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Capital District Youth Scholarship Tour

CDYST Tournament Rules

USBC Certification # 05196

  • Unless noted, all tournaments are scratch singles and open to any USBC youth-certified bowler. Uncertified bowlers meeting USBC youth requirements must purchase a USBC youth membership on site in order to compete.
  • All CDYST tournaments will begin promptly on the date and time listed on the front page of this flyer. Please arrive 30 to 45 minutes early to check in. Tardy athletes will receive zero pinfall for any missed frames.
  • Tournament entry fee for U15, U18, and U20 CDYST members is $50 if paid by the deadline listed on the front page of this flyer.  The cost will be $60 for all non-members; and members paying after the pre-payment deadline or on-site. The breakdown is as follows: $23 lineage; $25 scholarship fund; remainder to expenses. For U12 CDYST members, the entry fee is $40 if paid by the deadline listed on the front page of this flyer. The cost will be $50 for all U12 non-members; and members paying after the pre-payment deadline or on-site. The breakdown is as follows: $18 lineage; $20 scholarship fund; remainder to expenses.
  • Optional Junior Gold qualifying is available for all CDYST members or those who pay their membership when entering. The Junior Gold entry fee is in addition to the tournament entry fee and varies by age division. Athletes who wish to enter the qualifier and are not USBC Junior Gold-certified must certify prior to the tournament date by visiting bowl.com.
  • Please complete the online entry form and invoice linked on the on the front page for the next tournament or on the Schedule tab; and electronically remit funds via Venmo to https://venmo.com/MarkTaylorBowling.
  • The qualifying round will consist of 5 games, switching pairs after each game. The lesser of 1 in 3 athletes between the U15, U18, and U20 age divisions, or the number of available lanes, will advance to the semifinals. Ties for the final advancer spot will be broken via a 9th and 10th frame roll-off. Seeding ties will be broken by high game.
    • U12 division: If there are at least 5 entries, the top two athletes will bowl a one-game match to determine the winner. If there are between 8 and 11 entries, the finals will be a three-person stepladder. If 12 or more entries, four athletes will advance to the stepladder finals. Otherwise, the athlete with the highest total pinfall after qualifying will be the winner.
    • Optional Junior Gold Qualifier: A ratio of 1 in 4 athletes in each age/gender division will advance to the Junior Gold Championships based on their five-game qualifying totals. Any ties for final advancer spots will be broken via the highest two-game total in Games 4 and 5, followed by highest game(s) if there is still a tie.
  • The semifinals will begin immediately following the qualifying round (all scores carry over) and consist of 3 head-to-head match games. The athlete winning each match receives a 30-pin bonus (15 pins to each for a tie).  The top four athletes after 8 games will advance to the finals. Ties for 3rd and 4th places will be broken by total pinfall, then high game. Other finalist position ties will be broken by a 9th and 10th frame roll-off.
  • The finals will be a stepladder format; the 4th place qualifier will compete against the 3rd place qualifier; the winner will compete against the 2nd qualifier; that winner will then face the tournament leader to determine the champion.
  • Please note that at host centers with space or time constraints, the tournament directors reserve the right to modify the tournament format to accommodate as many bowlers as possible.
  • All oil patterns will meet USBC requirements for being Sport-compliant. However, prior to each event, a pattern length category will be supplied.  At the conclusion of the qualifying round, the lane graph will be revealed. It will then be posted on our website thereafter. Please visit the Lane Conditions tab for full details about our lane conditioning protocols.
  • Ball surface adjustments may be made until the end of qualifying round practice only. If an athlete is found to have made a ball surface adjustment after competition begins, they will receive 0 pinfall for any frames the ball was used; and the ball will be removed from competition.
  • If an athlete bowls on the wrong lane or out of turn and does not roll a strike, they will attempt to convert the spare and that will be their frame. If they roll a strike, the delivery will not count and they will bowl in the correct order on the correct lane.
  • All athletes must wear a collared or mock-collar shirt and slacks. Girls may wear skirts. Please visit Code of Conduct tab, which addresses acceptable attire, behavior, and other important information.
  • A minimum of 1 in 4 entrants in each age/gender division will earn a scholarship. Semifinalists will earn a $10 scholarship for each match play victory.  $8 from each U15, U18, and U20 entry will be placed into an overall scholarship fund and awarded to the four finalists in the following approximate ratios: 50% to the champion; 25% to the runner-up; 15% for third place; and 10% for fourth place. The champion will also receive a plaque. Scholarship winners in each age/gender division will be determined by their overall finishing position in the tournament. All scholarship award winners will receive a certificate indicating their position and prize.
  • For an optional $5 fee, CDYST members may enter the scholarship eliminator prior to the qualifying round. There are no age divisions, with a minimum of 1 in 8 entrants earning a scholarship prize and certificate.  All eliminator monies will be returned 100%.
  • Thanks to the generosity of our friends at Brunswick Bowling Products, all entrants may purchase raffle tickets to win a brand new high performance bowling ball from one of their 7 hard-hitting brands. The cost is $2 each; 3 for $5; 10 for $10; 25 for $20.
  • All scholarship money will be held by and distributed according to the USBC SMART Program.
  • The CDYST membership fee for U15, U18, and U20 athletes is $30 to cover season-long expenses and awards. The U12 membership fee is $20. Any remaining money at the end of the season will be awarded as scholarships at the Invitational and Masters.
  • Athletes competing in the U15, U18, and U20 divisions will earn Bowler of the Year points at each event. U15 and U18 athletes will be eligible to compete as a CDYST All Star at the USBC Youth Open in Grand Rapids, MI. U12 athletes are not eligible for Bowler of the Year points and awards unless they enter the U15, U18, or U20 age division and pay for a full membership. Any U20 athlete that finishes in the Top 8 in points will earn a scholarship equivalent to a Youth Open entry.
  • All rules not specifically addressed herein will be subject to the USBC Rulebook. For matters not directly addressed in the USBC Rulebook, the tournament directors’ decision is final.

CDYST Scholarship Eliminator Rules

The CDYST Scholarship Eliminator is open to CDYST members only and runs concurrent with the first four games of the Qualifying Round of the main tournament.  Each entrant will bowl against the rest of the eliminator field starting with the first game. After Game 1, the top half of the bowlers will advance, while the remainder will be eliminated. Then, using their scores from Game 2 only, the top half of those remaining bowlers will advance, and so on. If there is an odd number of bowlers in a round, no less than 50% will advance to the next round. For example, if there are 12 entries, the eliminator will run as follows:

    Game 1: 12 bowlers, with the top 6 scores advancing

    Game 2: 6 bowlers, with the top 3 scores advancing

    Game 3: 3 bowlers, with the top 2 scores advancing

    Game 4: 2 bowlers, with the higher score winning the top prize and the lower score winning the 2nd prize.

If there are 8 or fewer entries, the eliminator will play out over the first 3 games in the qualifying round, with only the winner earning a scholarship prize. The scholarship prize ratio will be a minimum of 1 for every 8 entries in the eliminator. The results of the Scholarship Eliminator are completely independent and in no way affect the main tournament standings.

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