ARLINGTON, Texas – The United States Bowling Congress has canceled all remaining national events for 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“These decisions are tough on everyone, but mostly our players, athletes and members,” USBC Executive Director Chad Murphy said. “USBC’s mission is to serve our bowlers, and canceling the most significant events in the sport certainly is heartbreaking for all involved. Nevertheless, USBC has a responsibility to consider the health of its members and their communities. Given the increasing spread of COVID-19 in several states, along with constantly changing guidelines and travel restrictions, we sadly do not see a responsible way to conduct national events in 2020.”
This cancellation includes the previously postponed USBC Open Championships, USBC Women’s Championships, USBC Masters, USBC Senior Masters, USBC Senior Queens and Super Senior Classic.
The 2020-2021 USBC Collegiate season will be postponed until January 2021 and be conducted as a second-semester sport. The dates for the Intercollegiate Team and Singles Championships will be determined at a later time, with plans to hold them in the late spring or early summer.
USA Bowling events and in-person coaching seminars for 2020 also have been postponed to 2021.
USBC previously announced the cancellation of the 2020 Professional Women’s Bowling Association Tour season, with a possibility of conducting events in the fall and winter months. In light of current conditions, plans for a PWBA event in late 2020 now are indefinitely on hold.
USBC plans to resume a traditional schedule of events in January 2021, starting with USBC Team USA Trials, as conditions allow.
“While USBC national events are canceled, bowling certainly is not shut down for 2020,” Murphy said. “USBC is confident competitive bowling can take place locally, and we are seeing many proprietors taking proactive steps to responsibly host leagues in accordance with local guidelines. Those steps will help leagues begin and tournaments to take place during the rest of the summer and into the fall. Our hope is that conditions improve to allow national events again in 2021.”
Teams registered for the 2020 Open and Women’s Championships may request to have their payments rolled forward for the 2021 tournaments, or they can request full refunds.
Individuals who have submitted entries for any USBC short-duration event (Masters, Senior Masters, Senior Queens, Super Senior Classic) will be refunded in the upcoming weeks.
