U.S. Open to take place in Las Vegas this fall

ARLINGTON, Texas – The 2016 U.S. Open will take place at the South Point Bowling Plaza in Las Vegas this fall.

The tournament has a tentative start date of Oct. 31, with the specific date for the live broadcast of the stepladder finals on CBS Sports Network still to be determined. The U.S. Open is part of USBC’s agreement with CBS Sports Network to televise 23 major championship bowling events in 2016.

The U.S. Open features a 56-game format with three eight-game qualifying rounds followed by a cut to the top one-fourth of the field. After eight more games, the field is cut to the top 24 players for round-robin match play to determine the top five that will advance to the televised stepladder finals.

All qualifying and match-play rounds will be broadcast live on Xtra Frame, the Professional Bowling Association’s online bowling channel.

The event’s estimated prize fund will be $250,000, which includes $100,000 added. The $500 entry fee and 4:1 prize ratio makes the U.S. Open structure consistent with other major championships. Entries are expected to open in June.

Ryan Ciminelli won his first major title at the 2015 U.S. Open held in Garland, Texas. Ciminelli led the field by 461 pins to earn the top spot in the stepladder finals, and then held off Dominic Barrett, 236-223, in the title match.

The South Point Bowling Plaza is a $35 million bowling tournament facility that also will play host to the USBC Women’s Championships in 2016.

The 2016 U.S. Open marks the second year of a three-year agreement by the United States Bowling Congress and Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America to conduct the U.S. Open and U.S. Women’s Open.

Go to BOWL.com/USOpen for more information about the tournament.