2026 Seattle Masters Rules
The 2026 Seattle Masters is a certified scratch singles tournament open to all USBC members with a current season membership. Prize money for youth bowlers will be paid to SMART scholarship accounts. Entry fee is $180 ($138 to prize fund, $42 lineage and expenses). Entries will be accepted in the order received. There will be a strict limit of 144 entries; once that number is reached, a wait list will be started. If a paid bowler wishes to cancel their registration, the bowler must notify tournament management in writing. The spot will then be made available to the next bowler wishing to enter (or on the wait list, if there is one). Once paid, a bowler may not transfer their entry to another bowler. REFUNDS: Upon receipt of written intent to cancel, a refund of the entry fee shall be made to the bowler's original payment method less a $50 service charge. (100 percent of this fee is added to the tournament prize fund). There are NO refunds for cancellations or withdrawals received on or after January 17, 2026.
TO ENTER AND PAY: Register online at www.seattlemasters.com. Walk-in entries (if space is available) close 30 minutes prior to the start of practice. Brackets and sidepots will be available onsite (cash payments only).
FORMAT: Bowl (8) games of qualifying. Bowlers will move pairs after each game (procedure will be announced prior to qualifying). After qualifying is completed, the top (32) bowlers will advance to Sunday's match play bracket.
SEMIFINALS: The top 32 players must report to Roll Call on Sunday by 8:00 a.m. It is strongly recommended that the first two alternates (33rd and 34th place) also report as well. If a semi-finalist is not present for roll call, the next available alternate will take the final (32nd) position, and all other finalists will move up to the missing bowler's position. The missing bowler will then receive the alternate's prize money. Bowlers must be in compliance with the Sunday dress code (see below) at roll call. The 32 finalists will compete in a double elimination bracket. All bowlers start out in the winners' bracket. If a bowler loses a match, they are dropped to the elimination bracket. After (2) losses, the bowler is eliminated from competition.
Each bracket match will be (2) games, total pins. The order of bowling will follow "TV-style" match play procedure. The bowler starting the match will bowl one frame on the odd lane, then bowlers will alternate, each bowling (2) frames per turn until the 10th frame is reached. The higher seed from qualifying will have the choice of starting lane throughout match play, including 9th/10th frame roll-offs.
When the winners' and elimination brackets are down to (2) players each, these players will be seeded into the stepladder finals as follows:
- The (2) finalists in the winner's bracket will bowl their 2-game match. The winner (who is undefeated in the tournament) will be in position No. I for the stepladder and the loser will be in position No. 2.
- The (2) remaining survivors of the elimination bracket will be positions No. 3 and 4 for the stepladder.
STEPLADDER: The stepladder will follow the traditional TV-style format: #3 vs #4, with the winner advancing to meet #2, and the winner advancing to meet the #1 bowler for the title. The stepladder will consist of one-game matches. If the (undefeated) tournament leader loses the first championship game, a second game will be bowled. The tournament leader must lose twice in order to be defeated.
ALTERNATES/WITHDRAWALS FROM MATCH PLAY: If the semi-finals have begun and a finalist is disqualified, injured or otherwise unable to finish the tournament, they are not replaced. The bowler receives zero for all frames missed or unable to bowl. Even if a match is thus forfeited, the opponent must still complete all frames in order to proceed in the tournament.
TIES: If a tie occurs after qualifying for a position in the semifinal bracket, it shall be broken by highest game bowled during qualifying. If there are ties for the final (32nd) spot after qualifying, all affected bowlers will bowl a one-game roll-off to break the tie. On Sunday, if a bracket match ends in a tie, the bowlers will bowl a 9th and 10th frame roll-off (and repeat, if necessary) until the tie is broken. Ties during the stepladder will also be broken by a 9th and 10th frame roll-off. All other ties for cashing spots will split money.
BOWLING ON THE WRONG LANE/OUT OF TURN: Bowling on the wrong lane or out of turn constitutes a dead ball situation, and the delivery shall not count. The bowler must rebowl their delivery on the correct lane.
DEAD WOOD: If a pin is in the channel, a competitor must consult the competitors on his or her pair to determine if it is in play. If any other competitor feels the pin is in play, it must be removed before a shot is thrown.
If the competitor attempts a spare conversion while a pin is in play and the ball contacts the dead wood before leaving the lane surface, they shall receive zero for the shot.
If the competitor attempts a spare conversion while a pin is in play and any pin after coming in contact with the dead wood knocks down one or more pins, they shall receive zero for the shot.
RE-RACKS/PIN SPOTTING: Each bowler is allowed to take two re-racks per game during qualifying and match play. Additional re-racks may be granted with tournament management’s permission.
No change can be made in the position of any pin(s) left standing after the bowler’s first delivery, unless the pinsetter moved, misplaced or knocked over any pin(s). Pins knocked over by the pinsetter will be respotted where they originally stood before the first ball delivery. If the pinsetter moves a pin after the delivery of the first ball, the bowler may make a request with tournament management to have the pin respotted in its original position before attempting the spare delivery.
EQUIPMENT RULES: Per USBC specifications, no balance holes or unused finger/thumb holes are allowed. If you do not have a thumb hole you must have an X, + or other appropriate marking (indicating the center of your palm) engraved into the ball. Only dry towels (no liquid cleaners) may be used during competition. On Saturday, surface alterations are allowed only during the warm-up for qualifying. On Sunday, surfaces may be altered only during warm-ups for the semifinal round, and again before the start of the first stepladder match.
PROHIBITED BOWLING EQUIPMENT: Bowling balls that have had their approval revoked by USBC may NOT be used in this event. In addition, certain bowling balls have been designated by USBC as ineligible for use in national competition. Since the Seattle Masters is not a national event, those balls ARE permitted in this tournament (however, they would not be allowed at the USBC Masters or Senior Masters). When in doubt, bowlers should contact tournament management for a ruling on the equipment they intend to use prior to the start of the tournament.
PRIZES: At least one prize will be awarded for every 4 entries. All prizes for USBC Youth members will be paid to SMART accounts. After qualifying on Saturday, special prize drawings will be held for non-cashers (bowlers must be present to win).
The top 3 finishers will win paid entries to the 2026 USBC Masters. Senior bowlers who finish in the top 3 may elect to receive an entry into the USBC Senior Masters. Winners of the Masters entries may not transfer their spots; if a bowler is unable to attend, he/she must notify tournament management, who will then offer the spot to the next-eligible bowler(s) on the standings list. NOTE: The USBC Masters has a minimum age of 18 (on the start day of the tournament) to participate. Although the Seattle Masters is open to USBC Youth members, a bowler who will not reach their 18th birthday by the start date of the USBC Masters is NOT eligible to win a USBC Masters spot.
SPECIAL NOTE ON PRIZE WINNINGS: The tournament is required by the IRS to furnish 1099 forms to individuals who accumulate winnings of $600 or more annually in any USBC event(s) in which they participate. Therefore, Social Security numbers must be furnished by any bowler winning $600 or more (this includes the tournament prize fund AND side action).
PROTESTS: Any protests regarding eligibility or rules must be made, in writing, to tournament management within 72 hours in accordance with USBC Rule 329.
DRESS CODE: During the Saturday qualifying round, all bowlers must wear a collared/mock sport shirt or jersey (name on back NOT required on Saturday); slacks, dress trousers, skirts or skorts.
For the (top 32) Sunday match play round, bowlers must observe the SAME dress code as Saturday, plus the bowler's name on back of their shirt is required.
No jeans, hats or shorts allowed on either day. NO EXCEPTIONS will be made for the dress code - it is each bowler's responsibility to ensure compliance with the dress code each day. Failure to meet dress code will result in disqualification. If you have a question about the appropriateness of your bowling attire, it is strongly recommended you e-mail a photo of the clothing in question to the tournament director prior to showing up for the event. The tournament director has the final say on the appropriateness of attire.
CONDUCT/SPORTSMANSHIP: Abuse of equipment, outbursts or conduct detrimental to the tournament, sponsors or safety of other bowlers will result in one warning, followed by automatic disqualification on the second offense. If a bowler is disqualified for a rules violation, there will be no refunds of any entry fees. The tournament director's decisions are final.
Tournament director reserves the right on all decisions.
QUESTIONS? Visit the tournament website at www.seattlemasters.com