | Rodney MORRIS | 178 |
| 3. | Oscar DOMINGUEZ | 161 |
| 4. | Mike DECHAINE | 133 |
| 5. | Skyler WOODWARD | 115 |
| 6. | Shaun WILKIE | 83 |
| 7. | Shane MCMINN | 74 |
| 8. | Hunter LOMBARDO | 71 |
| 9. | Corey DEUEL | 62 |
| T10. | Josh ROBERTS | 59 |
Tickets for the Mosconi Cup are available from www.matchroompool.com or for packages from the USA contact [email protected]
2016 MOSCONI CUP is sponsored by Rasson Billiards who supply the Official Table. The cloth is supplied by Iwan Simonis and the Official Balls are Super Aramith by Saluc. Predator is the Official Cue of the event and Ultimate Team Gear provide all Mosconi Cup apparel.
Luke Riches, Matchroom Sport: [email protected]
Notes: MATCHROOM SPORT is one of the world’s leading producers of televised sport and is responsible for over 1,000 hours of original programming across a range of sports. Based in the UK and chaired by charismatic founder Barry Hearn, they operate three pool events; the Mosconi Cup, the World Cup of Pool and the World Pool Masters. In addition, the company produce a multitude of events in darts, snooker, tenpin, golf, fishing, ping pong, poker and boxing.