SOME 30 years ago the sport of bowling was one of the more popular in the country with the Philippines home to some of the world’s champions. Unfortunately, however, such lofty standing of the sport was not sustained, no thanks to diminished support for it in the years that followed.

SM Lifestyle and Entertainment Inc. and Philippine Bowling Congress officials with the winners’ checks for the third season of the SM Bowling Millionaires Cup. — www.smbowling.com
 
In the last three years, SM Lifestyle Entertainment, Inc. (SMLEI), through its SM Bowling and Leisure Center (SMBLC), has been working on bringing back some focus on bowling by staging the SM Bowling Millionaires Cup.

Now on its third year, which formally begins on April 1, the Millionaires Cup is an open tournament for male and female bowlers and designed “to encourage the bowling community to better their skills not only for the competition but also for Philippine bowling as a sport.”

Unlike the two previous editions of the Cup, SMBLC said the third staging is bigger and richer with over P6 million in cash prizes up for grabs.

From a month-long tournament, it has been expanded to six months to give competitors a bigger chance to qualify for the higher rounds and earn more.

“We want the bowlers to be engaged for a longer period and give them livelihood as well. I don’t think any company has done that so far,” said SMLEI Sports Development Head CJ Suarez an interview with BusinessWorld during the tournament’s launch on March 17.

“One of the thrusts of the company is to give back to the bowling community. We have a longer format this year as per the suggestion of the bowlers. And we hope by doing so we attract more bowlers, both old and new, and help in the continued reinvigoration of the sport. Year three should be a progressive year for the tournament,” Mr. Suarez added.

HOW TO JOIN

The SM Bowling Millionaires Cup is open to all bowlers, including current and former members of the national and national youth teams and pools.

All entries must be submitted with the relevant fees. A one-time registration fee of P3,000 per bowler is charged and must be paid prior to playing the first squad games.

The latest available Philippine Bowling Congress (PBC) Average (2nd Quarter 2016), SM Bowling Millionaire’s Cup and/or any PBC-sanctioned Tournament Average will be used as the initial basis for playing average.

A bowler may play to his/her hearts’ content during the qualifying period to produce their best three sets. The top eight bowlers of each branch will enter the monthly finals to earn points that will determine their standing in the national finals. The higher points accumulated in each monthly final, the bigger chance the bowler will have to qualify for the nationals.

With six monthly finals and two qualifying divisions per final — Classified Masters and Open Masters — a bowler’s top score can be beaten at any time — no player is safe; it is any bowler’s game.

Monthly winners are automatically given cash prizes and corresponding points. The monthly champion receives 20 points and as much as P50,000. The first runner-up receives 15 points and as much as P25,000. Fourth placers receive 10 points and as much as P12,000. Fifth place and below including monthly finals qualifiers and monthly participants receive points that may still drastically increase in the next competing month.

RETURN TO GOOD OLD DAYS

“Bowling before was huge in the country but has it has since lagged behind because of lack of support. While the slide has been wide already, it is not yet too late to make up for it and events like the Millionaires Cup are good a way to go about it,” said acting PBC president Francis de Leon in a separate interview.

“We have a lot of good talents here and it is just a matter of sustaining programs and developing the sport further to get back at bowling’s good old days,” added Mr. De Leon, whose group is helping the conduct of the tournament by making sure proper rules are applied as well as through information dissemination for the participants.

In the two years of the SM Bowling Millionaires Cup no one has won it outside of Davao-based female bowler Dianne Galendez.

A member of the Davao Tenpin Bowlers Association-PRIMA. Ms. Galendez, 21, won the Open Masters Division in seasons 1 and 2 of the Cup and has earned a total of P3 million and a brand-new car in the process.

For more detailed information on the third edition of the Millionaires Cup, one can visit any SM Bowling and Leisure Center or log on to www.smbowling.com.