All posts by Bowl Canada

Turkey Bowl is Back!

Think Turkey & Bowl Canada have teamed up once again for the Second Annual TURKEY BOWL, with over $17,000 in prizes to be won!

How to Participate:

  • From February 17-19, 2025, visit a participating Bowling Centre across Canada (Click here for a list).
  • Bowl a turkey (achieve 3 strikes in a row).
  • Snap a selfie with the scoreboard in the background clearly showing your three consecutive strikes, along with your name.
  • To submit an entry, bowlers simply snap a picture of their “turkey” on the digital scoreboard and share to a public Instagram or Facebook account with @CanadianTurkey and #ThinkTurkey tagged, or upload it via the contest entry form at ThinkTurkey.ca/TurkeyBowl.
  • To get in the spirit, bowlers can fuel up for the challenge with turkey menu items like turkey nachos and turkey hot dogs available at select participating bowling centres.
  • Full Rules & Regulations can be viewed here: https://www.canadianturkey.ca/turkeybowl.

The Prize:

All entrants who upload a photo (as above) will be placed in a draw in which 250 entrants will win a $50 Visa Gift Card.  Additionally, all entrants will be entered for the Grand Prize draw for one of ten $500 Grocery Gift Cards to use towards their next turkey dinner!

A note from Mark Hubert, President and CEO, Canadian Poultry and Egg Processors:

“A turkey dinner brings family and friends together, and so does bowling! We hope this fun challenge becomes an annual tradition for years to come.”

Last year’s Turkey Bowl resulted in record-high numbers with approximately 648,500 bowlers over the course of the long weekend. The inaugural Turkey Bowl saw 729 Canadians bowl a turkey and enter for their chance to win prizes.

The National Classified Online Championships is on now!

The National Classified Online Championships is a new take on an old classic, returning the fun of competition with mixed ability bowlers, working together towards National success!

This Championship is a HYBRID of the old and the new. In its initial stage, the event is just like its predecessor, the National Classified Bowling Championships. Bowlers enter in league and compete against others of like ability in their centre for the right to advance to the National event.

The National event (running online now) consists of a 3 week cross-Canada qualifying round, followed by Championship Bracket Finals.

CLICK HERE to visit the official National Classified website to see the complete format, results & prize money.

The Canada Cups Online Shootout is Back!

$10,000 up for grabs as BOWL CANADA LAUNCHES THE CANADA CUPS ONLINE SHOOTOUT!

As the 2023-24 bowling season kicks off, Bowl Canada proudly announces the launch of the CANADA CUPS ONLINE SHOOTOUT, an event that provides Canadian league bowlers an opportunity to enjoy friendly competition with peers from across Canada from the comfort of their own bowling centre.  

Here’s how it works;

League bowlers (through the bowling centre management) may enter a team in the Shootout by October 6, 2023. For a list of eligible bowling centres CLICK HERE.

The event is conducted in 4 divisions;

  • Fivepin….5-player teams @ $30 per entry
  • Fivepin Seniors (55+)….4-player teams @ $25 per entry
  • Tenpin….4-player teams @ $25 per entry
  • Tenpin Seniors (55+)….4-player teams @ $25 per entry

80% of Entry Fees will be allocated to the Prize Fund, which will be paid out 100%.  The remaining 20% of Entry Fees will cover administration costs.  Each division’s prize fund will be based on entries in that division.

All entered teams will compete in a 3 week Qualifying Round where regular league scores are posted online.  The top 16 teams across Canada each week (plus Ties and Wildcard spots) will advance to the next round (Elimination Bracket).

64 Teams will compete in the Elimination Bracket, with the field reduced by 50% each week until the final 2 teams compete for the Championship from December 11 to 17.

The Top 16 Teams in each division receive a share of the anticipated $10,000 Prize Pool (based on expected entries of 450 teams).  Exact details on prize distribution to be announced once entries have finalized.

WATCH FOR MORE this season as Bowl Canada will also be launching a return of an old favourite. The NATIONAL CLASSIFIED BOWLING CHAMPIONSHIPS – ONLINE EDITION is returning this year due to popular demand.  Watch for details in the coming weeks.

Bowl Canada and Think Turkey Present…Turkey Bowl!

Is Bowling right up your alley? Think Turkey & Bowl Canada are teaming up to launch the first ever Turkey Bowl, with over $17,000 in prizes to be won!

How to Participate:

The Prize:

The first 250 entrants who upload a photo showing they bowled three strikes in a row will win a $50 Visa Gift Card.
From the 250 entrants, 10 will be randomly selected to win a Grand Prize of a $500 Grocery Gift Card!

CANADA CUPS ONLINE SHOOTOUT A SUCCESS

Visit;  www.CanadaCups.ca

Earlier this season, as the Omicron variant of Covid-19 was sweeping the nation, Bowl Canada elected to take the safe route for all and cancel (once again) the National Championships of the Bowl Canada Cup and the Club 55 Cup (seniors division), which would have seen competitors from all across the country gather for a traditional face-to-face bowling tournament.  

To quell the urge for social interaction and friendly competition, which has only grown under the insular pandemic, the Canada Cups Online Shootout was born.   In its first year, 320 Teams entered and are currently involved in week 2 of the Qualifying Round (now in Brackets of 8).  After 4 weeks of match play (scores bowled in league and reported online) the winners of each bracket will compete together in a Championship Round, with the winners declared Champions in their respective events (Adult 5-Pin, Adult 10-Pin, 10-Pin Seniors, 5-Pin Seniors).

Year 1 of the online championship has seen 39 bowling centres from all over Canada enter teams, and all events are scored under a Handicap system (or POA – Pins Over Average), so teams are essentially competing against their own average…and that means ANYONE CAN WIN!

The pandemic has caused us all to look at new ways to deliver normalcy to Canadians, and Bowl Canada is happy to see this online Championship take off successfully…and with room to grow!   It may have come into being as pandemic measure…but the Canada Cups Online Shootout may just outlive Covid!

A SIMILAR EVENT IS BEING CONDUCTED FOR YOUTH…

This season Bowl Canada’s youth program (Youth Bowl Canada – YBC) also launched the first YBC SHOOTOUT (www.ybcShootout.ca), which has bowlers compete in 3 age divisions in SINGLES competition (teams for the adults).  Bowlers can compete in Handicap (pins over average) or Scratch (total pinfall) divisions, or both.  Over 2,700 entries were received for the inaugural edition of the YBC Shootout, and the event is expected to grow post-pandemic.

2022 YBC Nationals Update

January 25, 2022

The Covid-19 pandemic continues to affect life in many ways.  As a result of the latest Wave of the virus, fuelled by the Omicron variant, the bowling communities in Ontario and Quebec have been shut down throughout the month of January.   Ontario is scheduled to reopen on January 31st and Quebec has yet to take a position with regards to reopening.

With these forced closures coming at a key time in terms of qualifying for the YBC Nationals, and with continued uncertainty in many regards, YBC representatives from across Canada have approved a rescheduling of the National Final dates so as to better ensure that all league qualifying, as well as zone and provincial finals, will be able to happen.

YBC NATIONALS (both Fivepin and Tenpin) are now rescheduled for July 10, 11 & 12, 2022.

Provincial YBC associations may reschedule zone and provincial finals as required, so long as provincial champions are decided by May 1st.  Check with your provincial association to see if any changes have been made to your zones/provincials.

IMPORTANT NOTE:  As we all know, businesses must abide by any restrictions to operations as set by their provincial government and/or local health authority, such as (but not limited to) vaccine requirements, capacity restrictions, etc.  Bowling centres are no exception.  Therefore, Youth Bowl Canada wishes to state clearly that any requirements imposed upon the host bowling centres of our National Championships, by their governments and/or local health authorities, will be enforced as a matter of law.  For updates on requirements in the province of Ontario (Host province for both 5pin and 10pin nationals) visit… https://covid-19.ontario.ca/public-health-measures#recreational_amenities

Teen Masters Championships

Youth Bowl Canada to be part of the first Teen Masters North American Championships in Detroit.

Bowl Canada is delighted to announce it has formalized a relationship with Killer “B” Promotions, organizers of the TEEN MASTERS Championships…an exciting North American event offering $50,000 in Scholarships to tenpin bowlers age 19 and under (at Aug. 5th, 2022).

YBC tenpin bowlers will be fielded into the TEEN MASTERS this summer as the event celebrates its 25th Anniversary Championships at Detroit’s historic Thunderbowl Lanes from July 31 – August 5th, 2022.

The TEEN MASTERS began back in 1997 in Akron, Ohio, and since then thousands of teen bowlers have experienced both the challenges and the joys of one of bowling’s most prestigious youth tournaments.

Teens and their families from five continents have traveled to TEEN MASTERS over the years. And with Canada’s inclusion and support, event founder Gary Beck sees his long-term plan beginning to come to fruition.

“Partnering with Bowl Canada is a significant step in formalizing international participation in Teen Masters.” said Beck, who went on to say “Working through its member centers, we will identify Canada’s top teens while inspiring the next generation of competitive youth bowlers.”

In the coming years, contingent on easing travel restrictions and sponsorship, TEEN MASTERS will stage global championships for teen girls and boys representing four regions:

REGION 1: North America, including The United States and Canada;
REGION 2: Latin America, including the Caribbean, Central America, Mexico, and South America;
REGION 3: Europe, plus the Mediterranean and Africa; and
REGION 4: Asia-Pacific and the Middle East.

“Our participation in the TEEN MASTERS Championships is a step in the right direction for our YBC program, and provides an elevated scholarship opportunity for our tenpin YBC members.” reports Bowl Canada President Rod Hennessey. “We’re very pleased to see this relationship develop and look forward to seeing YBC bowlers compete on the international stage this coming summer.”

Details on the Canadian Qualifiers are being worked out in the coming weeks/months with Provincial YBC associations. Watch for more details as they develop.

For information on the Teen Masters Championships, visit TeenMastersBowling.com

Bowl Canada Resignation from the bowling federation of canada

Bowl Canada acknowledges that its resignation from the Bowling Federation of Canada (BFC) has caught members, and the entire bowling community, by surprise.  We’ve been asked several questions by members and provincial associations so we’ll address them here for all members to read.

Why did Bowl Canada resign from BFC?

For the last several years relations at the BFC have been strained.  We’ve tried on a few occasions to get the 3 groups to consider working together as one, more formally than we do in BFC, to streamline the support system for the Canadian bowling community and put all our efforts moving in a coordinated and strategic direction.  Unfortunately, it seems our attempts to work together only drove us further apart.

At some point the CTF and C5PBA began working together at the BFC level.  Together they realized they had control of the Board, and therefore the Federation, via their 6 votes (combined) to Bowl Canada’s 3 votes.   Ever since they’ve maintained control on all issues, including elections and funding decisions.

In April 2020, BFC’s Sport Consultant (our Sport Canada representative) advised us rather suddenly that Bowl Canada was no longer eligible for funding due to Bowl Canada’s being a profitable business.  When we explained we were a federally incorporated “Not-For-Profit” they then claimed that since our members were profitable businesses we remained ineligible.  We asked for a copy of this policy in order to explain the situation to our members, which they agreed to send.  In the meantime we were removed from the new BFC funding agreement.

At this time Sport Canada also suggested to C5 and CTF that umbrella groups would no longer be funded, so they should consider a formal merger to ensure they remain eligible for funding.  We learned later that they quickly struck a committee to consider a merger, and for a few months there was no, or very little, contact between Bowl Canada and its BFC partners.

Bowl Canada, in the meantime, appealed to superiors at Sport Canada, and we learned that the policy we were told prevented us from receiving funding does not exist.  To correct the error of their consultant, Sport Canada eventually reinstated Bowl Canada claiming it was an omission error on their part, and added Bowl Canada back into the funding agreement.  At this point they advised that it is up to BFC to make the funding decisions internally.  Although we were “reinstated”, to this day we question why we were told of this supposed policy in the first place, and why a new consultant to our sport would put out false statements with such significant consequences.

Believing we’d had some success at overturning a wrong and unfair decision, we began communications with C5/CTF once again, and over the next several months we made attempts to work together, and even discussed a merger of all 3 groups.  But it was clear that CTF and C5PBA were settled in to their 2-way merger and, as they’ve stated, they did not feel the proprietor’s perspective was required or desired in building a new organization for bowling, even if the new organization included Bowl Canada.  Parents, athletes, coaches, volunteers… yes, but input from proprietors was not welcome.

What happened at the last meeting?

As mentioned earlier, Sport Canada had put the onus on BFC to decide for itself what would be funded.  Prior to the last meeting on March 18th, a BFC committee comprised of one delegate from each partner group had been asked to look into how to share the funding amongst the partners.  The committee was unable to come to a consensus.  Sport Canada had advised that they would not fund duplicate events, such as two 5 Pin Youth Nationals (YBC Nationals and Youth Challenge).  It therefore came down to one or the other, and based on recent history we had a good idea of how the Board would decide.

BFC had released an agenda and proposed budget in advance of the meeting which showed funding for Youth Challenge and no funds allotted to YBC or Bowl Canada.  Following a review of the committee’s results, which provided no recommendation to the Board, we made a motion to fund the YBC Nationals (at a significantly decreased amount form the Youth Challenge budgeted amount listed).  The vote was taken and the motion was defeated.  YBC no longer had any funding, nor did it have Sport Canada standing as a recognized national championship, nor did it have any support from BFC.

Without YBC Nationals in the funding equation, and based on how relations between Bowl Canada and the C5/CTF groups had devolved, we knew our purpose at BFC was at an end.  CTF /C5 had a new direction to follow with their merger, and they’d made it clear we did not fit in with their plans.  Our resignation was announced, and we left the meeting so they could get on with the business of BFC.

Why did Bowl Canada leave the meeting before its conclusion?

Based on all of the above there was no reason to remain.  The binary choice of one or the other youth fivepin event decided if Bowl Canada had any remaining role to play in BFC.  The funding that had been shared with us over the year, even with all national championships cancelled ($7,500 out of $417,000) showed clearly how we were rated as partners.  While their national championships were also cancelled, they were allowed to divert funds to other areas.  We were not so fortunate.

Why did the committee have a right to resign from BFC?

The decision to resign was one the Board of Directors had been discussing for many months.  The resignation was a Board of Directors decision, not a decision of the committee.  The resignation was delivered both verbally and formally in writing by Bowl Canada’s President.  The entire Board was regularly updated on BFC and aware of the situation every step of the way.  Additionally, 60% of the Bowl Canada Board was part of the Committee until February, when one delegate resigned… leaving 40% of the Board involved on the BFC committee, with the rest being perpetually updated on events.

Bowl Canada resigned its membership in March of 2021, but we were effectively out of BFC since the Sport Canada consultant incorrectly announced we were ineligible for funding almost a full year earlier.

Why haven’t you told the members about this?

We’ve reported on many of these things as they happen in issues of Nexus and E-news… in reports at the Annual Meeting, and more regularly we’ve updated the Delegates’ Council (your provincial reps) at least twice a year at our formal meetings, and on occasion via emails, etc. as warranted.  We have made our struggles with the C5PBA/CTF well known, although not in complete detail.

What will Bowl Canada do without this funding?

Good question.  But it’s important to note that the loss of funding was not decided by Bowl Canada.  Our resignation came after it had been taken from us… first by Sport Canada (wrongly) and then by C5PBA and CTF (purposely).  It was not our decision to lose funding and all influence in the Federation. 

Fortunately, Bowl Canada has made adjustments over the last few years to ensure we are not financial unstable.  We moved our office to a much smaller and more affordable location, and this savings alone covers half the loss of the funding.  We’ve also reduced expenses in many areas, such as reducing teams at YBC Nationals to Doubles…. replacing the National Classified event which was losing $50,000 per year, etc.  There is no reason for immediate concern thanks to the work of the Board over the last few years.  And of course YBC is very fortunate to have a successful fundraiser and the great support of YBC bowlers and their awesome local volunteers.  As a result we are somewhat stable despite the loss of funding.

How does this all affect the Bowl Canada member?

For the moment the resignation does not affect member bowling centres.  The loss of perpetual funding, however, means that increases in fees for programs and services may be required sooner than we would have hoped.  But no immediate action is planned at this time. Additionally, there are rumours that the newly merged CTF/C5PBA will launch a fivepin youth program.  Rather than streamline support for your centre, as we’ve invited them to do with us, this, if true, will further fraction the bowling community and create duplication of services and competition for our YBC program.  This is not the direction we envisioned and worked towards, but this direction is not for Bowl Canada to decide.