Sanctioning

1.    The International Gay Bowling Organization (IGBO) Bowling Conference and Tournament is a USBC-certified tournament through a Moral Support Certification. This tournament is a mixed handicap competition open to all who are affiliated with IGBO. This is an invitational tournament, and the IGBO tournament directors reserve the right to refuse any application by NOT extending an invitation.

2.    IGBO requires all participants to be a member of IGBO. If a participant is not a member, in any of its classes, they must become an IGBO Associate Member and pay the appropriate membership fee. The participant will have the opportunity to apply for Associate Membership at the time of registration. IGBO’s General Membership must approve Associate Membership applications prior to participation.

3.    USBC and CTF members in good standing may participate in a moral support tournament with aware recognition automatically extended to their national organizations; however, bowlers must be a member of USBC to be eligible to receive USBC honor score awards. Eligible non-members may qualify for USBC award recognition by paying USBC as an associate member at tournament registration by filling out the appropriate form and paying the membership fee. All participants are subject to USBC rules and jurisdiction for the event.

Event Participation

4.    The tournament is open to participants ages 21 and up.

5.    The tournament comprises three handicapped events: Singles, Doubles and Team. Individual and Team All-Events will also be included but require no additional bowling. Optional Individual Scratch events by division will also be offered.

6.    Each participant will bowl three (3) games per event and must enter all three events (Singles, Doubles and Team).

a.    Teams will consist of four (4) bowlers with doubles partners being members of the same team. All participants will compete on an equal basis.

7.    Each participant may only bowl once in each event.

8.    A professional bowler that is not a current IGBO league member or current organizational member with a minimum of 21 games may not bowl in the tournament. Only one (1) professional bowler per team will be allowed.

a.    A professional bowler is defined as any person who has been a “card-carrying” member of a professional bowling organization within the past twelve (12) months preceding the tournament.

9.    Employees of bowling centers being used by the Host City who are not IGBO league members will not be permitted to participate in the tournament.

10.  Teams may request a substitute bowler. Substitutes may bowl at the discretion of the tournament management. Their entering average must comply with the tournament rules. Substitutes must complete an entry form.

11.  There will be ten (10) minutes of practice bowling on each assigned pair of lanes per event.

Optional Scratch and Scratch Masters Divisions

12.  Optional Scratch and Scratch Masters events will be offered to all participants split into five classified divisions as determined by entering average.

Division A – Averages 205 and above

Division B – Averages 190 to 204

Division C – Averages 175 to 189

Division D – Averages 155 to 174

Division E – Averages 154 and below

13.  The Optional Scratch event will use the scratch scores (without handicap) from the handicap portion of the tournament to determine winners.

a.    The Optional Scratch event will be divided into three separate categories within each division:

                                          i.    High Single Scratch Game (from any of the three events)

                                         ii.    Highest Scratch Series (from any of the three events, three games required)

                                        iii.    Highest Scratch All Events (from the nine-game total of all three events)

14.  A Scratch Masters event will be offered to all bowling participants competing in the tournament Singles, Doubles and Team events, who have not been an active Professional Bowling Association (PBA) member for one (1) year. Amateurs who have competed in a PBA event but are not members of the PBA will be allowed to compete. Tournament management may re-rate a bowler into a higher division at their discretion with no additional fee required.

a.    An entrant’s All-Events scratch score (sum of Singles, Doubles and Team) is used to determine the qualifiers in each division.

                                          i.    In case of a tie for eighth (8th) place, tied bowlers will bowl a 9th/10th frame roll off with the highest score earning the eighth (8th) seed.

b.    Qualifiers will be seeded into a DOUBLE ELIMINATION BRACKET by scratch score, with the first matches as follows:

                                          i.    1st seed vs. 8th seed (Match 1)

                                         ii.    2nd seed vs. 7th seed (Match 2)

                                        iii.    3rd seed vs. 6th seed (Match 3)

                                       iv.    4th seed vs. 5th seed (Match 4)

c.     Matches will be one (1) game. Round 1 consists of Matches 1-4.

d.    Round 2 will consist of the winner’s bracket Matches 7 & 8, as well as loser’s bracket Matches 5 & 6.

e.    At the end of Round 2, the losers of Matches 5 & 6 will be eliminated. The player with the higher scratch total in his/her/their two (2) games bowled will place 7th while the lower scoring bowler will place 8th.

f.      Round 3 will consist of winner’s bracket Match 11, as well as loser’s bracket Matches 9 & 10.

g.    At the end of Round 3, the losers of matches 9 & 10 will be eliminated. The player with the higher scratch total in his/her/their three (3) games bowled will place 5th while the lower scoring bowler will place 6th.

h.    Round 4 will consist of loser’s bracket Match 12 with the loser placing 4th.

i.      Round 5 will consist of loser’s bracket Match 13 with the loser placing 3rd.

j.      Round 6 will consist of Match 14 where the winners of both brackets face off. If the bowler from the winner’s bracket wins, he/she/they are crowned the winner with the defeated player placing 2nd.

k.     Round 7 (if needed) will consist of Match 15 where if the winner of the loser’s bracket wins Match 14, the bowlers will then bowl a final match to determine who finishes 1st and 2nd.

                                          i.    If there is a tie, the bowlers will have a 9th/10th frame roll off to determine the winner of the match. This will continue until a winner is determined.

l.      Play will be conducted PBA style where the bowler on the left lane will shoot one frame, then the bowler on the right lane will shoot two frames, each alternating two consecutive frames until the match is complete. The higher seeded bowler in each match will have a choice of being the left lane or right lane bowler. In the event a bye exists for any reason in a round, the bowler will automatically move on in the bracket.

m.   Payout will be 100% of the entry fees, less lineage, and will pay at least the top four finishers in each division.

n.    Scratch Masters check-in will be thirty (30) minutes prior to the posted event start time in the schedule. A bowler who is not checked-in at the scheduled time will be disqualified and an alternate will replace the qualifier.

o.    Bowlers will be allowed five (5) minutes of practice before the first Round. During these five minutes, bowlers may bowl on any pair within the block of lanes assigned to their division. For each subsequent round, each bowler will be allowed two (2) balls on each lane prior to the start of each round thereafter. Finalists who are waiting for a match will be provided with a practice lane.

p.    Any scoring errors must be resolved before the next ball is thrown; once the correction has been made, the competition will continue.

q.    Any issues not covered by these rules shall be resolved by a member or members of tournament management assigned to manage the event, whose decision is final.

Awards and Prizes

15.  All cash awards will be based on the total pins PLUS assigned handicap for each event (with exception of the Optional Scratch divisions).

16.  Awards will be given for the best Singles, Doubles, Team, Individual All Events and Team All Events scores.

a.    Individual All Events is defined as the nine (9)-game total plus handicap of an individual bowler.

b.    Team All Events is defined as the nine (9)-game total with handicap of the four (4) members of the same team who bowled in the Team event.

                                          i.    If any member of the team does not bowl the nine (9) games, that team will be ineligible for Team All Events recognition.

17.  The award ratio for Singles, Doubles and Team events will be at a minimum of 1:10. Individual All Events and Team All Events will be at a minimum of 1:20.

a.    Awards in the Optional Scratch Divisions will follow Rule 12 above. The award ratio for the Optional Scratch Divisions will be at a minimum of 1:20 per division.

b.    Additional awards will be given in each division for high scratch game, high handicap game, high scratch series and high handicap series. A bowler may not win more than once in the special awards category. Scratch scores will take precedence over handicap and individual game over series.

18.  Prizes will be distributed via check payable in U.S. currency within thirty (30) days of the completion of the tournament, barring any protests. A tie in any position will result in the sum of the prizes being aggregated for the tied positions and divided equally by the number of ties for that placing. Prize funds will be based on 100% participation.

19.  100% of the entry fee from each division in the Optional Scratch Divisions will be returned to that division.

Entering Averages

20.  Any bowler entering the IGBO Bowling Conference and Tournament must use a ten-pin average acceptable to USBC. The following rules will be used to determine the entering average:

a.    The league average as of December 31, 2025, with a minimum of 21 games. If competing in more than one league, the bowler MUST submit the COMPOSITE AVERAGE of all leagues bowled, even if a league has less than 21 games bowled.

                                          i.    COMPOSITE average is totality of pinfall from all leagues bowled including subbing divided by number of games bowled.  USBC has composite averages calculated by year on www.bowl.com.

                                         ii.    Example – Bowler bowled in two leagues and subbed in one. League 1 pinfall is 10,250 across 60 games.  League 2 pinfall is 12,581 across 75 games. League 3 pinfall is 750 across 6 games. Composite average is (10,250 + 12,581 + 750)/(60 + 75 + 6) = 167.

b.    If “a” is not available, use 2024/2025 book average (including summer leagues, minimum 21 games). If competing in more than one league, the bowler MUST submit the COMPOSITE AVERAGE of all leagues bowled, even if a league has less than 21 games bowled.

c.     If neither “a” nor “b” is available, use the 2025/2026 league average (minimum 21 games). If competing in more than one league, the bowler MUST submit the COMPOSITE AVERAGE of all leagues bowled, even if a league has less than 21 games bowled.

d.    If none of the scenarios above are applicable, then the entering average will be equal to the Tournament Scratch Score.

e.    Non-certified bowlers will use a minimum average of 130 and must submit all league averages and tournament scores (12-months immediately preceding the entry cut-off date) for possible average adjustment.

f.      The above averages MUST be verified using:

                                          i.    League standings sheet, signed and dated by League Officer, or:

                                         ii.    Letter from League President or Secretary, or:

                                        iii.    Photocopy of book average (with year noted), signed and dated by League Officer.

g.    Averages from Sport Condition leagues are NOT acceptable at any time and will should not be included in the calculation of any composite averages.

21.  The Tournament Scratch Score will be the highest entering average for the tournament rounded up to the nearest five (5).  Negative handicaps will not apply. Should a substitution and/or bowler replacement be necessary after the entry cut-off date, the Tournament Scratch Score will NOT be affected.

22.  The per-game handicap for the tournament will be based at 90% of the difference between the bowler’s entering average (as determined by Rule 20) and the Tournament Scratch Score.

23.  USBC rules regarding the BOWLER’S responsibility to verify the accuracy of his/her/their entering average, whether submitted by the bowler, the team captain, or any other individual, applies to all bowlers. Failure to use proper average will disqualify scores if the submitted average is lower than the actual average, thereby resulting in a lower classification or more handicap. Event placement and/or prize winnings will be based on the higher average should the submitted average prove to be higher than the bowler’s actual average.

24.  If a bowler has won more than $600 in a single event over the past year (5/17/25 – 5/16/26), the bowler must note this in the comment section of the online entry or by emailing [email protected]. If a bowler has been RE-RATED to a higher average by ANY other tournament, the bowler must note this in the comment section of the online entry or by emailing [email protected]. Failure to do so could result in disqualification and forfeiture of all winnings.

Average Adjustment

25.  Tournament management has the authority to adjust the entering average of any bowler. Average adjustments will be applied as set forth under USBC rules. All average adjustments will be completed prior to the start of each event (Singles, Doubles, Team) and NOT during an event. A bowler unwilling to accept an average adjustment is entitled to a full refund for the non-bowled events, but they are not permitted to continue bowling in the tournament.

26.  If a bowler has a current IGBO tournament average (comprised of a minimum of 21 games bowled during the 11 months immediately preceding the official start date of this tournament, in this case, 5/1/25 – 4/1/26) that is one or more pins higher than their Entering Average (as outlined in Rule 23), they must use the higher tournament average as their entering average. Per Rule 23, it is the bowler’s responsibility to report ALL tournament scores that are relevant in calculating their current tournament average.  Failure to report this information may result in AUTOMATIC disqualification and loss of all prize winnings – subject to tournament management discretion.

Tardiness

27.  It is solely and entirely the bowler’s responsibility to be present at the assigned lanes at the time of bowling. Each bowler will have the total responsibility to arrive in time to bowl. Mechanical failures, transportation irregularities, improper directions and related reasons DO NOT alter the application of Rules 27 and 28 (USBC rules will apply). Tournament-offered transportation and catastrophic events will be subject to tournament management discretion.

28.  Late bowlers will begin bowling in the frame in which they are ready, with prior frames being scored as zero. No practice balls will be allowed for late bowlers.

Entry Requirements

29.  The entry fee is payable in U.S. funds online only. Online payment options through Stripe, PayPal and Venmo are accepted. Other electronic payments may become available.

30.  Tournament average documents will be accepted via email or online league standings. Bowlers must provide the online league standing league ID. Email standings to [email protected].

31.  Entries will be limited to a maximum of 480 bowlers. Once this maximum has been reached, no more entries will be accepted. Entrants’ acceptance will be based on the order received. Once an entry has been accepted, refunds will only be issued at the discretion of tournament management.

32.  Partial team entries will be accepted; tournament management will make every effort to fill the vacancies.

33.  There will be an additional fee of $30 on all returned checks or declined payments.

Scoring Errors

34.  After a score has been recorded, it cannot be changed unless an obvious error in scoring or calculation has occurred. Obvious errors must be corrected by a tournament official immediately upon discovery. Questionable errors must be reported to a tournament official within two (2) hours of the error and will be decided by tournament management (USBC Rule 327B).

 

Protests

35.  Protests and appeals must be in writing, stating the grounds for the protest and/or appeal.

a.    A protest involving eligibility or playing rules must be filed with tournament management within 24 hours after the event.

b.    The decision of tournament management will be final unless a written appeal is filed with the local association or USBC Headquarters prior to tournament prizes being awarded/paid. Upon notification of a protest or appeal, tournament management must withhold all affected prizes until the protest or appeal is resolved.

c.     No anonymous protests will be allowed.

Miscellaneous

36.  Test and unreleased equipment cannot be used in this tournament. Failure to adhere to this rule is cause for disqualification.

37.  All other USBC rules will apply.

38.  Any person attending and requiring special assistance MUST notify tournament management in writing.

39.  The team captain MUST acknowledging he/she/they has/have read the rules. The online form will require this acknowledgement.