| Alias | South Dakota Kid |
| Country | USA |
| Hometown | Sioux Falls, South Dakota |
| Age | 43 |
| Height | 6ft |
| Highest Rank | 15 |
| Majors Won | 7 |
| Invitationals Won | 6 |
| Ranking Events Won | 1 |
| Prize Money | $101,950 |
Shane Van Boening is an American world champion and five-time US Open winner from South Dakota. His record also includes consecutive World Pool Masters titles in 2014 and 2015, establishing a body of nineball achievements across both open and invitational competition.
The “South Dakota Kid” won the World Pool Championship in 2022. He remained a major contender through the following seasons, winning the Big Dog 9-Ball Championship in 2023, taking Premier League Pool in 2024 and reaching that year’s US Open final, where Fedor Gorst won the title.
Van Boening added the Florida Open to his collection in August 2026, finishing ahead of Alexander Kazakis in Orlando. He followed that success with a semi-final appearance at the Arizona Open. His Mosconi Cup career began in 2007 and reached a record 19 consecutive appearances for Team USA in 2025. He helped the Americans win in 2009, 2018 and 2019, giving his individual achievements a substantial team counterpart.
Selected honours and results
Major titles: US Open — five titles; World Pool Championship — 2022; Florida Open — 2026.
Invitational titles: World Pool Masters — 2014, 2015; Premier League Pool — 2024.
WNT Ranking title: Big Dog 9-Ball Championship — 2023.
Selected result: US Open runner-up — 2024.
Team titles: Mosconi Cup, Team USA — 2009, 2018, 2019.
Team distinction: Record 19 consecutive Mosconi Cup appearances through 2025.
See Shane Van Boening at
The Mosconi Cup is nineball’s transatlantic team contest, bringing Europe and the USA together in a rivalry that began in 1994. Across its history, it has turned an individual sport into a collective challenge, with players competing for their team in an arena shaped by vocal support from both sides.
The established format features five players per team competing in singles, doubles and team matches. Each match is raced to five racks and earns one point, with the first team to reach 11 points winning the Cup. The short races make every visit to the table significant, while doubles demand close understanding between partners.
The 2026 edition takes place from 27–30 November at Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando, returning the competition to the United States. Europe arrives as defending champion, with the hosts looking to reclaim the trophy on home soil.
The World Pool Masters is one of nineball’s longest-running invitational tournaments. First staged in Plymouth, England in 1993, it has been won by players including Francisco Bustamante, Shane Van Boening and Joshua Filler, giving each new field a place to pursue among the sport’s established champions.
The event’s recent editions have used a straight-knockout format, placing immediate pressure on a select field: one defeat ends a player’s challenge. The 2027 tournament brings together 20 players at Songshan Cultural and Creative Park in Taipei City from 12–14 January, following the Chinese Taipei Open at the same venue.
For the first time, the Masters will feature a two-table arena, with matches from both tables available live on WNT TV. The move to Chinese Taipei opens a new chapter for a competition with more than three decades of history.
