SINGAPORE - Ahead of the Oct 10-15, US 9-ball Open, Aloysius Yapp received a timely boost as he clinched his second consecutive title by winning the Sandcastle 9-Ball Open in New Jersey on Saturday.
At Sandcastle Billiards, world No. 5 Yapp beat Chinese Taipei's 43rd-ranked Chang Jung-Lin 7-6 in the race-to-seven final, claiming back-to-back titles after he retained his Michigan Open title a fortnight ago.
While the 26-year-old Singaporean admitted that he was not at his best in the past two tournaments, he was still encouraged by his victories.
He said: "I feel relieved in a way because I didn't really play my best in this tournament, I struggled a bit too. With this win, it's definitely good preparation for the US Open.
"Although in both tournaments I struggled, I somehow managed to find a way to win so I hope I can continue this for the US Open."
With the US Open coming up just two days after the Sandcastle Open, Yapp hopes that he can peak at the prestigious tournament.
In 2021, he finished as a runner-up after losing 13-8 to Carlo Biado of the Philippines in the final.
One key area he hopes to improve on for the US Open is the ability to stay calm during the match, an issue he felt prevented him from performing at his best at the Sandcastle Open.
He struggled to remain composed in situations where he was leading and allowed his opponents to close the gap, creating unnecessary pressure for Yapp.
To cope, Yapp has tried to focus on his breathing instead of the outcome of the match, to try and reduce distractions.
"When I have a big lead and my opponent starts coming back, I start to panic a little because I feel like the momentum is shifting very quickly," he admitted.
"I would say I just need to work on being calmer and stay in the match and try not to let it affect me too much."
He is working on this with a sports psychologist at the Singapore Sport Institute as well as with his coach Toh Lian Han.
Yapp, who reached world No. 1 in 2021, said: "I don't have a particular new game plan for the US Open. I'm just focusing on taking it easy, on one match at a time and on how to get back my form.
"I would love to win it but my main goal will be to play my best game and see where it takes me. Even if I don't win at the end of the day, as long as I know I played my game that's good enough for me."
