2018 IRT Shamrock Shootout - Preview

Ben Croft makes his first appearance in a Tier 1 International Racquetball Tour (IRT) singles event in two and half years this weekend at the IRT Shamrock Shootout in Lombard, Illinois. Croft, a former top 3 IRT player, has played some smaller IRT events recently, and he played doubles in the 2017 US Open, winning the title with Kane Waselenchuk, but he hasn't played a Tier 1 recently. Much of that absence was due to a severe shoulder injury.

Waselenchuk is the other story in the draw, as he is again absent, which is the third event he has missed since injuring his knee at the Los Angeles Open in January. This suggests his injury is serious, and with only two events after this weekend, Waselenchuk’s #1 ranking could be in jeopardy. He’s less than 23 points ahead of #2 Rocky Carson heading into this weekend.

Sebastian Franco will be looking to win two IRT events in row, as he took the March Madness title in San Antonio two weeks ago. But his path is even more difficult than usual, as Croft will likely be his Round of 16 opponent with 2nd seed Daniel De La Rosa probably awaiting the winner in the quarterfinals. And that’s before the semi-finals or final. Yikes!

Other early round matches to look for: Alejandro Landa versus Charles Pratt in what will be a battle of two IRT event winners; also, Jansen Allen versus Andree Parrilla, and Mario Mercado versus David Horn.

Look for the action on the IRT Network from the 2nd Round of Qualifying on Friday morning at 10 AM with the Round of 16 from 5 PM Friday afternoon. The quarterfinals will be 10 and 11 AM Saturday morning. The semi-finals will be at 5 PM and 7 PM Saturday with the final at noon Sunday. All times central. For action on Thursday, check out the IRT Facebook page.

2018 IRT Shamrock Shootout, March 15-18, 2018
Lombard, Illinois

Qualifying Round 1 - Thursday evening

Geoff Goldblatt v. Alok Mehta - 6 PM
Troy Warigon v. Mauricio Zelada - 6 PM

John Wolfe v. Peter Appel - 7 PM
Fabrizio Mora v. Ward Myers - 6 PM

Ben Croft v. Kevin Vazquez - 7 PM

Qualifying Round 2 - Friday morning

Q8) Thomas Carter v. Nicholas Riffel - 11 AM
Q1) Andree Parrilla v. Geoff Goldblatt or Alok Mehta - 11 AM

Q4) Jose Diaz v. Troy Warigon or Mauricio Zelada - 11 AM
Q5) Charles Pratt v. John Wolfe or Peter Appel - 11 AM

Q6) Adam Manilla v. Set Cubillos - 10 AM
Q3) David Horn v. Fabrizio Mora or Ward Myers - 10 AM

Q2) Felipe Camacho v. Ben Croft or Kevin Vazquez - 10 AM
Q7) Robert Collins v. Gerardo Franco - 10 AM

Round of 16 - Friday

1) Rocky Carson v. Q8 - 6 PM
8) Jansen Allen v. Q1 - 6 PM

5) Samuel Murray v. Q4 - 6 PM
4) Alejandro Landa v. Q5 - 6 PM

3) Alvaro Beltran v. Q6 - 5 PM
6) Mario Mercado v. Q3 - 5 PM

7) Sebastian Franco v. Q2 - 5 PM
2) Daniel De La Rosa v. Q7 - 5 PM

Follow the bouncing ball….