Rules

This organization shall be known as the Oregon Bowlers Association. Any valid member of the USBC will be eligible to bowl as long as they adhere to the rules and regulations set forth by the OBA. (a) Paying membership established by the Board of Directors (b) Duration of membership shall be for 1 year, July 1 thru June 30. (c) All members must be current members of USBC.

The Board of Directors will consist of President, Vice President, Sgt. at Arms and 9 Directors elected from the general membership. Three members at large will be appointed by the new Board. Past President and Tournament Director shall sit ex-officio on the Board. All board members will serve a one year term. Election of officers will be done at the general membership meeting at the start of the new season. This will be done by open nominating committee appointed by the President. A vote will be taken as first order of business at this general membership meeting. Any vacancy on the board of directors by reason of resignation or for any other reason may be filled by the President.

No part of the income or dues paid into the association shall be distributed to the members, officers or directors, except to reimburse said individual for expenses or salaries as may be set forth by the board of directors.

The general membership will meet at the call of the president or a majority of the board of directors. Each meeting will be conducted under Robert’s Rules of Order.

The Oregon Bowlers Association will conduct and play all of its tournaments in strict compliance with the USBC rules and regulations and such special tournament rules as shall be set forth by the Oregon Bowlers Association, when not inconsistent with the rules of USBC.

Amendments to the Constitution and By-Laws or the General Playing Rules may be submitted in writing by any member, 72 hours prior to any meeting. These amendments will be reviewed by the Board of Directors before being submitted to the general membership. No changes shall be made until a general membership meeting is held, after all members have been duly notified. Those present at any meeting shall constitute a quorum.

GENERAL PLAYING RULES

MEMBERSHIP:$30.00 will be charged for membership for the season.

TOURNAMENT FEES: $100.00 for members per tournament. $110.00 for non-members.The additional $10.00 will be added to the general fund for administration. A $10.00 optional high game pot is available for all bowlers who wish to participate.

FORMAT: All tournaments will have the following: 6 games of qualifying, changing lanes after each game. 4 games in the semi-finals, with carryover pins from the qualifying. Semi-finals matchup will be as follows for the first game, 1 vs 9, 2 vs 10, 3 vs 11 and so on...each game thereafter will be a position round. The top five bowlers will be seeded into the TV format at each tournament where lanes are available for this segment. If lanes are not available the tournament will end after the 4 games. At certain times we will allow five bowlers to each pair during qualifying, when deemed necessary by the Board of Directors.

DOUBLES: The top four teams will be seeded into the finals. The ratio of one for three will be used in the doubles as well as all tournaments. A maximum of 24 individuals or teams, will be taken to the semi’s.

ONE FOR EVERY THREE ENTRIES WILL CASH IN ALL OBA EVENTS.

BOWLERS DUTIES: During the qualifying round each bowler is responsible for their own scoresheet and also the scoresheets of any other bowlers on their starting lane. Scoresheets should be signed by the bowler and initialed by the other bowler (bowlers). Any error discovered by the tournament director when auditing the scoresheets will result in a $10.00 fine, not only to the bowler whose scoresheet was in error, but also, to the other bowler (bowlers) on their assigned lane. During the semi-final round each bowler is responsible for their own scoresheet and also the scoresheet of their opponent. Any error discovered by the tournament director while tabulating the scores to determine positioning will result in a $20.00 fine, not only to the bowler whose scoresheet was in error, but also, to the opponent of that bowler in the game that was in error.

THREE RE-RACKS PER GAME WILL BE ALLOWED...NO OTHER WILL BE CONSIDERED...... A 15 minute practice session will be allowed before the start of the semi-finals. Each bowler in the TV finals will be allotted 5 shadow balls on the finals pair. The player who is waiting has the option to go to the practice pair and stay warmed up. If a player is injured during the semi’s or finals they have 10 minutes before they must withdraw and allow the alternate to take over. Semi-finals: All ties will be determined by 9th and 10th frame roll off when outcome determines seeding for the top 5 finals. If there is a tie in the finals, the players will roll a 9th and 10th frame, with the player who finished last starting first. If there is a tie for 16th and 17th place a 9th and 10th frame roll-off will be held, with the starting position determined by a flip of the coin. If players tie for any of the top sixteen spots during qualifying a flip of the coin will determine their starting positions, except as noted above.

BOWLING BALLS: All bowling balls must meet USBC specifications. No altering of the surface of the bowling balls will be allowed once each level of competition has begun, qualifying squads, semi-finals and finals. No finalist may alter the surface of any of his bowling balls after the first match of the finals begins. THE PENALTY FOR THIS RULE INFRACTION WILL BE DISQUALIFICATION OF THE BOWLER...

ATTIRE: All bowlers must wear a clean and pressed bowling shirt, with their name on the back, at least one inch in height. NO TEE-SHIRTS, TANK TOPS, SHORTS OR JEANS WILL BE ALLOWED....ALL BOWLERS MUST WEAR SLACKS, SKIRTS OR NICE PANTS DURING ALL O.B.A. EVENTS... ..A NEW BOWLER HAS UNTIL THEIR SECOND TOURNAMENT TO OBTAIN A SHIRT WITH THEIR NAME ON THE BACK. ALL SHIRT AND DRESS VIOLATIONS WILL BE ASSESSED A $5.00 FINE FOR THE FIRST OCCURANCE, ANY SUBSEQUENT INFRACTION OF THIS RULE THE BOWLER WILL NOT BE ALLOWED TO BOWL IN THAT EVENT.

N.S.F. CHECKS: Checks not clearing the bank on the first time through will be assessed a fine equal to the amount of the check. Sponsors checks not clearing the bank will be the responsibility of the bowler and they must pay any fee assessed by the bank and make this check good before bowling another tournament. ALL BOWLERS NOT PAYING FOR ANY NON-SUFFICIENT FUND CHECKS WILL BE TURNED OVER TO THE LOCAL ABC OFFICE FOR APPROPRIATE ACTION.

CONDUCT: A fine of $5.00 (first offense) will be assessed for conduct derogatory to the best interest of bowling or the OBA. If any tournament bowler is carded two (2) times in one season for misconduct violations, they could be called by the Board of Directors for appropriate action. They could be prohibited from participating in any further tournaments. If a bowler is a current member of the PBA, a letter could be sent to the national office explaining the bowlers conduct.

Any bowler who DNF’s from competition will be subject to a fine, unless the tournament director is consulted and permission is given. DNF from qualifying will carry a fine of $25.00. DNF from semi-finals or finals will carry a fine of $50.00.

The OBA process for squad selection is as follows: OBA MEMBERS ENTRIES WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED VERBALLY. Entries must be received in writing by mail, e-mail or fax. Only current members may submit an entry during the first week following the tournament. Entries are accepted on a first-come, first serve basis. Entries received on the same day, whether received by mail or in person, will be considered as simultaneous submissions, regardless of the time of day. In other words, an entry received on Saturday at 4pm will have the same priority as an entry received at 7pm on Saturday. Tournament Director will gather all entries for a given day and attempt to fulfill everyone’s request. Should there be more requests for a squad than available spots, then a blind draw will occur.

FOR DOUBLES EVENTS, MEMBERS WILL HAVE PREFERENCE UNTIL THE SATURDAY ONE WEEK BEFORE THE SCHEDULED EVENT, AFTER THAT NON-MEMBERS TEAMS WILL BE GIVEN ANY AVAILABLE OPENINGS.

NON-MEMBERS: Entries will be accepted after current members have been given one weeks opportunity to enter the tournament...DOUBLES ENTRIES WILL BE ALLOTED IN THE LAST WEEK BEFORE THE TOURNAMENT, IF SPOTS ARE AVAILABLE.

THE OREGON BOWLERS ASSOCIATION WILL APPLY FOR A BLANKET SANCTION FOR ALL TOURNAMENTS.

ADDED MONEY IN THE AMOUNT OF $500.00 MINIMUM WILL BE OBTAINED FROM EACH BOWLING CENTER HOSTING AN O.B.A. EVENT.

Only current members banners will be displayed in the bowling establishment that is hosting the tournament. The OBA will furnish Pro-Am entry forms and the banners as soon as possible after the preceding tournament. No outside promotional advertising, with the exception of the sponsors name will be allowed or printed on the OBA mailers. The OBA will not be responsible once printed material has reached the bowling establishment, for any additions to these printed flyers.

THERE WILL BE NO PRACTICING ON TOURNAMENT LANES THE DAY OF YOUR COMPETITION.....NO EXCEPTIONS WILL BE ALLOWED......

The final tournament shall be open to the top 24 members by point totals. Bowlers will have until the week prior to the final event to enter, after that time bowlers will be called in point order until we have 24 participants.