About2010 USBC Team USA Trials
Sunset Station Dec. 14-19, 2009.The process for determining Team USA 2010 allows for the selection of the country’s top professional bowlers while also granting the opportunity to any United States Bowling Congress member a chance to earn a spot.Team USA 2010 will consist of 10 men and 10 women. Committees will select five men from the Lumber Liquidators Professional Bowlers Association Tour and five women from a pool of players that includes Team USA members since 1998 and former Professional Women's Bowling Association/Ladies Professional Bowlers Tour members.In addition, amateur bowlers and those professionals not selected will have an opportunity to earn a spot by competing in the 2010 USBC Team USA Trials, Dec. 14-18, 2009 at Sunset Station Hotel and Casino's Strike Zone Bowling Center in suburban Las Vegas .The top three men and top three women finishers at the Team USA Trials, open to any USBC member, will each earn an automatic spot on Team USA while the National Selection Committee will pick two additional men and two additional women to join the team.USBC Youth members may also participate in the Trials and in addition to competing for spots on Team USA, there will be spots on Junior Team USA 2010 up for grabs.The top two boys and top two girls at the Team USA Trials who are 20 years old or younger before Jan. 1, 2010, regardless if they are USBC Youth or Adult members, will earn automatic spots on Junior Team USA 2010, while the National Selection Committee will select two additional boys and two additional girls to join the team. The National Selection Committee will select from players who competed in either the Team USA Trials or who advanced to the match play portion of the USBC Junior Gold Championships, which were held in July in Indianapolis.Read More
Register Now2010 USBC Team USA Trials
Sunset Station Dec. 14-19, 2009.Anyone who has ever represented their country as part of Team USA over the years—from 2009 Women’s World Champion Stefanie Nation to 2008 World Cup Champion Derek Eoff or PBA great Tommy Jones—will tell you that few accomplishments rival the feeling of ascending the medal stand to receive the gold medal as your country’s anthem plays.And some of the greatest bowlers in the sport today, including the likes of Rhino Page and Shannon O’Keefe, will also tell you that no experience can accelerate a bowler’s development like the world-class coaching that Team USA members receive in training for international competition. The Team USA Trials event is your opportunity to become a part of history by qualifying for a spot with Team USA.Ahtletes can call Sunset Station directly to book hotels room at (888) 786-7389 and refer to group code -
SCIUSBC
. Athletes can also book rooms
online
.Athlete Registration Form
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Schedule of Events
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RulesRules 2010Tournament Rules1. This event is certified by USBC. 2. Bowlers will receive 10 minutes of practice prior to the beginning of each block. 3. A bowler arriving late will begin play and his/her score will be counted only from the frame then being bowled. A player not present and ready to bowl when it is his/her turn will not be credited for any pins for the frames missed. 4. Only two re-racks per game will be allowed without the Tournament Director’s permission. 5. No substitutes will be permitted; however, pacers may be scheduled at the sole discretion of the Tournament Director. 6. All bowlers must wear suitable attire. Each athlete must wear a collared shirt during competition. Mock necks shirts will be permitted. NO JEANS OF ANY COLOR WILL BE ALLOWED AT ANY TIME INCLUDING PRACTICE. Dress slacks for men and skirts, skorts, dress shorts or dress slacks for women are acceptable. Skirts, skorts and shorts must be fingertip length when standing with arms down at sides. Any noncompliance to the dress code may result in a zero score for the bowler until the issue is resolved. 7. Each bowler is responsible for verification of his/her own scores. Any scoring corrections must be made prior to signing the recap forms. Questionable errors will be resolved by tournament management or, upon appeal, by the Tournament Director. Protests involving eligibility or general playing rules must be confirmed in writing to the Tournament Director before the start of the next round. 8. Players preparing to step on the approach and deliver a ball shall have the following rights and obligations:
A. Lane Courtesy. The pair of lanes to a players right and left must be empty before a player takes their position on the approach for their delivery. Alternating pairs of lanes across the house should have one player on the approach a preparing to make their delivery. A player on each of the other lanes should be at the ball return preparing for their turn as soon as those on the approach make their delivery.
B. Competitors may not “Double Jump.” Double jumping occurs following a delivery when a competitor on the same pair delivers his or her ball before one (1) competitor from the pair to the right and one (1) competitor from the pair to the left have made a delivery, unless those competitors are not ready to bowl or they give way.
C. Players shall be ready to bowl when it is their turn and shall not delay the start of their approach or delivery if the pair of lanes immediately adjacent to them on both the right and left is clear.
If a player does not observe the procedure outlined above, it may be construed as slow bowling. A player failing to observe these procedures shall be warned by an authorized tournament official as follows:
A. A white card for the first offense (no penalty).
B. A blue card for the second offense (no penalty).
C. A red card for the third and each succeeding offense in any block of games.
The penalty shall be zero pinfall for the frame.To enforce this rule, the Tournament Director will monitor the participants to ensure that no pair(s) of lanes gets too far behind the group. Whenever there is any question concerning the enforcement of this rule, or lack thereof, the final decision shall be made by the Tournament Management Committee. 9. Bowling balls must meet all USBC requirements for surface hardness, weight, balance and size/number of holes. Bowling ball regulations for professional organizations DO NOT apply. Any bowler concerned with his/her equipment should have it checked in the pro shop before competition begins. 10. Athletes must not smoke, consume alcohol or be under the influence of alcohol while in competition, i.e. during the entire period of a block of games. In those instances where it is established that a player is in breach of this rule, he/she may be suspended from the tournament by the Tournament Director for that block of games. Non-alcoholic beverages are allowed, provided they are not consumed in the players’ area. Any food or drink needs to be behind the settee area during competition. 11. Questions not covered by these document rules will be decided by the Tournament Director. Format1. There are separate divisions for men and women. All bowling is on a scratch basis. 2. Competition will consist of 36 qualifying games in four nine-game blocks, each block being contested on a different lane-conditioning pattern. USBC Team USA QualifyingUSBC Team USA 2010 will consist of a minimum 10 men and 10 women: A minimum of five (5) men will be selected by the USBC/PBA Committee from the 2008-10 exempt field of the Professional Bowlers Association Tour. A minimum five (5) women will be selected by the USBC Committee from a pool of players who have either been on Team USA within the past 10 years (since 1999) or are former Professional Women's Bowling Association/Ladies Professional Bowlers Tour members.The top three men and three women finishers in the 2010 USBC Team USATrials will earn automatic spots on Team USA 2010, while two additional men and two additional women will be selected from the field by the National Selection Committee. USBC Junior Team USA QualifyingUSBC Junior Team USA 2010 will consist of 10 boys and 10 girls: Six (6) boys and girls earned spots at the Jr. Gold tournament this last July in Indianapolis.The top two (2) boy and girl finishers in the 2010 Team USA Trails will earn automatic spots on Junior Team USA 2010, while two (2) additional boys and girls will be selected by the National Selection Committee from either the 2010Team Trials, or 2009 Junior Gold Tournament in Indianapolis. Prize PayoutDaily squad leaders will receive $500 each (one man and one woman); daily runners-up will receive $250. Team Trials champions will receive $1,000; other qualifying members of USBC Team USA 2010 receive $500. Eligibility1. All participants must be USBC members in good standing. 2. To qualify for the Junior Team USA 2010 spots: Participants must be USBC members (adult or youth).20 years old before January 1, 2010. Anyone older than 20 before January 1, 2010 will not be eligible to make Junior Team USA, but can qualify for the Adult Team.2010 Tournament SeedsThe 2010 seeds are limited to USBC Team USA 2009 members.Read More
Rhino PageResides:
Topeka, Kan.
Born:
July 10, 1983
Throws:
Left
College:
University of Kansas
Family status:
SingleYears on Team USA (6):
2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009
Years on Junior Team USA (2):
2001, 2002
Career Standard Titles (2):
2007-08 – Norwich, Conn.; 2008-09 – Baltimore
Only player ever to bowl 300 on the Japan Cup televised finals
2007-08 PBA Rookie of the Year
2007-08 Bowlers Journal International All-America team
2007 USOC Athlete of the Year for Bowling
2007 Bowlers Journal International Amateur of the Year
2004 Intercollegiate Bowling Championships Most Valuable Player
2004-05 National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association All-America first team
2003-04 National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association All-America honorable mention
By the time Rhino Page gathered his ball to set up for one more strike after throwing the front 11 on TV at the 2009 Japan Cup, he had no idea that he was throwing one short for $100,000. “My jaw dropped when they told me I had won that money,” Page recalls of the aftermath of bowling the first-ever televised 300 game in Japan Cup History. But even the thrill of holding a $100,000 check with his name on it does not rival the excitement Rhino anticipates as he prepares to bowl with Team USA for the sixth time. “Money and PBA titles are great,” Rhino concedes, “but when you’re in a foreign country and you have ‘USA’ on your back and you’re on that gold medal stand, you feel so much pride.”
After making history at the Japan Cup and recording the most sensational rookie year in the 50 years of the PBA’s existence in the 2007-2008 season, there is a lot to be proud of in Rhino’s life these days. For all the accolades on his resume, though, one of his proudest achievements has nothing to do with bowling. A feisty youth bowler who was hotly competitive in everything he did—“even if it was a simple card game,” Rhino says—Rhino worked as hard to become a great bowler as he did to become a great person, struggling to soften a temper that provoked his parents to withdraw him from a junior tournament mid-match for kicking a ball return. “I had such a bad temper as a kid. It had to do with that competitiveness. When things don’t go your way you don’t know how to deal with it,” Rhino says. “It is easy to learn how to win, but not so easy to learn how to lose.” With talent such as all-time PBA titlist Walter Ray Williams, Jr.
and reigning PBA Player of the Year Wes Malott in his corner on Team USA this year, though, losing is likely the last thing on Rhino Page’s mind.Read More
Shannon O'KeefeResides:
Arlington, Texas
Born:
January 27, 1979
Throws:
Right
College:
Portland State University
Family status:
Married (Bryan), dogs (Cola, Lincoln)Years on Team USA (5):
2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009
Runner-up at 2007 U.S. Women’s Open
5th at 2007 USBC Queens
Gold (singles) and two silvers (team, trios) medals at 2007 Women’s World Championships
Five gold medals (singles, doubles, team, all-events, national all-events) and one silver (mixed doubles) at 2006 Tournament of the Americas
By now, many are aware of Shannon O’Keefe’s achievements as a Gold-Medalist at the 2007 Women’s World Championships and a five-time member of Team USA. What few people may know, though, is that the origin of those achievements is found in one of the most unlikely places imaginable—a pair of shoes. The daughter of a former professional bowler, it was not until O’Keefe turned 16 that she first decided to join her brother on the lanes as her body began to suffer the consequences of a determined softball career in which, at just 15 years old, she finished among the top 160 at the 1996 U.S. Olympic softball team trials.
“My Dad took me to Dick’s Sporting Goods and got me a teal plastic ball, and then I looked up and saw this pair of white Lind’s shoes with a teal toe,” Shannon explains. “I am not spending $150 just so you can look cute in a sport you’re not even good at,” her father said. “That was all I needed,” Shannon reflects years later. “As soon as you tell me I can’t do something, I will work at it until I prove you wrong.” Though Shannon’s father surely considers himself proven wrong by now, Shannon aims to prove much more, seeking to “win all the majors,” a goal inspired after she finished as runner-up at the 2007 Women’s U.S. Open in Reno. As for the father who once dared to doubt her? “He is one of my best friends,” Shannon says. “He has been with me on this journey from day one. To have somebody in your corner with you like that, I am very blessed.”Read More
Stefanie NationResides:
Arlington, Texas
Born:
January 11, 1984
Throws:
Right
College:
University of Central Florida
Family status:
SingleYears on Team USA (5):
2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009
Years on Junior Team USA (4):
2000, 2004, 2005, 2006
2009 PBA Women’s Series Earl Anthony Medford Classic runner-up
2008 PBA Women’s Series Viper Championship champion
2008 PBA Women’s Series Cheetah Championship runner-up
Quarterfinalist at the 2007 and 2008 U.S. Women’s Open
Silver medal (team) at 2007 Women’s World Championships
Two bronze medals (singles, Masters) at 2006 World Youth Championships
Gold (national all-events), silver (team) and two bronze medals (doubles, all-events) at 2005 Tournament of the Americas
Four gold medals (Masters, team, trios, doubles) at 2005 International Youth Friendship Tournament
Gold (team) and two silver medals (Masters, doubles) at 2004 World Youth Championships
Despite winning a title in her debut appearance on a PBA Women’s Series telecast and making two additional telecasts later in the same season, something was still missing for Stefanie Nation—something that only Team USA could help her regain. “The biggest thing for me was going from team to individual bowling. The only person you have to rely on is yourself,” Nation says of her transition from collegiate bowling at the University of Central Florida, where the Striking Knights fell just short of a national title in 2006 when they lost to Lindenwood in the title match, to bowling professionally. “I am so excited to bowl the Women’s World Championship, knowing that there are people behind me that are going to pick me up no matter what happens. When you’re out there alone it’s just you, there’s nobody there to pick you up on things like missed spares.” As much as Nation may have grown to value a team ethic at UCF, though, nothing instills
Nation with a sense of something bigger than herself more powerfully than bowling with Team USA. “I just got chills thinking about it,” Nation says. “It is such a sense of pride to know that there are millions at home that we are representing, and that when we win medals, the country wins medals. It is not about us—it is about bowling.”Read More
About2010 USBC Team USA Trials
2009Men - Daily Standings
Rhino PageResides:
Topeka, Kan.
Shannon O'KeefeResides:
Arlington, Texas
