Section 3 Team Tournament Rules – Section3Bowling.com

**The rules presented below are to be considered Unofficial and for discussion purposes only**

Tournament Rules (as of January 2025)

The Section 3 Tournament rules are as follows. Rules may be amended annually as needed. Rule changes require a majority vote of whole section 3 bowling committee.

Tournament Entry Qualifications: There is no entry fee for this tournament. Section III of New York State will pay the costs. This is not an “open” tournament. Teams must meet the entry criteria and may only enter one team. To be eligible for entry, teams must meet one of the following criteria: a) win 40% of league matches, games, or points. b) win 40% of matches, games, or points against schools of the same enrollment classification, or c) win 40% of matches, games, or points of from their overall season.
Playing Rules: Playing Rules of the tournament will be the applicable USBC playing rules as specified in the current NYSPHSAA Handbook. USBC membership of individual bowlers is not required.
Entry Deadline: All entries must be into the tournament director by the due date on the entry form.
Team Uniforms and Dress Code: Teams shirts or “uniforms” are not required, but all team members must be dressed in a similar fashion. No hats or headgear may be worn by the bowlers during the tournament unless there is a medical or religious requirement that has been approved by their school or it is part of the consistent team dress appropriate for the tournament. The tournament director shall have the final say on any questionable dress code items.
Tournament Cancellation/Re-Schedule: The tournament must be bowled on the approved weekend. In the event of inclement weather or disaster where fewer than 25% of teams are unable to compete, the tournament proceeds as scheduled. If 25% or more teams can not compete then the tournament may be rescheduled at a later date to be determined by the section 3 bowling committee. If this is not possible, there will be no Section III tournament and Section III will not be represented at the NYSPHSAA tournament.
Championships Awarded: At the conclusion of the preliminary Qualifying round, Class champions in Class A, B, and C/D will be awarded based on the cumulative team pinfall. Class Championship Awards shall be presented during the break between the Qualifying and Championship rounds.
Qualifying for the NYSPHSAA State Championships: The winning team from Division #1 and Division #2 will represent Section III in the NYSPHSAA State tournament. No awards are presented to Division winners. Information regarding the state tournament will be given to the winning school team and the Section Team immediately following the awards presentation. 2025 ONLY: Section 3 will send two (2) teams to the state championship for Division 1 only. This is due to the At-Large Berth Rotation in order to ensure an even number of teams competing. There is no At-Large team for Division 2. As such, Section 3 will send one (1) team.
Even Number of Teams: At the discretion of the tournament director, in cases where an odd number of teams has qualified for and entered the tournament, the tournament directory may either a) grant admission to an additional team that failed to meet the entry qualifications or b) form a tournament “pacer team” comprised on non-competing players from the teams in attendance. When the pacer team option is used, the tournament director at his/her discretion may enforce additional restrictions on pacer team participants in order to ensure fairness during the event
Tournament Check-In: Check-in begins 1 hour prior to the scheduled start time. A coaches meeting will take place approx. 30 mins prior to the start time. [2022] Optionally, this may be replaced with a suitable virtual format.
Lane Assignments: Team coaches will draw for a lane assignment upon check-in at the tournament. Lane assignments will be grouped by “Class” for the initial Qualifying round of the tournament.
Legal Roster: Team rosters must be submitted during the registration process. All rosters must have at least five (5) bowlers and a maximum of eight (8) bowlers. Rosters can be changed at any time before the start of tournament, but cannot be changed after the team throws its first ball. Teams that register, but arrive with less five (5) bowlers will be assigned by the Tournament director as a Pacer Team if such team is needed to maintain an even number of teams. Pacer teams, and its participants, are ineligible for any awards.
Legal Lineup: For scoring purposes, each competing team must begin each game with five (5) bowlers.
Qualifying Round Practice: The practice session will be 15 minutes. Teams will be granted 7 1/2 minutes of practice on their non-starting lane. At the conclusion of 7 1/2 minutes, an announcement will be made for teams to “switch lanes”. The remaining 7 1/2 minutes of practice will be completed on the teams starting lane. Coaches may allow any of their roster players to participate in the practice session.
Qualifying Round Format: All qualifying teams will compete in the preliminary qualifying round consisting of the traditional 5-man team game format. The length of the preliminary round will be determined at a mandatory seeding meeting conducted after the tournament registration deadline and before the tournament. The preliminary round will consist of no less than three (3) team games.
Substitution Rule: Applies to A substitute may enter prior to the first ball being thrown of any frame, prior to the 3rd ball in the 10th frame, or in the middle of a frame in case of an emergency for injury or illness. The substitute bowler entering the game shall assume the existing score and the combined score will count for that team game.
1. A bowler, having been removed for illness or injury, may not re-enter at any point during the remainder of the tournament.
2. A bowler, having been removed for a substitute, may not re-enter for the remainder of the current game.
3. If a substitution is made, the score for that game is credited to the athlete who began the game. However, that game score AND six-game series is ineligible to be used toward individual awards.
4. When a substitution is made, the head coach must indicate the change on the team scoresheet. The game score (for the bowler who began the game) should be circled. For the substitute, the coach should enter an asterisk (*) along with the frame number that bowler entered the game.
5. Penalty: If an illegal substitution is made, an individual score of 0 will be given for every illegal frame. Once a scoresheet is verified (signed) by the opposing coach, scores will NOT be adjusted.
Qualifying for Championship Round: The number of teams that will qualify for the Championship round and the bracket format to be used will be determined at the mandatory seeding meeting in advance of the tournament.
Tiebreaker for Qualifying Round: If two or more teams are tied for the last qualifying spot in the championship round, the tied teams shall follow the bowl 1 baker style team game to break the tie immediately before the Championship round. If teams remain tied at the conclusion of the tie breaking game, 9th and 10th frame rolloffs will be bowled until a winner is determined. The players for the 9th and 10th frame rolloff may be selected from the entire team. If a tie still exists after a 9th and 10th frame rolloff, the same players will continue rolling 9th and 10th frames alternating lanes until the tie is resolved. No substitutions will be allowed in any 9th and 10th frame roll-offs. Starting lane selection will be determined by a coin-toss between the teams. Teams will be granted ten (10) minutes of practice. No additional practice is granted for subsequent tiebreaking games or 9th/10th frame rolloffs.
Settee Area Limitations: Only one coach and five bowlers per team may be in the settee area during competition. Additional roster players and coaches may access the settee areas on adjacent pairs if those lanes are not being used in the tournament.
Score Reporting: Coaches or team representatives are responsible for reporting individual and team scores after each game. Team scorecards must be initialed by the head coach and the coach of the other team competing on your pair of lanes. All scoring errors or corrections must be brought to the attention of the official scorer before the start of the next game. The official scorer may not accept your scorecard if it does not have the opposing coach’s initials. Results are official after being recorded by the tournament offices. Only Coaches, Section III Committee Members, and ‘Selected Helpers’ will be allowed in scorer’s room. Name tags may be issued at the discretion of the tournament director.
Manual Scoring: In the event a manual scorecard must be kept, coaches must designate an official scorer for their team and are not permitted to act as the scorekeeper.
Conduct and Sportsmanship: At ALL TIMES teams will behave in a sportsmanlike manner, according to their school’s athletic code and Section III Rules. Profanity and hitting equipment will not be tolerated. At the discretion of both coaches, the first violation will result in a warning. A second violation by the same student will result in removal of that student from the tournament. Once a player has been removed for violation, they may not be allowed back into the tournament. Further disciplinary procedures will be followed as necessary in accordance with the established Disciplinary Procedures in the school’s athletic code. A sub may be used so as not to punish the rest of the team. Scoring will be handled the same as a substitution for injury. House Rules are to be followed and respected at all times. The Proprietor will have the responsibility for issues like taking off shoes etc. for spectators.
Use of Electronic Devices: No cellphones or electronic devices allowed in settee area unless they are used to keep score or stats. Coaches are allowed to have cell phones in the settee area for emergency use only, and all cell phones must be set to silent mode or turned off.
Flash Photography: Flash photography is strictly prohibited during tournament play.
Excessive Noise/Celebrations: This is a championship event, and as such, there is an expected level of excitement and intensity from the bowlers and spectators. Excessive loud noise and celebrations can be a distraction to other bowlers. In the event of a complaint of a team or spectators engaging in activity causing distraction, the tournament director (or a member of the tournament committee) will observe the behavior and determine if it reaches the level of inappropriateness and issue warnings as necessary. Continued problems from the same players, team, or spectators will result in additional actions as deemed appropriate by the tournament directors.
Spectator Admission Charge: Spectator Admission tickets will be sold by Section 3 Athletics. Ticket prices will be established by Section 3

CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND RULES (mod. 01/2025)

Championship Round Format. The Championship round will be conducted using head-to-head baker style match play. Teams that qualify for the Championship round will be seeded by total cumulative team pinfall totals from the preliminary round.
Championship Round Seeding Tiebreakers: For seeding purposes only, when two or more teams qualify for the championship round with the same cumulative score, the team with the highest single team game(s) from the qualifying round shall earn the higher seed.
Championship Round Practice Session. Teams will be granted 10 minutes of practice before each match– 5 minutes on each lane. The higher seed will select which lane they want to practice on 1st. At the conclusion of 5 minutes, an announcement will be made for teams to “switch lanes”. The remaining 5 minutes of practice will be completed on the opposite lane. Coaches may allow any of their roster players to participate in the practice session.
Match Play Format: Each match shall be a best-of-5 baker style match. After practice has concluded, the higher seeded team gets their choice of starting lane for the match. Each team baker game is bowled on a single lane and is worth one (1) point. The first team to earn 3 points will be declared the winner of the match and will advance to the next round. In the event any head-to-head baker game ends in a tie, each team will earn ½ point. The teams will switch lanes for each game in the match, including any subsequent tie-breaking game and roll-offs.
Match Play Tie-Breaker: If a match ends in a 2 ½ – 2 ½ tie, an additional baker game will be bowled. If teams remain tied at the conclusion of the tie breaking game, 9th and 10th frame roll-offs will be bowled until a winner is determined. The players for the 9th and 10th frame rolloff may be selected from the entire team. If a tie still exists after a 9th and 10th frame rolloff, the same players will continue rolling 9th and 10th frames alternating lanes until the tie is resolved. No substitutions will be allowed in any 9th and 10th frame roll-offs.