CDYST Masters Tournament

Each CDYST season concludes with the exciting CDYST Masters Tournament at the site where we began, Town ‘n Country Lanes in Guilderland, New York.  Only CDYST members who have competed in four or more events during the season are eligible to participate in this tournament that is modeled after the USBC Masters. The scholarship fund has averaged nearly  $4,000; awarded a top scholarship prize of at least $750; and paid out scholarships of $50 or more to a ratio of better than 1 in 3 bowlers.  Bowlers may also earn bids to the USBC Junior Gold Championship.  The CDYST Masters has a history of deciding the Bowler of the Year in the final few rounds of match play. Contested on USBC Sport-Compliant lane conditions, the CDYST Masters is one of the most prestigious youth tournaments in the Capital District.

Format:

The qualifying round consists of 6 games, switching pairs after every game; the top 16 bowlers advance to the finals. If there is a tie for 16th place, a 9th and 10th frame roll-off determines who advances.

The finals begin once the lanes are re-dressed and consist of single-game matches in a double-elimination format. All bowlers are initially placed into the Championship bracket and seeded according to their qualifying score; seeding ties are broken based on highest single game score. Following the opening matches, bowlers receive 1 practice ball on each lane prior to each match. The higher seeded bowler in each match has lane choice. Tie matches are decided with a 9th and 10th frame roll-off. 

The bowler who wins each match advances in the Championship bracket. When a bowler loses a Champions bracket match, they move to a pre-determined position in the Contenders bracket. As long as a bowler in the Contenders bracket continues to win, they advance; those losing a match are eliminated. Finishing positions in each round are based on tournament average for all games.  The sole remaining bowler in each bracket advances to the Championship Round.

The Championship Round consists of a single game match.  If the undefeated bowler wins, they are the champion. If not, another match is contested on the same pair of lanes; the winner is the champion.

Past CDYST Masters Highlights:

2011: Trailing Bowler of the Year leader Ricky Rovelli by 46 points entering the 2011 CDYST Masters, Christopher Hanson defeated Rovelli 223 - 205 in Round 3 of the Championship bracket and then won his next two matches to earn his second CDYST title of the season and edge Rovelli by 9 points to become the first CDYST Bowler of the Year. Final Results

2012: Attempting to win back-to-back Bowler of the Year awards, Christopher Hanson led Matthew Olson by 25 points and Corey Buckley by 34 points entering the 2012 CDYST Masters.  However, Olson defeated Hanson 205 - 183 in Round 2 of the Contenders bracket. Entering Round 5, Olson, Buckley, and Michael Hartmann were all still alive in the tournament and could win the Bowler of the Year award.  Olson eliminated Buckley 217 - 168 and followed up with his fifth consecutive victory to clinch the award. After falling to Olson 231 - 218 in the first match of the Championship Round, Hartmann rebounded to defeat him 226 - 197 to earn his second CDYST title of the season.  Olson’s runner-up finish enabled him to edge Hartmann by 15 points and Hanson by 25 points to become the Bowler of the Year. Final Results

2013: Entering the 2013 CDYST Masters, there were just 44 points separating the top five bowlers in the Bowler of the Year race, with Christopher Hanson leading by just 5 points over Zachary Doty.  However, Hanson earned the top seed heading into the double-elimination match play finals and won his first four matches to qualify undefeated for the Championship Round. When Doty was eliminated in Round 2 of match play, Hanson clinched his second Bowler of the Year title in the first three seasons of CDYST competition.  In the Championship Round, Patrick DeVoe earned his first CDYST title by defeating Hanson 200 - 197 and 189 - 184 in matches that were each decided in the tenth frame. Final Results

2014: Entering the 2014 CDYST Masters, Jonathan Bowman had already wrapped up the Bowler of the Year title; the first year it was clinched ahead of time.  However, with berths available for the inaugural CDYST All-Star teams available to the top 8 bowlers in the points race, there were 7 bowlers that could still mathematically earn the final spot.  Entering match play, the race came down to Christopher Radliff, Morgan Ruggeri, and Zachery Porter, who were separated by 29 points. Morgan was eliminated following her second loss in Round 4. In Round 5 of the Contenders Bracket, Zachery defeated Christopher 157 - 136 to keep himself in the running for the final spot. However, Jonathan eliminated Zachery 237 - 201 in the finals of the Contenders Bracket, enabling Christopher to earn the eighth and final All Star team position. In the Championship Round, Chad Sutliff won his fifth consecutive match with a 210 - 194 victory over Jonathan for his second CDYST title and the first $1,000 scholarship awarded in a CDYST event. Final Results

2015: Entering the 2015 CDYST Masters, Jonathan Bowman had already wrapped up his second consecutive Bowler of the Year title; and was looking to win his seventh title of the season.  The big race, however, was for the final berths on the 2015 CDYST All-Star teams.  There were six bowlers separated by 31 points for the final four spots; with Justin Carl, Patrick Hoey, Hunter Kempton, and Andrew Marotta within one point of each other for the final two spots. By advancing into the double elimination match play finals, Carl and Hoey became the final two all stars. In a competitive double elimination match play finals, Billy McGaffin defeated Hoey 205 - 155 in Round 4 to become the sole remaining undefeated bowler heading into the Championship Round.  In Round 5 of the Contenders bracket, Natalya Porcello edged Hoey 192 - 189 and Bowman defeated Morgan Ruggeri 200 - 158 to set up the Contenders bracker finals. Bowman would move on after defeating Porcello 190 - 182.  In the Championship Round, McGaffin capped off his undefeated day by defeating Bowman 194 - 176 for his fifth consecutive victory to earn his first CDYST title and a $1,000 scholarship. Final Results

2016: Entering the 2016 CDYST Masters, the Bowler of the Year race was down to two long-time CDYST members, Christopher Radliff and Justin Carl; with Christopher holding a 48 point lead. In what turned into the highest scoring CDYST event ever, Christopher earned the award by 33 points when Justin was defeated for a second time in Round 3. The loss also ended Justin’s record-setting CDYST career due to age restrictions. In addition, with 7 of the top 8 All Star positions pretty much locked up, there were three bowlers within 2 points of the eighth and final berth on the team. The fireworks began in a qualifying round that saw half of the field average 200 or better and highlighted by Hunter Kempton closing with 803 over his final three games - the first 800 three-game series in CDYST history - to become the top seed for the double elimination match play finals. After averaging over 245 in qualifying, he averaged over 232 in winning five consecutive matches, including an exciting 247 - 237 victory over defending champion Billy McGaffin to win his third career title and a record $1,100 scholarship. A record scholarship fund of $5,135 was awarded. Both Kenny Livengood and Andrew Marotta bowed out in Round 2 to remain tied for the eighth and final All Star Berth. However, with two bowlers declining their spots, Kenny and Andrew were both placed on the team; as was Billy McGaffin, whose second place finish enabled him to vault over five bowlers to become the second alternate.

2017: Entering the 2017 CDYST Masters, Hunter Kempton led both Tom Hankey and Jenna Lemke by 45 points in the Bowler of the Year race. With Jenna failing to qualify for the match play finals, the race came down to the two long-time friends and Massachusetts rivals.  After Tom defeated Hunter 202 - 184 in Round 3 of the Championship Bracket, it was still mathematically possible for him to overtake his rival. However, when Hunter defeated Amanda Chrzanowski 203 - 160 in Round 4 of the Contenders Bracket, he clinched the award with what would be a 20-point margin. In addition, three bowlers were within 5 points of the eighth and final All Star berth; with two more within 30 points. In the Qualifying Round, Billy McGaffin, the 2015 Masters Champion, earned the top seed for the finals. However, it was Tom, the second seed, and eighth-seeded Jeh’ron Cherry who each averaged over 227 in winning their first three matches led to Tom’s 245 - 236 victory in the Championship Bracket final. Two victories by Jeh’ron in Rounds 5 and 6 of the Contenders Bracket set up a rematch between Tom and Jeh’ron; with Tom being one victory from the title.  Jeh’ron begin the Championship Round with seven consecutive strikes, in route to a 250 - 234 victory to force a second match. Jeh’ron rolled eight strikes as he defeated Tom 247 - 153 to earn his first CDYST title and a $1,000 scholarship. His victory also enabled him to rise five spots in the Bowler of the Year race into seventh place and earn a spot on the All Star team. Final Results

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