Wine Country Classic logo with bowling pins, red bowling ball, rainbow, and grapes representing Sonoma County Pride Bowling

Tournament Rules

The 2026 Wine Country Classic will be held Friday, 8/14, through Sunday, 8/16, at Double Decker Lanes in Rohnert Park.

Below you’ll find everything you need to know before hitting the lanes, from eligibility and format to scoring and payouts. Take a quick look so you’re ready to roll when the weekend begins.

Overview & Eligibility

The Wine County Classic, hereafter referred to as WCC, is sponsored by Sonoma County Pride Bowling. The WCC is open to participants by invitation only. The WCC is a mixed-handicap competition sanctioned by USBC and will adhere to USBC Rules and Regulations. Any issues not covered by these or the USBC Rules will be resolved by a Tournament Director. The WCC is a member of IGBO.

  • All participants must be at least 21 years of age. This event is specifically for adults, and we strongly advise against bringing children. Only registered bowlers, tournament officials, and bowling center staff are allowed in the bowling area during competition. Guests are requested to sit in the gallery behind the bowling area.

  • All participants must hold a current 2025–2026 USBC membership, which can be purchased at bowl.com. However, participants who choose not to be a USBC member may compete under WCC’s Moral Support Tournament Certification for non-members (Rule 301a). Non-USBC participants who bowl in an IGBO-sanctioned league may qualify for entry by paying a one-time tournament participation fee of $5.00 (Rule 300c) prior to the start of the tournament. Such participants are subject to USBC rules and jurisdiction for the duration of the tournament but are not eligible for USBC awards.

  • All participants are required to either bowl in an IGBO Member League or be an IGBO Associate Member (available for $30 and valid for one year, permitting participation in any IGBO tournament). Purchase an individual membership now.

  • All bowling is at Double Decker Lanes in Rohnert Park, California.

All participants are expected to conduct themselves in a courteous and respectful manner toward others at all times. Bowlers exhibiting any behavior that is disrespectful to anyone in the bowling house (e.g., verbal abuse, physical abuse, inappropriate language) will be disqualified from the competition and removed from the premises. Other possible consequences can be, but are not limited to, reporting of any incidents to IGBO and/or USBC.

Conduct & Expectations

Tournament Format

The Handicap Tournament events shall be Team, Singles, and Doubles. Each participant shall bowl three games per event and must enter all three events. Teams shall consist of four members. Doubles partners must come from the same team. Each participant may bowl only once in each event.

Averages & Handicap

Each participant in the tournament must have an established average acceptable to USBC. Please submit the highest of A or B. If A or B don't apply, please submit C. If C doesn't apply, please submit D. If you don't have an average from A, B, C, or D, please select E and include any information helpful toward establishing an entering average for you in the Notes section. In the event no averages are available, and there is no reasonable method to determine a fair entering average for the bowler, a score of 225 will be used. The final decision regarding the determination of any bowler's entering average is at the sole discretion of a Tournament Director.

Entering Average Options

A. USBC 2025/2026 Composite Average*
B. Current IGBO tournament average (TAD)**
C. USBC 2024/2025 Composite Average
D. Current 2026 Summer League Average***
E. None

Handicap Rules Disclosure

*Includes Standard, Sport, and Challenge Averages. Sport and Challenge Averages converted to Standard using the USBC Conversion Chart. If a Sports and/or Challenge Average exists, Final Entering Average will be calculated as a weighted average of all available USBC averages.
**Minimum of 18 games is required during the one-year period from July 1, 2025, to July 1, 2026.
***Minimum of 21 games is required. Includes USBC-sanctioned and non-USBC-sanctioned leagues. If the league sheet from July 31, 2026, cannot be obtained, the current average at the time of verification will be used.

If none apply, please contact us prior to registering at director@socopridebowling.org.

It shall be the responsibility of each bowler to verify their average, whether submitted by the bowler, team captain, or others. Entering averages must be verified by either:

  • USBC Averages listed on bowl.com

  • IGBO TAD listed on tad.igbo.org

  • Email PDF of League Standing Sheet(s), including league secretary's name and phone number.

Failure to provide proper documentation or providing the wrong average shall disqualify tournament scores if the submitted average is lower than the actual average. In this instance, the bowler will forfeit their entry fee and any other prizes and awards, and will also be required to return all winnings from optional events. All prize winnings will be awarded on the submitted average if it is higher than the actual average. Entries received whose average cannot be verified will be considered incomplete and not considered for tournament entry until verified.

  • USBC Rule (319c) permits a Tournament Director to assign a higher average prior to participation in each event. If the bowler is unwilling to accept the higher average, they are entitled to a full refund of their event entry.

  • Bowler's handicap shall be 90% of 225. Negative handicaps will not apply.

All bowlers must initial the scores on the recap sheet after each event. All scores may be verified against bowling center computers.

All claims of errors or disputes must be made in writing to a Tournament Director no more than one (1) hour after completion of the scheduled event.

Scoring & Disputes

Registration & Entry

All entries must be completed online and be received no later than August 8, 2026, or when the maximum number of entries, 184 bowlers (46 teams), is reached. All entries are considered incomplete until full payment is received for the entire team and may be rejected to allow other paid teams to participate.

The entry fee shall be $129 as detailed below. In addition to the $129 entry fee, bowlers not affiliated with IGBO, as defined in Rule 3, will be required to pay a $30 IGBO Associate Member fee. All entries received after July 31, 2026, shall incur a $20 late processing fee. Once an entry has been accepted, no refunds will be issued except as stated above.

Fees Breakdown

Registration Fee = $129

  1. Prize Fund: $50*

  2. Lineage: $36

  3. WCC Association Membership Fee: $31**

  4. Admin Fee: $5

  5. Awards and Trophies: $5

  6. IGBO Fee: $2

Fee Disclosure

*May be supplemented by tournament fundraising.
**Entitles the member to attend the post-bowling social events and banquet

Prizes & Payouts

All cash awards for the Handicap Tournament shall be based on the total pins plus the assigned handicap for each event. The award ratio for Team, Singles, and Doubles Events shall be at least 1:10.

Prizes will be distributed via paper or electronic check within 30 days of the tournament's completion, barring any protest. A tie in any position will result in the sum of the prizes being aggregated for the tied positions and divided equally by the number of ties for that placing. It is solely the responsibility of the bowler to provide their proper email address and physical address when registering or at check-in, such that any prizes can be delivered to them via email or standard mail.

The prize distribution for each of the events shall be equal to at least the following amounts, based on the prize fund allotment multiplied by the number of entrants:

  • Team Event: 50%

  • Doubles Event: 30%

  • Singles Event: 20%

Optional Events

Optional Events may be operated by entities other than the Wine Country Classic Tournament Committee. You are expected to follow all rules associated with each Event. Any disqualification from the Tournament may result in disqualification from any and all Optional Events as well.

All Optional Events are scored on a best effort basis. The maximum liability resulting from any error due to bowler(s) and/or operator(s) of the Event shall be limited to the entry cost for that Event. Any participant who is unable to complete a scheduled event (Team, Doubles, and/or Singles) and must compete “blind” will be ineligible to participate in any optional events, regardless of prior payment. No refunds will be issued if a bowler is unable to participate in an event and is changed to “blind.”

Special Assistance

If you require special assistance, please contact us as soon as possible at director@socopridebowling.org.

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