There are more than 3 million bowlers in the United States. The United States Bowling Congress (USBC) is the governing body for bowling in the United States. It was released in January. 1, 2005 and fully adopted in the 2005-2006 winter bowling season. It has combined the organizations that oversaw bowling in the United States prior to its inception: the American Bowling Congress (ABC), the Women’s International Bowling Congress (WIBC), the Young American Bowling Alliance (YABA), and USA Bowling. .
The ABC was considered the men’s bowling association (although women could join) and was the sanctioning body (see below) for “men’s” bowling, the WIBC was the women’s bowling association (men could not join ) and the sanctioning body and YABA was that of the young people. sanctioning body. USA Bowling was the United States’ world representative in international competition. Now there is only one governing body and one international representative: USBC.
USBC’s mission statement states that they will ensure the integrity and protect the future of bowling by providing programs and services for the bowling industry and enhancing the bowling experience. Basically, they oversee and continue to improve the bowling industry as a whole in the United States.
What is sanctioning?
While it is not a requirement that any bowling league be licensed, it is highly recommended. Every league sanctioned does so through the USBC. Basically it is a membership in the USBC; includes many benefits, some of which are listed here:
- Awards (badges, rings, watches, patches, etc.) for certain achievements based on your average (more on averages later)
- A magazine for adults and youth (included with your membership)
- A membership card
- Consistent play
- Bowling League – Provides a certified average for each player
- Linkage protection: league money is protected in authorized leagues
- Tournaments
- Bowling, ball and product testing
- Regulation and compliance with it
If you are joining a league (see Chapter 6), you will probably have to join the USBC. This is so that USBC awards can be presented to those who achieve them, and the averages are listed in your association’s book (see Chapter 8) (usually called your “book average”). If a league is not sanctioned by the USBC, your average score in that league will not be recognized by most tournaments. It is very rare that a league is not sanctioned.
For a league to be sanctioned, each bowler in the league must pay a fee to USBC at the beginning of the year. This is the “penalty fee” and can usually be paid with your regular league during the first week of bowling. The league secretary is usually responsible for submitting the penalty fee to the USBC for the league penalty.
USBC Rules
The USBC has created a rule book to govern the game of bowling. This rulebook is very long (over 120 pages) and cannot be covered in this book. For the complete rule book, visit your local bowling center or the USBC website (www.bowl.com).
As examples, the following rules sit heavily in tournament average calculations:
319a-2
When using the average of the previous season, and at the time of bowling, a participant has a current average of 21 or more games that is 10 pins or more than the average of the previous season, the current average should be used .
319c
A bowler’s average can be adjusted upward before participating in any event. If the bowler does not accept the assigned average, the entry fee will be refunded.
The rule book is very comprehensive and covers everything from approaches and equipment to scoring and bowler etiquette. I highly recommend reviewing the rule book before starting bowling, but most players are familiar with the necessary rules, and if there is a dispute, all team captains in a league should have a copy of the rule book. rules, and at least the clerk will. Take one.
It is important to note that the rules in the rulebook are not absolute. A league can have its own set of rules and completely ignore the rulebook (few if any do) or a league can override some of the rules in the rulebook and use the rulebook as the default for any rule that is not overridden by league rules. (this is much more common).
Awards / Trophies
The USBC offers many prizes for bowlers. Some of the awards are based on the current league average and some are based on score only. For example, prizes 300, 299, 298, and 11 in a row are based on game score, and prizes 800 and 900 are based on actual series (3 games). There is also a prize for a game from 250 to 297 with an average of 170 or less, 200 to 249 with an average of 160 or less, 180 to 199 with an average of 140 or less, etc. There are prizes for 75 and 100 pins above average in a game as well. Only one of these prizes is allowed per year, and if a jackpot is won it will be recognized, however the accompanying gift will not be awarded.
There are many other prizes that are awarded for playing in a league, but they vary from league to league (see Prizes in Chapter 6). For a complete list of available USBC awards and the conditions surrounding them, please refer to the rule book (Rule 50, Chapter 3).
As you can see, the USBC does its part to reward bowlers for playing well. All of this makes the game more exciting and rewarding for the bowler. Improving your game is exciting and rewarding!
Keep bowling and having fun!