A new year is on the horizon, and that means exciting things for tournament bowlers and BowlTV subscribers.

The 2021 United States Bowling Congress event calendar again will include the traditional tournaments competitors of all ages and skill levels have grown to enjoy.

The tournament schedule and live BowlTV coverage will kick off with the USBC Team USA Trials during the first week of January.

The event originally was slated to take place in Las Vegas, but it now will be held in the Indianapolis area during the same time frame - Jan. 2-7. Complete details will be available next week.

The Team USA Trials will be followed by two high-profile events run in conjunction with the Professional Bowlers Association - the 2021 U.S. Open and USBC Masters.

The U.S. Open tentatively is scheduled for Feb. 21-28 at The Ashwaubenon Bowling Alley in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and the Masters is slated for March 29-April 4 at the Gold Coast Bowling Center in Las Vegas.

Both sets of dates are subject to change based on the schedule and programming for the PBA and its TV partner, FOX Sports, while locations and entry maximums also can change due to recommended best practices, social-distancing protocol and other COVID-19 restrictions.

“We're excited to get back to doing what we love, and that is putting on top-tier events for all of our USBC members, but we also know we must do so cautiously and responsibly, because the safety of the competitors is our top concern,” USBC Executive Director Chad Murphy said. “The 2021 schedule has something for every segment of our bowlers, and we're really looking forward to sharing the year's most memorable moments with bowling fans around the globe through BowlTV.”

Both the U.S. Open, a collaborative effort between USBC and the Bowling Proprietors' Association of America, and the Masters, again will be considered majors on the PBA Tour schedule. Qualifying and match play for both will be livestreamed on BowlTV, before the action shifts to Fox Sports.

Invitations for the U.S. Open will be going out this week, and registration now is open for the pre-tournament qualifier, an on-site event that will give those who did not earn direct-entry into the tournament a chance to make the elite field. More information can be found at BOWL.com/USOpen.

The 2021 U.S. Open will feature 108 of the world's best bowlers, most of whom earned their spots in the event based on their recent on-lane performances. The list includes leaders on the PBA Tour points list and top performers at USBC events and PBA majors.

The U.S. Open format features qualifying across multiple oil patterns and round-robin match play, before the top five competitors advance to the TV stepladder, based on their 56-game pinfall totals.

The Masters generally attracts hundreds of the sport's top competitors for 15 games of qualifying over three days, before the field is cut to the top 63, plus the defending champion, for a unique double-elimination match-play bracket that features three-game matches.

The 2020 U.S. Open was held in Lincoln, Nebraska, in February and won by Australia's Jason Belmonte for the 12th of his record 13 major titles. The 2020 Masters was canceled in 2020 due to COVID-19. Left-hander Jakob Butturff won the event at Gold Coast in 2019.

Along with the U.S. Open and Masters, the format, location and entry maximums for all 2021 USBC tournaments are subject to change based on the recommended best practices and social-distancing protocols as the start date of each tournament approaches.

The dates, sites and start of registration for each USBC short-duration event in 2021:

Jan. 2-7: USBC Team USA Trials - Western Bowl and Expo Bowl, Indianapolis (registration opened Sept. 8)

Feb. 21-28 (tentative): U.S. Open - Ashwaubenon Bowling Alley, Green Bay, Wis. (registration opens Oct. 28) *Dates are subject to change w/PBA and FOX Sports scheduling/programming.

March 9-13: USBC Senior Queens - Gold Coast Bowling Center, Las Vegas (registration opens Nov. 11)

March 29-April 4 (tentative): USBC Masters - Gold Coast Bowling Center, Las Vegas (registration opens Nov. 11) *Dates are subject to change w/PBA and FOX Sports scheduling/programming.

May 12-18: USBC Queens - Location TBD (registration opens Jan. 13)

June 2-6: Super Senior Classic - Sam's Town Bowling Center, Las Vegas (registration opens Jan. 13)

June 7-13: USBC Senior Masters - Sam's Town Bowling Center, Las Vegas (registration open Jan. 13)

Aug. 24-31: U.S. Women's Open - Double Decker Lanes, Rohnert Park, Calif. (registration opens April 7)

Aug. 3-6: 2020 USBC Senior Championships - Sunset Station, Henderson, Nev. (registration is complete)

Aug. 8-14: 2021 USBC Senior Championships - Sunset Station, Henderson, Nev. (registration opens Feb. 10) *Bowlers must qualify through their state or province.

Bowling Tip

By Mike Luongo

Bowlers, this week we are going to give advice to senior bowlers.

You are never to old to have fun and winning has no age.

Age is not a disadvantage to being able to bowl if you can adjust your game to your personal abilities.

Bowling can be used as a socializing and exercise tool and also a way of stress relief.

Most people overlook the therapeutic and psychological benefits of bowling.

Remember.....it is important to be comfortable when bowling. If you are wearing special shoes when not bowling, there is no reason to not have the same support when bowling.

Also remember to dress comfortably. Loose fitting clothes with short sleeves are probably the best choice.

Make sure you choose the proper ball weight by keeping in mind that the ball you used 20 years ago may not work for you anymore. Establish the ball weight that works best for you. Do keep in mind that a ball which is too light can cause your swing to be flat and create poor direction or loss of hitting power.

Proper ball fit and grip is very important and the recommended grip for a senior is the conventional grip and another method of improving the strength of your grip is by drilling an extra hole...this is not unusual and it helps more than you think.

All seniors should also use wrist supports to strengthen your grip.

As a senior you may want to use a back of knee support just to insure that you do not suffer from an older ailment.

And very important, stretching exercises will help you to loosen the joints and muscles.

Mike Luongo is a certified IBPSIA Pro Shop Operator, Master Instructor, USBC Silver Level Coach and an Advisor-Special Events assistant with the Storm and Roto Grip Bowling Ball Company. Have a question, email him at mikel@stormbowling.com

LOCAL SCORES

KIAMESHA LANES

Monday Men's

Feeney's Weenies has taken over first place during week No. 7 in the Monday Men's league and part of that came about as a result of the great bowling by Robert Feeney Jr. and the first 700 he has ever bowled, a 719 off single games of 255, 226, 238. Nice scoring for a 187 average bowler. The Weenies team scoring that night gave them a 47-16 record ahead of second place Rock Hill Liquor with a 40-23 record and third place Fubar with a 38-24 record.

Individual scores that night also included Nick Daroci with a 220, Rich Bradford 235, 628, Michael Caiazzo 220, 641, Kyle Matthews 258, Paul Minton 227, 232, 644, Bob Feeney Sr. 212, Frank Scuderi 219, William Schubert 233, 237, 650, Russell Bivins 257, 255, 686, Bobby Patel 226, 226, 644, Vinny Collura 225, 255, 650, Pedro Agapito III a 223, 615, Dan VanAken 225, Jim VanAken 215, Tom Belgiovene 244, 225, 669, Jaryl Scott 257, 660, Jon Wilhelm 244, 224, 652, David Graham 231, 611.

Tues. Mixed Firefighter

Standings in the Tuesday Night Mixed Firefighter league finds a tight race between the three top teams. The standings in week number eight finds Kiamesha Lanes in first place with 43 points won, Lickity Splits in second place with 40 points and New York Truck Parts in third place with 39 points.

Individual scoring in week No. 8 includes Tom Belgiovene wth a 236, 629, Steve Belgiovene 223, Jon Wilhelm 238, 257, 694, Bobby Patel 227, Charlie Tuttle 224, 603, Karen Martin 167, Wendy Swan 170, Trasey Barres 214, 550, Serafin Rodriquez III a 200, 217, 615, Stanley Gilmore 227, Jack Rustic 212, 259, 663, Loretta VanAken 187, 506, David Graham 245, 608, Allan Jones 216, 227, 615, Anne Kaplan 167, Kevin Stackhouse 219, 205, 617, Keith Smith 212, 214, 625, Kathy Bradley 192.

Fri. Night Mixed

Tight race also in the Friday Mixed league which finds We Got Balls with a 36-13 record in first place followed by Harry O's in second place with a 34-15 record and Studio X in third place with a 31-18 record.

Individual scoring in week number seven includes Wendy Swan 170, Mikayla DeGraw 184, 180, 234, 598, James VanAken 268, 610, Charlie Tuttle 224, Keith Smith 223, 266, 669, Bill Schubert 229, 228, 661, Pedro Agapito 257, 258, 243, 758, Kyle Matthews212, 256, 241, 709, Charlie Meier 225, 248, 636, Philip Norris 254, 607, Jason RH Rogers 244, 655.

FOX BOWLING CENTER

Wednesday Independent

Doc Bolduc 245, 633, Al Bullis Sr. 233, Andrew Bullis 259, 624, Shane Dirig 237, 641, Brian Drumm 225, 609, Mike Dufton 228, Logan Emerich 255, 660, Anthony Gately 252, Pete Green 226, Dan Keesler 231, 240, 224, 695, Mitch Persbacker 237, 225, 678, Aaron Phillips 220, 602, Doug Phillips 234, 607, Dick Price 224, Robbie Rigas 242, 608, Scott Wahl 225, 612, Scott Wormuth 208, 246, 614.

Thursday Night 3

Shane Dirig 279, 691, Bill Gleim 244, 619, Gino Jones 246, Rick Mills 622, 210, 622, Natasha Tuttle 190, Dan Wormuth 244, 243, 236, 723.

Friday Couples

Andy Bullis 237, 600, Dale Conklin 225, 643, Missy Dunlap 180, 502, Janet Ellis 201, Scott Ellis 203, 245, 641, Linda Ferris 183, Brianna Meres 224, 205, 578, Rick Mills 226, 200, 605, Dean Price 233, 218, 628, Tim Smith 235, 614, Dan Wormuth 227, 209, 616, Jeremy Wormuth 226, 248, 237, 711.

Sat.Youth League

Cooper Wormuth 139, 112, 112, Landon Fuller 127, 173, Holden Dufton 118, Alex Mosher 140, 146, 124, Ashbee Gately 104.

Sunday Fun

Landon Fuller 133, 135, 100, Fred Shakelton 226, Donnie Marino 207, 205.

PORT JERVIS LANES

Thursday Ladies

Brooke Csencsits 224, 203, 150, 577, Kim DeGarmo 122, 191, 181, 494, Sis Leeper 145, 122, 159, 426, Maureen Decker 126, 131, 156, 413, Darlene Amarilla 145, 121, 140, 406, Celeste Fitzpatrick 144, 156, 106, 406, Barbara Goetzman 171.

BEECHWOOD LANES

Wednesday Fun

Bobby Glassel 246, 188, 186, 620.

Ed Townsend is a Public Relations Consultant to the sport of bowling and brings over 60 years of sports journalism experience in writing and compiling the information for this column. If you have league or tournament information, bowl a 300 game or 800 series, let Ed know at 845-439-8177, email to bght75@gmail.com, or fax to 845-205-4474. View this column and Ed's photos at http://bght.blogspot.com We are also on Facebook and Twitter.