AT 2026 GO BOWLING U.S. OPEN IN INDIANAPOLIS
INDIANAPOLIS – Qualifying came to an end at Royal Pin Woodland in Indianapolis on Thursday night, and now the 2026 Go Bowling U.S. Open field that began with 108 athletes has been cut down to the final 36.
Michael Davidson of Versailles, Ohio, finished atop the qualifying standings with a three-day, 24-game total of 5,357 (a 223.21 average).
The 30-year-old right-hander got there by posting 1,773 during Round 1 on Tuesday, 1,727 on Day 2 and 1,857 during his final eight-game qualifying block on Thursday night. Davidson’s Round 3 set included games of 195, 234, 199, 213, 255, 214, 300 and 247.
Ethan Fiore of Valrico, Florida, who is no stranger to strong showings at major championships as he won the 2025 Professional Bowlers Association Players Championship, qualified in second place with a 24-game tally of 5,354.
Opening-round leader Anthony Simonsen of Las Vegas was third with 5,316 while the final two positions in the qualifying top five went to A.J. Johnson of Kenosha, Wisconsin (5,258), and Tim Foy Jr. of Seaford, Delaware (5,208).
But while the performances authored by those sitting at or near the top of the standings were undoubtedly impressive, it was the high scores and battle for the final spots inside the cut line that really drove the excitement level up at Royal Pin Woodland on Thursday.
Entering the final day of qualifying, only one 300 game had been rolled at the 2026 U.S. Open, and it was authored by Malaysia’s Tun Hakim, who achieved perfection during Game 5 of B Squad’s opening qualifying block on Tuesday afternoon.
The scoring pace shot up dramatically as Thursday’s action rolled along, however, with three more players notching 300s and several more falling just short.
Finland’s Santtu Tahvanainen struck first both literally and figuratively, connecting for 12 strikes in a row during Game 4 of A Squad qualifying on Thursday afternoon.
Patrick Dombrowski of Parma, Ohio, followed suit just a few hours later, recording the tournament’s third perfect score during Game 5 of B Squad’s final qualifying round. He then proceeded to start the next game with 11 strikes in a row before a 10-pin ended his bid for back-to-back 300s and forced him to settle for 299.
Davidson, on the other hand, didn’t have to settle for anything as he got all 10 pins to fall during 12 consecutive frames to secure the third 300 of the day and fourth of the tournament during B Squad’s seventh game on Thursday night.
But bids for perfection weren’t the only thing keeping the capacity crowd on edge at Royal Pin Woodland; it was also the drama that played out as several athletes fought to stay alive at this year’s tournament.
And dramatic it was as several of the final berths in Friday morning’s Cashers’ Round were earned thanks to heroic efforts during the final game of the night.
Jeffery Mann of Avon, Indiana, who won the eight-game pre-tournament qualifier on Sunday just to make the U.S. Open’s main field, authored one such effort, connecting for the first 10 strikes in a row during Game 8 before a nine count ended his run at perfection.
It was no matter though as the final-game 289 got Mann to 5,048 for 24 games, which was enough to move him inside the cut line in 29th place.
Bailey Mavrick of Peru, Indiana, and TJ Rock of Wichita, Kansas, meanwhile, cut things much closer.
Rock closed his set out with a mark of 244 while Mavrick posted a final-game 236. Those scores gave the duo matching 24-game totals of 5,009 (a 208.71 average), which tied the pair for 36th place and earned them the final berths in the Cashers’ Round, which is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. Eastern on Friday morning.
Rock and Mavrick still have significant hills to climb, however, as a second cut will take the field from 36 down to 24 players at the conclusion of the eight-game Cashers’ Round.
The 24 that advance then will earn the right to compete in three eight-game blocks of round-robin matches. Round 1 will begin at 5 p.m. Eastern on Friday evening with the final two rounds following on Saturday at 10 a.m. Eastern and 5 p.m. Eastern, respectively.
Fifty-six game totals, including 30 bonus pins for each win during match play, will decide the final five bowlers for the stepladder finals, which will be broadcast live on The CW on Sunday at 4 p.m. Eastern.
Up for grabs during Sunday’s stepladder finals will be a PBA major title, a $100,000 first-place check and the coveted U.S. Open green jacket.
Davidson is hoping to emerge as the victor who gets to enjoy those spoils; however, he knows that many frames still lie ahead before that dream can become a reality.
“It feels good to be in this position, but we’ve got a lot bowling left,” Davidson said. “I’m just going to go back to the house, get a good night’s sleep and be ready for tomorrow.”
Davidson’s ascension to the top was aided by his ability to confront the challenges presented by Thursday’s 35-foot Round 3 oil pattern just about as successfully as any athlete in the field.
“I’ve had good, consistent ball motion pretty much all week long,” Davidson said. “My hand is in a good spot, and I’ve been able to manipulate my hand position to make a few of my bowling balls look really good on all three patterns so far, which makes things a little bit easier.”
One thing that’s never easy on elite bowlers, however, is having to spend extended periods of time away from their loved ones as they travel across the country to compete. That’s especially true for Davidson, who recently became a father for the first time after his wife gave birth to their son Tucker.
Although Davidson obviously misses both mother and baby, the success that he’s enjoying thus far at this year’s U.S. Open is helping to ease the longing at least to some degree.
“Bowling well makes it a little bit easier to be away from home,” Davidson said. “Still, being a dad now gives me a different type of mindset because as my son gets older, I want him to see what you can accomplish when you put your mind to something. I want him to know what’s possible when you follow your dreams and do the best that you can.”
If Davidson continues to accomplish what he puts his mind to during the final three days of competition, he might just find himself in position to make a run at his first U.S. Open title.
EJ Tackett of Bluffton, Indiana, who qualified seventh with a score of 5,192, will be looking to win bowling’s most prestigious major championship for the second year in a row and the third time in four years. If he succeeds, he’ll become the first bowler to successfully defend a U.S. Open title since Dave Husted accomplished the feat by winning the tournament in 1995 and 1996.
The 2026 U.S. Open is a collaborative effort between the United States Bowling Congress and Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America. The total prize fund for the event will exceed $275,000.
All qualifying and match-play rounds leading up to the stepladder finals will be broadcast live on BowlTV.
For more information about the U.S. Open, visit BOWL.com/USOpen.
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2026 U.S. Open
At Royal Pin Woodland
Indianapolis
Thursday’s results
ROUND 3 QUALIFYING
(24 games)
1, Michael Davidson, Versailles, Ohio, 5,357. 2, Ethan Fiore, Valrico, Fla., 5,354. 3, Anthony Simonsen, Las Vegas, Nev., 5,316. 4, AJ Johnson, Kenosha, Wis., 5,258. 5, Timothy Foy Jr., Seaford, Del., 5,208. 6, Tomas Kayhko, Finland, 5,203.
7, EJ Tackett, Ossian, Ind., 5,192. 8, Nick Pate, Conway, S.C., 5,160. 9, Sean Rash, Montgomery, Ill., 5,157. 10, Tom Daugherty, Riverview, Fla., 5,149. 11, Ryan Barnes, Denton, Texas, 5,148. 12, Santtu Tahvanainen, Finland, 5,139.
13, Nate Purches, Marlborough, Mass., 5,125. 14, Tun Hakim, Malaysia, 5,123. 15, Jason Belmonte, Australia, 5,121. 16, (TIE) Patrick Dombrowski, Parma, Ohio, and Kyle Troup, Mount Washington, Ky., 5,119. 18, Patrick Hanrahan, Wichita, Kan., 5,117.
19, Stuart Williams, Pflugerville, Texas, 5,111. 20, Sam Cooley, Australia, 5,080. 21, (TIE) Brandon Biondo, Buffalo Grove, Ill., and Chris Via, Blacklick, Ohio, and Tommy Jones, Simpsonville, S.C., 5,078. 24, Mitch Hupe, Canada, 5,065.
25, Matt Sanders, Evansville, Ind., 5,061. 26, Deo Benard, Roanoke, Texas, 5,053. 27, Dominic Barrett, England, 5,052. 28, Dylan Jablonski, Canton, Mich., 5,050. 29, Jeffery Mann, Avon, Ind., 5,048. 30, Julian Salinas, Long Branch, N.J., 5,047.
31, Andrew Anderson, Holly, Mich., 5,044. 32, Graham Fach, Canada, 5,039. 33, Eric Jones, Edmond, Okla., 5,038. 34, Francois Lavoie, Wichita, Kan., 5,026. 35, (TIE) Bailey Mavrick, Peru, Ind., and Terrance Rock II, Wichita, Kan., 5,009.
DID NOT ADVANCE
37, Jesper Svensson, Sweden, 5,007. 38, Jason Sterner, Rochester, N.Y., 5,006. 39, Matt Ogle, Louisville, Ky., 4,994. 40, David Krol, Springfield, Mo., 4,990. 41, Tom Smallwood, Saginaw, Mich., 4,989. 42, Tom Hess, Granger, Iowa, 4,988.
43, Spencer Robarge, Springfield, Mo., 4,981. 44, Andrew Hall, Westborough, Mass., 4,977. 45, Dallas Leong, Las Vegas, Nev., 4,962. 46, Nathan Bohr, Round Rock, Texas, 4,952. 47, Kyle Sherman, O’Fallon, Mo., 4,950. 48, Darren Tang, Las Vegas, Nev., 4,948.
49, (TIE) John Furey, Howell, N.J., and Zachary Wilkins, Canada, 4,946. 51, (TIE) Sean Lavery-Spahr, Pasadena, Texas, and Arturo Quintero, South Portland, Maine, 4,936. 53, (TIE) Timmy Tan, Malaysia, and Jake Peters, Henderson, Nev., 4,927.
55, Alec Keplinger, Quincy, Mich., 4,925. 56, Traeten Henrichsmeyer, Two Rivers, Wis., 4,918. 57, Rafiq Ismail, Malaysia, 4,916. 58, Shawn Maldonado, Houston, Texas, 4,915. 59, Zeke Bayt, Westerville, Ohio, 4,914. 60, Kristopher Prather, Romeoville, Ill., 4,905.
61, Blake Walsh, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, 4,899. 62, Ethan Crouse, Lowville, N.Y., 4,894. 63, Ryan Speer, Indianapolis, Ind., 4,886. 64, Tyrell Ingalls, Williamsville, N.Y., 4,882. 65, Anthony Neuer, Milton, Pa., 4,880. 66, Kevin McCune, Munster, Ind., 4,864.
67, DeeRonn Booker, Albuquerque, N.M., 4,862. 68, Nathan Stubler, Peru, Ill., 4,821. 69, (TIE) Tyler Boe, Kirkland, Wash., and DJ Archer, Louisville, Ky., 4,815. 71, Brent Boho, Collinsville, Ill., 4,807. 72, Ronnie Russell, Noblesville, Ind., 4,802.
73, Zach Weidman, Indianapolis, Ind., 4,787. 74, Thomas Larsen, Denmark, 4,785. 75, Nu’man Syahmi Yusri, Singapore, 4,774. 76, Brandon Runk, Milton, Pa., 4,769. 77, Richard Teece, England, 4,756. 78, Brandon Flora, Mt Washington, Ky., 4,747.
79, Riley Woodard, Orem, Utah, 4,728. 80, Nathan Ruest-Lajoie, Canada, 4,726. 81, Ernesto Reynoso, Folsom, Calif., 4,717. 82, Matt Russo, Ballwin, Mo., 4,715. 83, Dean Vargo, Willowick, Ohio, 4,709. 84, Robert Smith, Oxnard, Calif., 4,706.
85, Marshall Kent, Yakima, Wash., 4,692. 86, (TIE) Christopher Sloan, Ireland, and Jean Perez, Indianapolis, Ind., 4,686. 88, AJ Chapman, Double Oak, Texas, 4,682. 89, David Northouse, Byron Center, Mich., 4,606. 90, Michael Loera, Coachella, Calif., 4,585.
91, Braden McDonough, Coppell, Texas, 4,572. 92, (TIE) Gary Haines, Babylon, N.Y., and Josh Hammons, Topeka, Kan., 4,563. 94, David Simard, Canada, 4,547. 95, Ryan Burton, Valparaiso, Ind., 4,540. 96, Keven Williams, Roseville, Calif., 4,538.
97, Vincent Bellar, Fairview Park, Ohio, 4,508. 98, Jeremy Kinealy, St Louis, Mo., 4,507. 99, Trevor Roberts, Crystal River, Fla., 4,492. 100, Jakob Butturff, Tempe, Ariz., 4,482. 101, Colin Hunter, Parma Heights, Ohio, 4,377. 102, Mason Heiligenmann, Herculaneum, Mo., 4,368.
103, RJ Golisano, Rochester, N.Y., 4,302. 104, Wei Siong Ong, Singapore, 4,258. 105, Hayden Stippich, McKean, Pa., 3,033 (WD). 106, Justin Knowles, Okemos, Mich., 1,429 (WD). 107, Cameron Crowe, Orland Park, Ill., 2,965 (WD). 108, Wes Malott, Fort Wayne, Ind., 3,221 (WD).
