Tournament Rules

Sanction: YBT is sanctioned by the Canadian Tenpin Federation, and all CTF Rules are in effect. YBT is open to any youth bowler
(21 years old or younger as of August 1st, 2025). Any bowler who is not sanctioned must purchase a CTF Membership card.

Divisions: There will be 3 divisions for each event, A, B, and C. The divisions are determined by totaling the number of bowlers registered for the tournament and dividing by 3. If there is a split where bowlers with the same average are in 2 divisions, all bowlers with that average are placed in the higher division. As a result, there may be an uneven number of bowlers in each division. Depending on registrations, bowlers may move between divisions from one event to another.

Averages: For a bowlers first event (4 games) of the current season, bowlers will use their 2024 – 2025 YBT average (minimum 4 games). Bowlers who do not have a YBT average will use their 2024-25 league average or their current 2025 – 2026 league average (minimum 6 games), whichever is higher. Non-sanctioned league averages are accepted. A 2025 summer league average may be used when the bowler does not have a 2024 – 2025 winter season average. Bowlers with no league average will bowl in the A division for their first event. The minimum league average for bowlers who have never before entered a YBT event is 120. The Tournament
Directors may make exceptions at their discretion.

Tournament Format: All Events are scratch and are bowled on challenge or sport shots. Regular events, 1 through 7, will consist of 4 games across 8 lanes. The top 9 bowlers in each division will advance. For the second round of play, the 9 qualifiers in each division will be grouped into 3 brackets of 3 bowlers each. One game will be bowled, and the bowler with the lowest score in each bracket will be eliminated. The remaining 2 bowlers in each bracket will bowl 1 game of match play elimination on the same pair of lanes, the bowler with the highest score for the game will advance to the final round. The final round of play will be stepladder format, 3 vs 2, winner vs 1, with the bowlers seeded based on their final position in the qualifying round. If a qualified bowler is absent at the start of match play, they will be replaced by the next qualified bowler still present. If a bowler is absent for the second round of match play or for the stepladder round, they will be DNF and the game will be forfeited. Note: the format may be adjusted based on the number of entries in an event.

Late Arrivals: Each tournament will begin at the time printed on the schedule. If a bowler has not registered by the start time and still wants to bowl in the tournament, they will be given a score of zero for the frames missed. The Tournament Directors have the discretion to delay the start of any event when there are extreme traffic or weather conditions affecting more than 1 bowler.

Registration Fee: The registration fee for the season is $20.00. For a bowler’s first event of the season there will be a minimum fee of $10.00 due. The remaining $10.00 fee must be paid on entering the bowler’s second event.

Entry Fee: The fee for the regular events, 1 through 7, is $50 per tournament. Both pre-registration and walk in entries will be accepted. The closing date for pre-registration entries will be 6:00PM on the Wednesday evening prior to an event. Walk in entry fees will be paid in cash.

Awards: All prizes will be awarded as scholarships. The awards for each division in a regular event are:
1st – $125 2nd – $100 3rd – $75 4th to 6th – $50 7th to 9th – $25 High Qualifier – $50 High Game – $25

Dress code: Shirts with collars, or collarless shirts with bowling product logos or league names (shirts must have sleeves). Pants or slacks, jeans, skirts, skorts, capris or golf/walking shorts. No track/sweatpants, warm-up pants, or knit shorts permitted. No hats. Suitability of all apparel is at the discretion of the Tournament Directors. On the first dress code violation a bowler will be warned. On the second dress code violation the bowler will not be allowed to bowl.
Gus Badali Invitational: Bowlers must compete in a minimum of 4 regular season events to qualify for this tournament.
Conduct: Poor sportsmanship will not be tolerated. Any bowler caught using foul language or gestures, making derogatory comments or conducting themselves in a disruptive manner will be given a first warning by the Tournament Director(s). For a second offense, subject to the Tournament Director’s discretion, the bowler may lose pin count for that frame or be disqualified or suspended for one or more tournaments. In addition, bowlers are not permitted to smoke, have any form of tobacco, alcohol, or cannabis, or use any controlled substances while the competition is in progress. These offences may result in disqualification at the Tournament Director(s) discretion.

Ties: Ties at the completion of the qualifying round for either the first or the final qualifying positions will be decided by a “best ball” roll-off. For all other positions, the higher position will be determined by the highest single game during the qualifying round. Ties during match play games will be decided by a “best ball” roll-off.
Equipment Specifications: Bowling balls must comply with the CTF regulations laid out in Chapter VII.

Ball Resurfacing and cleaning: The resurfacing of bowling balls is allowed during practice before the start of the qualifying round, and between the end of the qualifying round and the start of practice for match play. The cleaning of bowling balls with an approved cleaner is allowed only during practice before the start of qualifying, unless approved by a Tournament Official. The application of powder or rosin is considered an alteration of the bowling ball surface, and is not permitted. A bowler will receive a warning for their first offence, and the ball will be removed from play. Upon a second offence, the ball will be removed from play and the bowler will receive zero for the game.
Ball Delivered on the Wrong Lane: The ball is declared a dead ball, and the bowler will re-bowl on the correct lane.
Remaining Rules: All rules not covered will be governed by CTF rules. All decisions of the Judge(s) of Play and/or YBT Tournament Directors are final.