PREVIEW: ACL Open #8 | Albuquerque, NM

January 28th, 2025 Jake Brannon

Tournament Previews

The ACL truck is packed up and headed toward the west coast for the next few Opens of the season. There’s no better way to kick off the fun than in the mountainous city of Albuquerque, New Mexico at ACL Open #8.

This Open will be played in a Shootout format, meaning every event is limited to 12 rounds. This format brings a different strategy to the game and allows lesser-known players to shine through.

Women’s Division

We have already completed seven Opens of the 2024-2025 season and one thing remains clear: Cheyenne Bubenheim still has that dog in her.

Bubenheim has been dominating the Women’s Singles field, plus she and partner Gina Ramirez have commanded the Women’s Doubles landscape. Expect things to continue this way, especially with Arizona native Ramirez competing so close to home.

Another player to catch my attention is Rilee Schoff. The 14-year old is still getting acclimated as a Women’s tour ACL Pro, but as we near the halfway point of the season, I expect her performance to only improve, especially with the first Signature quickly approaching.

Two other Women’s Singles players I am anticipating to see are the Calvey sisters. This will be the first time I have seen Alyssa and Mikayla play since the 2024 ACL World Championships in August. I know they each can bring the heat, especially with the unwavering support of the west coast crowd.

On the Doubles side, I foresee Samantha Finley and Rosie Streker making a solid run. They are two of the most tenured players in the division, so I feel they are due for their moment in the spotlight. Their incredibly close bond is also sure to benefit their performance. Few teams have as much history as these women, so they can use this to their advantage.

Senior Division

This division continues to confuse me as the season progresses. Every time I look through the brackets, I see some familiar faces who I assume will win, but never do. No Frank Modlin, no Daymon Dennis, no Terry Mathis; I have no reason to believe this will change in New Mexico.

Looking at the Senior Singles lineup, Dan Glogouski and Florentino Mendoza would be my picks to win, but seeing how off my predictions have been previously, this means they probably won’t even come close to the crown. This event could be a huge toss-up.

On the Doubles side, Glogouski is teaming with Donald Cupp, which creates a stellar Senior Doubles team. With some of the highest PPRs in the field, both have experience winning these events. However, every team I predict to perform well seems to fall flat. On paper this team sounds so good, but there is a solid chance they go 1-2.

Junior Division

The Junior division is arguably the most competitive and the toughest to predict. On any given day, there are almost a dozen kids who could win this bracket.

But who will take Junior Singles this time? Players like Brayden Wilson, Logan Dupler, Levi Haddock, Sammy Soto, Zack Aiken, and Zayne Crots immediately top my list. They’re expected by most to come out on top.

However, another player has thrown his hat into the ring. Unfamiliar to most, Jase Webb out of Beverly, Ohio had a great run in Myrtle Beach. Webb made it to the finals of his Junior Singles bracket before losing out to Cash Chamness, so it's only a matter of time before this 11-year-old starts winning everything.

Junior Doubles is liable to tell a similar story. A powerhouse team has been formed through 12-year-old Brayden Wilson and 9-year-old Cash Chamness. Individually, the two are some of the best the division has to offer. When you put them together, who can stand up to them? Perhaps Zack Aiken and Logan Dupler can take them; or Ethan Farias and Levi Haddock. The list goes on.

For all we know, a team of west coast newcomers could sweep the entire field. The only way to know is to watch the action unfold.

ACL Pro & Elite Doubles

As we near the Signature season, we will begin to see players lock in with their ACL Pro partners, rather than mix up their arrangements between tournaments. Teams want to build their chemistry and strengthen their game by competing together exclusively, which also produces the fringe benefit of creating some spectacular brackets later on.

One team I have my eye on is Mark Richards and Tony Smith. Coming off a Singles win in Biloxi, Smith finally has that first win of the season under his belt. One question that remains—will that translate to success on the Doubles side?

The once-reigning Doubles team now sits at #12 in the rankings, yielding a lackluster start to the season. With only three events left before the first Signature, these two need to find some momentum if they want to maintain their reputation of being a top team.

If they don’t perform well this weekend, we’re going to have to take a closer look at what’s going on with them. Do they just not have the right chemistry or is it only a temporary slump while they gain their footing as a team?

One of the pain points for many west coast players is the higher cost of travel for tournaments. Because of this, we don’t get to see them compete in as many events. The Albuquerque Open is one of the first real opportunities this season for western players to be well-represented.

I’m eager to see teams like Dean Norton and Corey Gilbert who are known for their loud bantering and in-your-face attitudes—definitely not known for being boring. I haven’t watched them compete together since they won the ACL Pro Teams Championship with the California Slingers this past summer. I hope to see them in it at the end this weekend.

While there are numerous other noteworthy teams, I need to highlight Chris Roybal and Ryan Hart. Roybal is coming off a stellar rookie season and Hart makes up half of (one of) last season’s ACL Teams of the Year. These two have a high ceiling and if they can master their chemistry early, they will pose a real threat to everyone else.

ACL Pro & Elite Singles

So far this season, we’ve had seven Singles winners for seven ACL Opens—meaning we haven’t had any recurring champions. To put it in perspective, we had a total of 10 winners for 16 Opens last season. We’ve all been holding our breath to see who will become the first to take home another Singles title this year.

This year’s brackets have proved to be some of the most stacked we’ve ever seen, so it’s understandable why players would have a difficult time claiming more than one win. Jackson Gore has been the closest, making the finals twice and winning once.

Zack Aiken has sparked a lot of intrigue lately. With a PPR of 10.03, the highest in the field, Aiken won his bracket in Myrtle Beach and has the confidence needed to win the whole thing this weekend.

Adam Hissner has a history of being a formidable opponent, but hasn’t necessarily been a top player over the past couple years. Hissner previously took home the National Singles title at the 2024 ACL Final Chase, but has never won an Open Singles title. It feels like he’s on the verge of breaking through and taking one down very soon.

Ryan Windsor has been noticeably absent from tournaments recently, so this is the first big one in a while that he will be attending. Once the talk of the town, Windsor has spent less time in the limelight over the past few years, so I’m intrigued to see how he’ll perform. Maybe it’s time to restart the “Ryan Windsor is good at cornhole” narrative. If he gives us a solid run in Albuquerque, I will jump all over it.

How To Watch

Bags will be flying all weekend long at the Expo New Mexico, so make sure to stop by and check it out if you’re in the area. If not, we’ll be live on ESPN+, ACL Cornhole TV, Facebook, Youtube, and TikTok all weekend long.