HNHS graduate EJ Tackett wins 2023 U.S. Open

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After 48 games and nine frames, the 2023 U.S. Open presented by Go Bowling! title came down to a single frame.

EJ Tackett, a graduate of Huntington North High School, needed a strike and eight pins to win the title he so desperately coveted. In perhaps the biggest moment of his bowling career, he delivered a pair of strikes to claim the green jacket and $100,000 top prize.

Tackett defeated Kyle Troup in the title match 221-208, for his 17th career PBA Tour title and third career major. After winning the 2016 World Championship and 2017 Tournament of Champions, the U.S. Open title made Tackett the ninth player in PBA history to win the Triple Crown.

More than that, Tackett, at long last, picked up a PBA Tour victory in his home state of Indiana.

“This is just absolutely incredible,” Tackett said. “I have so many people here supporting me. What this tournament means is a whole mountain of things. The Triple Crown. The U.S. Open. Winning here at Woodland. Winning in the state of Indiana. Getting my flag down there in the Beer Thirty bar along with everyone else. Another major. The list just compiles what this tournament means.”