2023 Australian National Championship Preview
By Tenpin Bowling Australia
Anticipation is mounting as Strike 3 Bowling prepares to host the highly awaited Australian National Championship (ANC) as it gets underway today at Zone Bowling Moonah in Tasmania.
Some of the finest talent from across the country is preparing to come together in Tasmania for the third straight year with Strike 3 Bowling running the national event. Like 2022, the national event will host both junior and adult participants from 25 June to 7 July 2023.
The 2023 ANC comprises of four events with two of them nationally ranked events for the junior, open and women’s divisions:
- Walter Rachuig Trophy Tournament
- TBA Australian Masters (Open and Women’s division ranked event)
- President’s Junior Shield
- TBA Australian Junior Masters (Junior division ranked event)
Tenpin Bowling Australia wishes all bowlers the best of luck and high scoring for the championship. Please keep your eye on TenpinResults for all scores and results as they are entered by the Strike 3 Bowling tournament team. For all the latest coverage of the event, please follow Strike 3 Bowling on Facebook, Instagram or head to their website
Walter Rachuig Trophy Tournament
25-28 June
Established in 1963, the Walter Rachuig Trophy Tournament (Rachuig) is Australia’s most prestigious team event. In 2022, Strike 3 Bowling introduced a new element to the event including entries from franchises from many regions across the country. The franchise model will return in 2023 with a total of 14 male and 7 female teams taking part and the Hobart Capitals returning to defend their 2022 crown.
Male Division
This tournament will be played over one round of round robin format where every team will play each other once (13 matches) followed by a final series where all teams will play a further five matches (14-18), based on their respective position after Match 13 and each match thereafter as detailed in the Event Guide.
The overall final positions will be based on total points scored after 18 matches.
Male Division Teams
- Aotearoa
- Caboolture Snakes
- CLS Townsville Cutters
- Devonport Mafia
- Hobart Capitals
- Logan City Wolves
- New South Wales Blues
- North Queensland Crocs
- Pride Australia Monarchs
- Queensland Menace
- Queensland Colts
- Tasmania Strikers
- Team Bedrock Moonah
- Victoria
Female Division
This tournament will be played over two rounds of round robin format where every team will play each other twice (14 matches) followed by a series where the top six teams will play a further four matches (15-18) based on their respective position after Match 14 and each match thereafter, as detailed in the Event Guide.
The overall final positions will be based on total points scored after 18 matches.
Female Division Teams
- Aotearoa
- CLS Townsville Cutters
- Hobart Capitals
- Logan City Wolves
- North Queensland Crocs
- Queensland Menace
- Team Bedrock Moonah
Points System
Points will be awarded as follows:
1. Each team member will be matched against the opposing team member in the corresponding position in the line-up and the player achieving the highest total scratch score for the game will win one point for the team. In the event of an equal game score, the point will be equally shared.
2. The team’s total pinfall will be compared with the total pinfall of the opposing team and two points will be awarded to the team with the highest total pinfall.
3. In the event of an equal team score, the points will be equally shared.
Awards
The Walter Rachuig Trophy and Trish Datson Memorial Trophy will be presented to the champion teams immediately after the tournament.
The Walter Rachuig Trophy will involve separate trophies for the male and female teams who have the highest points total in their respective divisions. The Trish Datson Memorial Shield will be awarded to the overall winner by adding the total points from the male division to the total points in the female division.
Gold, silver, and bronze medallions will be presented to up to six players, one coach and one manager in both divisions of the Walter Rachuig Trophy and also the Trish Datson Memorial Shield.
At the conclusion of the event, the top five male division and top five female division scorers will be named All-Stars.
Walter Rachuig Trophy Sportsperson awards will also be conducted by providing voting forms to team managers at the beginning of the final day of play.
Scoring
All scoring of the event will be provided on TenpinResults.
TBA Australian Masters
28 June – 1 July
A maximum time limit of 30 minutes will be enforced for all games and matches (except the Stepladder finals) in 2023.
Qualifying will involve the completion of 9 games in a single session for both male and female divisions.
The top 24 males and top 16 females based on total pinfall from qualifying will advance to the matchplay finals.
With pinfall not carrying over, all 24 male players will complete 24 games in a matchplay format against each other player and one positional round in match 24. Two points will be allocated for a win, one for a draw and zero for a loss. At the conclusion of the 24 matches, the top 5 will progress to the Stepladder finals.
For the females, all 16 females will complete 16 games in a matchplay format against each other player with one positional round game in match 16. Two points will be allocated for a win, one for a draw, and zero for a loss. At the conclusion of the 16 matches, the top 5 will progress to the Stepladder finals.
The Stepladder finals will see the 4th and 5th placed bowlers play a single game to determine the winner. The winners will then advance to play the 3rd placed bowlers in a single-game match to determine the winner. The winners will then advance to play the 2nd placed bowlers in a single-game match to determine the winner. Finally, the winners will then play the 1st placed bowlers to determine the tournament champions.
With equal prize money for both male and female divisions, the 2023 TBA Australian Masters will be a fantastic event between some of the best bowlers in the country. All Walter Rachuig Trophy Tournament participants will compete in this year’s masters making it one of the biggest fields ever assembled.
President’s Junior Shield
2 July – 4 July
Established in 1974, the President’s Junior Shield is Australia’s most prestigious junior team event on the calendar. Like Rachuig, President’s Shield will also welcome franchises in 2023 with 8 male and 7 female teams to take part in this year’s event.
Teams
- Australia Team Tenpin Results
- Ballina Bullfrogs
- Logan City Wolves
- New South Wales Blues (male only)
- North Queensland Crocs
- South Queensland Menace
- Tasmania Devils
- Victoria
The tournament format involves a male, female and combined division.
The male division will be played over two rounds of round robin format where every team will play each other twice (14 matches) followed by a finals series where all teams will play a further two matches (15 and 16), based on their respective position after Match 14 and each match thereafter, as detailed in the event guide.
The overall final positions will be based on the total points scored after 16 matches.
The female division will be played over two rounds of round robin format where every team will play each other twice (14 matches) followed by a finals series where the top 6 teams will play a further two matches (15 and 16), based on their respective position after Match 14 and each match thereafter as detailed in the event guide.
The overall final positions will be based on total points scored after 16 matches.
Points System
Points will be awarded as follows:
- Each team member will be matched against the opposing team member in the corresponding position in the line-up and the player achieving the highest total scratch score for the game will win one point for the team. In the event of an equal game score, the point will be equally shared.
- The team’s total pinfall will be compared with the total pinfall of the opposing team and two points will be awarded to the team with the highest total pinfall.
- In the event of an equal team score, the points will be equally shared.
Awards
Separate trophies will be awarded to the male and female teams who have the highest points total in their respective divisions.
The President’s Junior Combined Shield will be presented to the overall winner who will be determined by adding the total points from the male division to the total points in the female division.
Gold, silver and bronze medallions will be presented to up to six players, one coach and one manager in both divisions of the President’s Junior Shield and also the President’s Junior Combined Shield.
The top five male and female division point scorers will be named All-Stars of the event.
The Jason Belmonte Sportsperson Award will also be conducted at the beginning of the final day of play by providing voting forms to team managers.
TBA Junior Australian Masters
5-7 July
The maximum time limit of 30 minutes will again be enforced for all games and matches (except the stepladder finals) as per the TBA Australian Masters event.
Qualifying will involve the completion of 8 games in a single session.
The top 16 male and female qualifiers based on their total pinfall will compete in the matchplay finals.
With pinfall not carrying over, all 16 male and female bowlers will complete 16 games in matchplay format against each other player and one positional round match in game 16. Two points will be awarded for a win, one point for a draw and zero for a loss.
At the conclusion of this phase, the top 5 male and female bowlers will progress to the Stepladder finals where the exact same stepladder format as the TBA Australian Masters will be conducted.
Equal prize money will once again be awarded to both male and female divisions. Like the adult masters, all President Shield participants will automatically be entered for this year’s masters.
Key Dates
- 25 June 2023 Walter Rachuig Team Managers Meeting
- 25 June 2023 Walter Rachuig Team Photos and Opening Ceremony
- 25 to 28 June 2023 Walter Rachuig Trophy Tournament
- 25 June 2023 TBA Australian Masters Entries Close
- 26 June to 1 July 2023 TBA Australian Masters
- 27 June 2023 President’s Shield Final Team Lists Submitted
- 1 July 2023 Walter Rachuig Celebration Function
- 2 July 2023 President’s Shield Team Managers Meeting
- 2 July 2023 President’s Shield Team Photos and Opening Ceremony
- 2 to 4 July 2023 President’s Junior Shield
- 3 July 2023 TBA Australian Junior Masters Entries Close
- 5 to 7 July 2023 TBA Australian Junior Masters
- 7 July 2023 President’s Shield Celebration Function
All scores and results will be uploaded on TenpinResults by the Strike 3 Bowling Tournament Team.
