Bowling Events Include Changes to 2023 U.S. Open and USBC Masters

The U.S. Open and United States Bowling Congress Masters each will feature a pair of television shows in 2023 with the major titles and $100,000 top prizes being awarded live.

The arrangement for the 2023 events came together through cooperation between the Professional Bowlers Association, the Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America and USBC.

To allow for the additional TV exposure, both events will have slight adjustments made to their traditional format.

At the U.S. Open, the removal of the fourth qualifying round will allow for a nine-player stepladder over two days at Woodland Bowl in Indianapolis. The first show, which will air live on FS1 on Feb. 4, will feature the No. 5 through No. 9 seeds in a traditional stepladder format. The advancer will join the top four seeds for the second stepladder Feb. 5.

The 2023 event still will feature three eight-game qualifying rounds, but now the field will be cut to the top 24 athletes for round-robin match play after Round 3. Recent editions of the U.S. Open cut to the top 36 athletes after Round 3 with an additional eight-game round determining the top 24 for round-robin match play.

For 2023, 48-game totals, including bonus pins for each win in match play, will determine the nine finalists. Historically, the U.S. Open has featured 56 games.

At the USBC Masters, television matches will start in the Elimination Bracket on March 31 at Thunderbowl Lanes in Allen Park, Michigan, with four single-game matches replacing the final three-game head-to-head round and four-player shootout to determine the finalists for the stepladder. These matches will be broadcast live on FS1.

Now, eight athletes will earn spots on TV at the 2023 Masters with four players advancing to the stepladder and a true double-elimination format for the top seed April 2.

Qualifying and match play will remain consistent with previous editions of the event prior to the introduction of TV on March 31. The double-elimination bracket will be retained, and all matches leading up to the final eight competitors will feature three-game total-pinfall contests.

The TV matches on March 31 will implement a knockout-style format with the winners of the first two games advancing to the finals of the Elimination Bracket. The advancers then will take on players who lost in the semifinals of the Winners Bracket with each winner earning a spot in the opening match of the stepladder on April 2.

The two players who emerge victorious from the semifinals of the Winners Bracket will earn automatic spots on the April 2 broadcast, with a three-game total-pinfall match determining the top seed. This match will be broadcast at BowlTV.com.

With only four players advancing to the stepladder, the top seed will need to be defeated twice to be denied the title.

The 2023 U.S. Open is scheduled for Jan. 29 - Feb. 5, and the 2023 Masters is slated for March 26 - April 2. Both events are major championships on the 2023 PBA Tour schedule.

Anthony Simonsen of Las Vegas is the defending champion at both events and is a four-time major champion on the PBA Tour.

All rounds of qualifying and match play at both the 2023 U.S. Open and Masters will be streamed live on BowlTV.

For more information on the U.S. Open, visit BOWL.com/USOpen. To learn more about the USBC Masters, visit BOWL.com/Masters.