Rules

2013 USBC Team USA Trials
Tournament Rules


Eligibility


  1. All participants must be USBC members in good standing.
  2. Participants must be US citizens and eligible to compete on Team USA in accordance with Olympic Charter - Rule 41: Nationality of Competitors.
  3. To qualify for Junior Team USA 2013 participants must be 20 years old or younger before January 1, 2013. Anyone older than 21 before January 1, 2013 will not be eligible to make Junior Team USA, but can qualify for Team USA.
  4. To be eligible for participation in a World Tenpin Bowling Association (WTBA) event i.e. World Youth Championships or PABCON Youth Championships in 2013 players must be born from January 1st 1993 to December 31st 2000.

USBC Team USA Qualifying


USBC Team USA 2013 will consist of a minimum 10 men and 10 women:

A minimum of five men will be selected by the USBC Committee from past Team USA members within the last 10 years or the 2011-12 exempt field of the Professional Bowlers Association Tour.

A minimum of five women will be selected by the USBC Committee from a pool of players who have been either on Team USA or a Professional Bowler (PBA or PWBA) within the past 10 years (since 2003).

The top three men and three women finishers in the 2013 USBC Team USA Trials, based off of ranking points, will earn automatic spots on Team USA 2013, while two additional men and two additional women will be selected from the field by the National Selection Committee.

USBC Junior Team USA Qualifying


USBC Junior Team USA 2013 will consist of 10 boys and 10 girls: Six boys and six girls will have earned spots at the 2012 North Point Junior Gold tournament in Indianapolis, Indiana.

The top two boys and girls in the 2013 Team USA Trails, based on ranking points, will earn automatic spots on Junior Team USA 2013, while two additional boys and girls will be selected by the National Selection Committee from either the 2013 Team Trials, or 2013 North PointJunior Gold Tournament.

2013 Tournament Entries


The members of 2012 Men’s and Women’s Team USA qualify for a free tournament entry into the 2013 USBC Team USA Trials.

 

Entries will be limited to 175 males and 175 females.

General Rules


  1. This tournament is USBC certified.

  2. Bowlers will receive 10 minutes of practice prior to the beginning of each qualifying block.

  3. A bowler arriving late will begin play and his/her score will be counted only from the frame then being bowled. A player not present and ready to bowl when it is his/her turn will not be credited for any pins for the frames missed.

  4. Two re-racks per game will be allowed. Any other requests need the permission of a Tournament Official.

  5. No substitutes will be permitted; however, pacers may be scheduled at the sole discretion of the Tournament Director.

  6. All bowlers must wear suitable attire. Each athlete must wear a collared shirt during competition. Mock necks shirts will be permitted. NO JEANS OF ANY COLOR WILL BE ALLOWED AT ANY TIME INCLUDING PRACTICE. Dress slacks for men and skirts, skorts, dress shorts or dress slacks for women are acceptable. Skirts, skorts and shorts must be fingertip length when standing with arms down at sides. Any noncompliance to the dress code may result in a zero score for the bowler until the issue is resolved.

  7. Each bowler is responsible for verification of his/her own scores. Any scoring corrections must be made prior to signing the recap forms. Questionable errors will be resolved by tournament management or, upon appeal, by the Tournament Director. Protests involving eligibility, scores, or general playing rules must be confirmed in writing to the Tournament Director by the beginning of the tournaments next round or by completion of the tournaments closing ceremonies.

  8. Players preparing to step on the approach and deliver a ball shall have the following rights and obligations:

    9. Lane Courtesy - This tournament will use One-Pair Courtesy. The pair of lanes to a players right and left must be empty before a player takes their position on the approach for their delivery. Alternating pairs of lanes across the house should have one player on the approach preparing to make their delivery. A player on each of the other lanes should be at the ball return preparing for their turn as soon as those on the approach make their delivery.

    Players shall be ready to bowl when it is their turn and shall not delay the start of their approach or delivery if the pair of lanes immediately adjacent to them on both the right and left is clear. If a player does not observe the procedure outlined above, it may be construed as slow bowling. A player failing to observe these procedures shall be warned by an authorized tournament official as follows:

    • White card for the first offense (no penalty).
    • Blue card for the second offense (no penalty).
    • Red card for the third and each succeeding offense in any block of games.

    The penalty shall be zero pin fall for the frame. To enforce this rule, the Tournament Director will monitor the participants to ensure that no pair(s) of lanes gets too far behind the group. Whenever there is any question concerning the enforcement of this rule, or lack thereof, the final decision shall be made by the Tournament Management Committee.

  9. Bowling balls must meet all USBC requirements for surface hardness, weight, balance size &number of holes. Bowling ball regulations for professional organizations DO NOT apply. Any bowler concerned with his/her equipment should have it checked in the pro shop before competition begins.

  10. * Bowling ball surface adjustments by hand are acceptable between games provided they are done in the designated area and that the adjustment procedure does not delay the bowlers next turn. Altering the surface of the bowling ball during a game is not allowed. If the surface is adjusted during a game the penalty is zero pin fall in that game.
    * Follows WTBA statutes and playing rules. www.worldtenpinbowling.com

  11. Athletes must not smoke, consume alcohol or be under the influence of alcohol while in competition, i.e. during the entire period of a block of games. In those instances where it is established that a player is in breach of this rule, he/she may be suspended from the tournament by the Tournament Director for that block of games. Non-alcoholic beverages are allowed, provided they are not consumed in the players’ area. Any food or drink must be kept behind the settee during competition.

  12. Questions not covered by these document rules will be decided by the Tournament Director.

Format


  1. There are separate divisions for men and women. All bowling is on a scratch basis.

  2. Competition will consist of five blocks of qualifying with six games in each block. Each block will be contested on a different lane-conditioning pattern.

  3. Participants will receive ranking points based off of finish position for each block. (Example: bowler finished 2nd in first block, 2 points earned) Total ranking points will be determined after completion of all five blocks. The lowest number of points will determine first position overall, the next lowest is second…etc.

    4. First and second place finishers, using ranking points after qualifying games are complete, will be eligible for an optional insurance package provided by the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) (if available once again this year via USOC).

* Stepladder Finals


  1. The top three bowlers after qualifying, (as determined by ranking points) will participate in the stepladder format.

  2. Stepladders will take place on two pair of lanes for the women and two pair of lanes for the men. The pairs of lanes will be chosen by the Tournament Committee.

  3. The top seeds (male & female) from qualifying will each choose a lane oiling pattern from the five previous qualifying patterns and it will be applied to one pair of lanes. The second seeds (male & female), from qualifying will also choose a lane oiling pattern from the five previous qualifying patterns and it will be applied to one pair of lanes.

  4. All stepladder final matches will have both players bowl one game on a pair of lanes.

  5. The first stepladder matches will be the third qualifying seed vs. the second qualifying seed on the lane pattern choice of the second qualifier. The final stepladder matches will be the winner of the first stepladder match vs. the top qualifier on the lane pattern choice of the top qualifier.

  6. There will be five minutes of practice on the stepladder lanes before each match and a warm up pair of lanes for the top qualifiers during the first stepladder matches.

    7. The players eliminated from the first stepladder matches (male & female) will each receive $250.00. The players eliminated from the second stepladder matches (male & female) will each receive $500.00. The winners of the second stepladder matches (male & female) will each receive $1,000.00, represent Team USA in the 2013 AMF World Cup, and be declared the 2013 USBC Team USA Trials Champions.