Game Five of the 2016 British Opens Singles final between Samir Patel and Ben Rothman.
Read MoreIt’s Rothman! Ben Rothman is the 2016 British Open Singles Champion. In the final he beat Samir Patel (England) -26tp, +19, -20tp, +25tp, +26tp. Rothman (USA) is the first North American player to win a British Open championship title.
Read MoreThe singles semifinals were all-day affairs, averaging around two hours per game (including lunch and tea breaks). Between the two matches there were nine games played, each with a successful peeling turn (eight triples and one quad).
Read MoreThe main event of the day was the singles quarterfinals, played as best-of-fives. Paddy Chapman showed impressive focus and control and was nearly error-free in dispatching the ever-entertaining James Death 3-1. Samir Patel was nearly as impressive in a 3-1 win over top seed Reg Bamford.
Read MoreIn the much-anticipated Bamford vs. Essick match, Essick hit only one of five long shots, and Bamford won with two sextuple peels. All eight seeds advanced to the quarterfinals, some needing to play two matches to get there. While the conditions are fairly easy, it is nonetheless impressive that 28 of 34 games today included a successful peeling turn of three or more peels, including three sextuples and three quads.
Read MoreThe British Opens Singles qualifying is in the Burridge Swiss format; players need five wins out of ten games to reach the knockout. The first six rounds are pre-drawn to ensure a balanced draw. The final four rounds match players by record. Paddy Chapman (NZ, resident in England) and Ben Rothman (USA) lead the pack at 6/6.
Read MoreOn the Fourth of July, Ben Rothman (USA) donned the stars and stripes, and went four for four to start the singles qualifying round.
Read MoreDoubles was again the main order of business for the day. In the one remaining match from the round of 16, Death and Patel (England) advanced over Essick and Hurst (USA), Patel tripling in game 1 and finishing off the contact after an Essick TPO in game 2.
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