The bowlers spoke and the Genesee Region USBC directors listened. And, as a result, the 12th annual GRUSB Association Tournament later this month includes a Scratch Division and a handicap base of 215 – down from 230.
Now, let’s see if the changes pay off in increased entries for the tournament, which is scheduled for March 16-18, 23-25 at Mount Morris Lanes (Team event) and Livingston Lanes in Geneseo (Doubles & Singles events).
Competition will take place in three divisions -- Open (men and women), Scratch (men and women) and Women. In the Open and Scratch divisions, teams are comprised of five players; in the Women's division, teams consist of four players.
Handicap is set at 90 percent of 215 in the Open and 90 percent of 200 in the Women's.
Last year, the handicap base was at 230, and that drew complaints from the higher average bowlers who felt they were at a competitive disadvantage.
GRUSBC directors took that into consideration in lowering the base to 215 – and also brought back a Scratch division for those bowlers wishing to compete against other teams without handicap.
As of Wednesday, all squads are open except for the Team squad at 11 a.m. on March 18. The maximum number of team entries is 80.
Entry fees are $25 per person per event and $10 for optional All-Events.
A chart showing the current entries can be found at www.bowlgr.com.
To reserve your spot, call 585-861-0404 or send an email to mikep@bowlgr.com.
LE ROY, PERRY TEAMS WIN YOUTH TOURNAMENT
Teams from Le Roy and Perry captured divisional titles at the GRUSBC Association Youth Team Tournament at Le Roy Legion Lanes.
In Division A, the Le Roy team of Trey Prevost, Tyler Klein, Aaron Leone and Samantha Hyde place first with a 2,531 score -- 90 pins better than the Medina team of Lorelei Sanders, Graceland Mahnke, Juliana Allis and Ryleigh Culver.
Ryan Bigsby, Tony Sprague, Sam Miller and James Townsend of Mancuso Bowlling Center placed third with 2,412.
In Division B, the Perry squad of Gavin Slocum, Brooke Jurek, Dennis Van Duser and Matt Hurlburt finished on top with 2,536 -- 90 pins better than the Mount Morris team of Alexis Patterson, Britney Rathburn, Brad June and Trenton Willis.
Kyle Regatuso, Ava Tortorice, Hannah McKenzie and Isabel Laney of Mount Morris Lanes placed third with 2,426.
Members of the first-place teams in both divisions earned $100 scholarships each, while the top three teams in both groups received trophies.
ALBION, MEDINA CENTERS TO HOST 60-AND-OVER EVENTS
The 60-and-Over Senior Tour will be making a swing into Orleans County for a pair of tournaments in April.
Oak Orchard Bowl in Albion will host the tour’s seventh event of the season on April 8 and Medina Lanes will host tournament No. 8 on April 29. Check-in for both competitions is at 11 a.m. with bowling starting at noon.
According to tour director Tommy Kress, Oak Orchard Bowl proprietor Randy Hanks is putting money into the prize fund, which means that with 42 bowlers, the top prize will be $350.
The next 60-and-Over event is set for March 18 at Brockport Bowl with check-in at 11 a.m. and bowling at noon.
SMALLWOOD RUNS THE TABLE FOR PBA PLAYERS TITLE
For the second straight Professional Bowlers Association tournament, the victor won all four stepladder matches en route to the title.
Last Sunday, Tom Smallwood of Saginaw, Mich., defeated defending champion Jason Belmonte of Australia, 259-239, for the $40,000 first prize at the Barbasol PBA Players Championship in Columbus, Ohio, thwarting Belmonte’s bid for a record-tying 10th major championship.
To reach the final match, Smallwood downed Canadian Patrick Girard, 237-206, before edging Kris Prather of Plainfield, Ill., 236-235, and Marshall Kent of Yakima, Wash., 225-224.
Belmonte earned $20,000 while Kent took home $12,000, Prather $11,000 and Girard $10,000.
On Feb. 11, Matt O’Grady of Rahway, N.J., won the PBA Tournament of Champions on by sweeping all four finals matches.
The PBA returns to ESPN at 2 p.m. Sunday with the finals of the Mark Roth/Marshall Holman PBA Doubles Championship.
Live coverage of the USBC Masters is scheduled for 1 p.m. April 15 on ESPN.
LEROYANS PLACE FIRST AT RIGGI MEMORIAL EVENT
Continuing their dominance of the tournament, Mickey Hyde and Tom Rohl joined forces with fellow LeRoyans Shayne Herold and John Lowe to win the Ron Riggi Memorial at Le Roy Legion Lanes.
The winners totaled 3,642 for three games to run away with the tournament by 117 pins over second-place Kevin Bienko, Dan Streer, Josh Shoemaker and Dana Voytovich of the Buffalo area.
First place was worth $900 while second place paid $450.
Hyde and Rohl also cashed with other teams, with Hyde placing third with Rob Sease, Norm Bialuski and Ryan Kretchmer, and Rohl placing fourth with Mark Brown, Matt Balduf and Scott Culp.
Herold won the singles event with a 968 score, good for $120.
Thirty-seven teams competed.
ROSE GARDEN I HAS BIG LEAD IN GR YOUTH TRAVEL LEAGUE
The Rose Garden I team of Bergen defeated Batavia Bombers, 13-6, at Mount Morris Lanes on Feb. 18 and now holds a 15-point lead over second-place Perry Bowling Center with four sessions remaining in the Genesee Region Youth Travel League.
Perry pulled into second by virtue of a 16.5-2.5 win over Batavia Strike Force, which dropped to third, tied with Batavia Thunder and three points behind Perry.
Individually, Matt Hurlburt of Perry led the way with a 245 game and 670 series while teammate Dennis Van Duser had 236 and Strike Force’s Skylar Laesser 233. Paige Snook of Oak Orchard Bowl led the girls with 209—532.
The league bowls this Sunday at Perry Bowling Center with the first shift at 12:30 p.m.
NYS MASTERS CHAMPIONSIP IS THIS SATURDAY IN LOCKPORT
Entries are picking up for the 28th NYS Masters Championship this Saturday at Allie Brandt Lanes in Lockport.
Qualifying squad times (five games) are at 9 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., with one in five bowlers advancing from each squad to the head-to-head match play finals. First place is $2,500 and a free entry to the 2019 USBC Masters.
Genesee Region bowlers currently signed up are Curtis Foss of Medina at 9 a.m., and Jim Foss of Medina, Kevin Gray Sr. of Honeoye Falls, Kevin Gray Jr. of Warsaw, Aaron Verheyn of Medina and Frank Jarkiewicz of Byron at 12:30 p.m.
For more information and a tournament roster, go to www.bowlny.com.
To enter, send an email to bowlny300@yahoo.com.
On Saturday, March 10, Mancuso Bowling Center is hosting its annual King & Queen Mixed Doubles Handicap Tournament, with squad times at noon and 2 p.m.
Call 585-343-1319 for more information.
