January 28, 2025 Nolan Hughes

Since bringing home the U.S. Open title in 2021, Chris Via has been determined to find a path back to the winner’s circle.

During Tuesday’s opening round of qualifying in the 2025 U.S. Open presented by Go Bowling, Via made the first, of many, steps towards that goal.

Via led the 108-player major championship field, averaging 234 to shoot 1,872 (+272) for his eight games.

“I would never be opposed to having a second green jacket, but it's pretty early to start thinking about that,” Via said. “It’s the U.S. Open, the lanes are going to be challenging at times. It’s important to not get too down on yourself, but also not get too high. I bowled incredibly and shot 290, and then it looked like I hadn't bowled before for a couple frames after that.”

Andrew Anderson, John Janawicz, Kris Prather and Anthony Simonsen round out the top five after the first round on the 44-foot pattern. Defending champion Kyle Troup and Tom Smallwood are currently tied for 23rd place, which will be the cut number after the third round of qualifying, at 1,722 (+122).

Many players, including Via and Anderson, felt scoring well on today’s pattern would be crucial because they believe the tournament’s upcoming patterns will pose a much stronger challenge.

“On a day that we knew there was some score out there, I think it's big to be able to get the pins when you can,” Via said. “The next couple days are coming, and they're coming quickly. I know the lanes going to be a lot harder and a lot lower scoring. I’m trying to get as many pins piled up as I can right now to give me a little bit of a safety net for the next couple days.”

“I'm out of energy now, but I promise if you look at me after tomorrow, it's gonna be a lot worse,” Anderson said. “The grind has really just begun. That’s the best way I can describe it.”

A 37-foot flat oil pattern awaits for the second round of qualifying, which begins on Wednesday.

B-squad takes the lanes at 8 a.m. Eastern, followed by C-squad at 1 p.m. and A-squad at 6 p.m.

All qualifying and match play rounds will be livestreamed on BowlTV.

More information on the U.S. Open presented by Go Bowling is available here.

Round 1 Leaders
  1. Chris Via, 1,872 (+272)
  2. Andrew Anderson,1,864 (+264)
  3. John Janawicz, 1,845 (+245)
  4. Kris Prather, 1,844 (+244)
  5. Anthony Simonsen, 1,837 (+237)
  6. Matt Russo, 1,829 (+228)
  7. Zach Weidman, 1,825 (+225)
  8. Jakob Butturff, 1,804 (+204)
  9. Jason Belmonte, 1,786 (+186)
  10. Stu Williams, 1,783 (+183)

Full Round 1 Standings

Tournament Schedule

Royal Pin Woodland | Indianapolis, IN

All times Eastern

Wednesday, Jan. 29
8 a.m. — B-squad Qualifying Round 2 (eight games)
1 p.m. — C-squad Qualifying Round 2 (eight games)
6 p.m. — A-squad Qualifying Round 2 (eight games)

Thursday, Jan. 30
8 a.m. — C-squad Qualifying Round 3 (eight games)
1 p.m. — A-squad Qualifying Round 3 (eight games)
6 p.m. — B-squad Qualifying Round 3 (eight games)

Top 24 players advance to round robin match play

Friday, Jan. 31
10 a.m. — Match Play Round 1 (eight games)
5 p.m. — Match Play Round 2 (eight games)

Saturday, Feb. 1
9 a.m. — Match Play Round 3 (eight games)
4 p.m. — Preliminary Stepladder finals (seeds No. 5-9, winner advances to championship round)
Live on FS1

Sunday, Feb. 2
4 p.m. — Championship Round
Live on FOX