Many of the top wrestlers in the country, and the world for that matter, compete every year in this important national event.
And this year is no exception.
This year's U.S. Open field will feature an abundance of talented and proven stars that include three-time world champion Adeline Gray, Olympic and world medalist J'den Cox, Hodge Trophy winners Kyle Dake and David Taylor, and Junior world champion Kamal Bey.
The U.S. Open will be held Thursday through Saturday in Las Vegas.
Not all of the stars will be there. Returning world men's and women's freestyle medalists who are competing in the same weight class this year have already advanced to the Final X.
The Final X will be held at three locations and serve as the qualifier for the 2018 U.S. World Team in men's and women's freestyle.
U.S. Open champions in the weight classes without a returning medalist will land spots in the Final X. Open champions in weights with a returning medalist will take part in the World Team Trials Challenge Tournament next month in Rochester, Minn.
U.S. Open champions in Greco-Roman will advance to the finals of June's World Team Trials for Greco in Tulsa.
The World Championships return to Budapest, Hungary in October.
Here are 10 storylines to keep an eye on during the U.S. Open:
Nahshon Garrett is one of the top contenders at 61 kilograms (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)10. Last four NCAA champions at 133 are in loaded 61-kilogram bracket
Cody Brewer, Nahshon Garrett, Cory Clark and Seth Gross have accounted for the last four NCAA titles at 133 pounds.
All four are entered in the loaded U.S. Open freestyle weight class of 61 kilograms/132 pounds.
Joe Colon is the No. 1 pre-seed. He earned a win in his only World Cup match earlier this month. Jon Morrison is No. 2.
Among the other top wrestlers to watch in this class are Brandon Wright, Tyler Graff, Nico Megaludis, Chris Dardanes, Alan Waters and Darrius Little.
This is the deepest weight class in the tournament. And it could be the most entertaining weight class to watch in Vegas.
9. Big boys battle in Greco
Robby Smith has become a fixture as the No. 1 Greco-Roman heavyweight in the U.S. Smith placed fifth in the world in 2013 and 2015.
Smith is still the wrestler to beat, but it will be interesting to see how massive Adam Coon fares in Las Vegas. Coon placed second behind Smith at the 2016 Olympic Trials and just finished his college career with a second-place finish at the NCAA meet.
Coon also is registered in freestyle, so we will see how that impacts what he does in Greco. Coon could become a fixture on Greco teams for years to come.
Victoria Anthony with her championship plaque after winning the U.S. Open title last year (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)8. Who will rule at 50 kilograms?
The new women's freestyle weight class of 50 kilograms could offer one of the more intriguing battles at the Open.
Two-time world fifth-place finisher Victoria Anthony and three-time world team member Whitney Conder are the favorites in this class.
Anthony moves up from the former 48-kilogram weight class while Conder is moving down from 53. Anthony is small for the weight class, but she is powerful and explosive for her size with an arsenal of big moves.
Tony Ramos celebrates after winning a U.S. Open title last year (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)7. Return of Ramos
Tony Ramos made a pair of world teams in freestyle before falling in two straight matches to fellow Iowa Hawkeye alum Thomas Gilman in the finals of the 2017 World Team Trials.
Gilman went on to win a silver medal at the World Championships in Paris.
Ramos started this season up a weight class, but he's dropping back down to 57 kilograms for the U.S. Open.
Ramos would love another shot at facing Gilman again in the championship series of the Final X.
Ramos is in a tough weight in Vegas that also includes Junior world champion Daton Fix and NCAA champion Darian Cruz.
6. Tamyra's time is now
Tamyra Stock has the talent and the tools to be a world champion in women's freestyle wrestling.
She proved that by winning back-to-back titles at the prestigious Ivan Yarygin event in Russia. Now she has to prove it on the sport's biggest stage.
Stock gained World Championships experience last year and she looks like a strong contender to earn a medal this season.
She is a powerful wrestler with an impressive arsenal of moves. You will want to follow her matches in Vegas.
5. Olympic gold medalist Jake Varner listed among pre-seeds
Jake Varner hasn't competed on the big stage since 2016, but his name was listed Monday as the No. 3 pre-seed at heavyweight.
Varner won his 2012 Olympic gold medal at 96 kilograms, but he has competed at heavyweight in the past.
He placed second to eventual Olympic gold medalist Kyle Snyder at 97 kilograms at the 2016 Olympic Trials. Varner actually won the first match of their best-of-3 championship series before Snyder won the final two bouts.
It will be interesting to see how Varner fares if he does compete in Las Vegas.
4. Kamal Bey is must-see wrestling
Don't turn away from the mat when Kamal Bey is wrestling. You might miss something you've never seen before.
That's how impressive this young standout is in Greco-Roman wrestling. Bey can light up the scoreboard like a pinball machine with his spectacular array of explosive lifts and throws.
He's the dynamic sparkplug that could lead a revival for a U.S. Greco program that has struggled over the past decade. Bey won a Junior world title last year and he's ready to burst onto the scene on the Senior level.
J'den Cox at the Freestyle World Cup (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)3. New weight, same outlook for J'den
J'den Cox's impressive resume keeps adding glowing achievements as he continues to exceed expectations.
Not expected to win an Olympic medal in 2016, Cox earned a bronze medal in Rio. Not expected to even make the U.S. world team in 2017, Cox beat favored David Taylor before winning a bronze medal in Paris.
Now Cox moves up to the new freestyle weight class of 92 kilograms. Cox had a huge size advantage at 86 kilograms and appears to be adjusting well to his new division. He clearly feels better without having to drop so much weight this season.
No matter the circumstances, Cox has definitely performed well when the stakes are highest.
Adeline Gray after making the U.S. Olympic Team in 2016 (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)2. Gray returns with focus on more gold
Three-time world champion Adeline Gray is back. And in a big way this season.
The five-time world medalist finished ahead of the reigning world champion and reigning Olympic champion in winning February's Klippan Open in Sweden. Gray beat 2017 world champion Yasemin Adar of Turkey in the heavyweight finals.
Gray was ranked No. 1 in the world entering the 2016 Olympics, but she fell short of medaling. She missed last season with an injury, but she's back now and eager to begin her run toward another Olympic Games in women's freestyle.
Kyle Dake is coming off a strong performance at the Freestyle World Cup (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)1. Dake, Taylor ready to make first world team
It should have happened by now. Kyle Dake and David Taylor should've made a Senior-level world team in freestyle.
But both were stuck behind Olympic and world medalists Jordan Burroughs and J'den Cox.
With the expansion to 10 weight classes for the World Championships, Dake and Taylor are in different weight classes. And they are poised to make a run at world titles this year.
Dake is coming off an outstanding performance at the World Cup at the new weight class of 79 kilograms where he beat two world silver medalists. Among the other entries at 79 is Junior world silver medalist and three-time NCAA champion Alex Dieringer.
Taylor has excelled the past two seasons at 86 kilograms and looked superb earlier this month at the World Cup. He pinned Olympic and world champion Hassan Yazdani of Iran at the 2017 World Cup.
Dake and Taylor are in the prime of their careers and ready to strike gold at the sport's top level. There is no doubt that it could happen this year.
Craig Sesker has written about wrestling for more than three decades. He's covered three Olympic Games and is a two-time national wrestling writer of the year.
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