Next month's United States National Snooker Championship gets a major boost with the event expanding to two venues and Wiraka joining as a Championship partner.

This year's Championship was originally planned to take place solely at California Snooker in San Jose from September 4 - 8. However, the United States Snooker Association (USSA) recognized that hosting such a large and prestigious event at a venue with just four tables was not ideal as it limits competitive opportunities for players.

The operators of California Snooker, who include Ajeya Prabhakar, the current president of the Pan American Billiards & Snooker Association (PABSA), had been seeking to open another snooker venue nearby for some time, which would also serve as an academy for PABSA.

The PABSA Academy is all set to open in nearby Santa Clara, California, in time to become the new main host of the 2026 United States National Snooker Championship.

PABSA Academy
3200 Patrick Henry Drive, Suite 200A
Santa Clara   CA 95054

There will be four tables available at the PABSA Academy for this Championship, however it is planned to eventually have eight tables which will be able to accommodate future national and international championships.

The schedule for this year's United States National Snooker Championship has been designed to ensure every player competes at both venues, without requiring anyone to switch venues on the same day. The opening round of the knockout stage will also be shared between the two venues, before the tournament moves exclusively to the new PABSA Academy from September 7 for the remainder of the knockout rounds.

This year's Championship will be played on Wiraka tables, and so the USSA are very pleased to have Wiraka as an official partner for this year's event.

Wiraka is a specialist billiards equipment company headquartered in Singapore, offering a complete range of snooker, billiard, and pool tables, together with high performance cloth, cushions, cues, balls, and accessories. Throughout its history, Wiraka have been a proud supporter of national and international events to help promote billiard sports worldwide.

www.wiraka.com

Alan Morris, the Executive Director of the USSA, commented: "It is absolutely fantastic that we have been able to expand this year's United States National Snooker Championship with the opening of the PABSA Academy.

"When we first announced that the Championship was to be played at California Snooker, having this second venue available for the event was a possibility but Ajeya was not sure that he would be able to open it in time.

"I am absolutely delighted that he has achieved it. Every year, the players demonstrate their commitment to this sport they love by traveling from near and far to compete in this prestigious Championship. We recognize the dedication they show, and the addition of this new venue has allowed us to give the players even more opportunities to play competitive matches."

Morris concluded: "I would also like to thank Wiraka for their support too. Wiraka has supported the USSA in the past and it is nice to have them back, which recognizes the growth and development of snooker in the United States over the past few years."