The USBC Queens is an annual ten-pin bowling event for amateur and professional female bowlers, sanctioned by the United States Bowling Congress. The event is one of four women's professional majors since the PWBA tour returned in 2015 and the female equivalent of the USBC Masters, now one of the five majors on the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Tour.
The format for the USBC Queens tournament is similar to the USBC Masters. All entrants bowl 15 games of qualifying over three days. The top 63 qualifiers plus the previous year's champion are then seeded for match play. (If the previous year's champion qualifies in the top 63, a 64th qualifier is added.) Match play consists of three-game, total-pinfall matches in a double-elimination format. First-time losers during the match play rounds are not eliminated, but are instead placed into an elimination bracket, where they must survive all subsequent three-game matches to have a chance at making the championship finals. The last five remaining players with either one or zero match play losses are seeded for the televised finals, which is a single-game stepladder format.
USBC Queens history The USBC Queens made its debut in 1961, as a companion to the Women's International Bowling Congress (WIBC) National Tournament.USBC Queens has rich history. Article at www.bowl.com, April 14, 2008 It was known as the WIBC Queens from 1961–2004, until the WIBC became a part of the United States Bowling Congress (USBC) on January 1, 2005. The tournament is part of the World Bowling Tour, annually attracting a field of hundreds of the top bowlers from around the world.Official Queens website
Ten bowlers have won at least two USBC Queens titles, with only two winning three times: Millie Ignizio (Martorella) (1967, 1970, 1971) and Wendy Macpherson (1988, 2000, 2003). Both bowlers are now in the USBC Hall of Fame.
USBC Queens champions 2026 Event The 2026 USBC Queens tournament was held May 13–19 at Gold Coast Bowling Center in Las Vegas. The tournament had 199 total entries and a $324,500 prize fund, with a $60,000 top prize. A five-player stepladder format was used for the live televised finals on May 19. Top seed Erin McCarthy defeated second-seeded Natasha Roslan, 225–204, in the final match to capture her third PWBA Tour title and second major.
Final Standings: 1. Erin McCarthy (Elkhorn, Nebraska) – $60,000 2. Natasha Roslan (Malaysia) – $30,000 3. New Hui Fen (Singapore) – $22,500 4. Josie Barnes (Hermitage, Tennessee) – $17,500 5. Emma Friant (France) – $12,500
List of champions 2026: Erin McCarthy 2025: Josie Barnes 2024: Jillian Martin 2023: Lindsay Boomershine 2022: Birgit Noreiks 2021: Julia Bond 2020: Not held due to COVID-19 pandemic 2019: Dasha Kovalova 2018: Shannon O'Keefe 2017: Diana Zavjalova 2016: Bernice Lim 2015: Liz Johnson 2014: Maria Jose Rodriguez 2013: Diana Zavjalova 2012: Diandra Asbaty 2011: Missy Parkin 2010: Kelly Kulick 2009: Liz Johnson 2008: Lynda Barnes 2007: Kelly Kulick 2006: Shannon Pluhowsky 2005: Tennelle Milligan 2004: Marianne DiRupo 2003: Wendy Macpherson 2002: Kim Terrell 2001: Carolyn Dorin-Ballard 2000: Wendy Macpherson 1999: Leanne Barrette 1998: Lynda Norry 1997: Sandra Jo Shiery-Odom 1996: Lisa Wagner 1995: Sandy Postma 1994: Anne Marie Duggan 1993: Jan Schmidt 1992: Cindy Coburn-Carroll 1991: Dede Davidson 1990: Patty Ann 1989: Carol Gianotti 1988: Wendy Macpherson (largest-ever women's-only sporting event in history, some 88,000 participants) 1987: Cathy Almeida 1986: Cora Fiebig 1985: Aleta Sill 1984: Kazue Inahashi 1983: Aleta Rzepecki 1982: Katsuko Sugimoto 1981: Katsuko Sugimoto 1980: Donna Adamek 1979: Donna Adamek 1978: Loa Boxberger 1977: Dana Stewart 1976: Pamela Buckner 1975: Cindy Powell 1974: Judy Soutar 1973: Dorothy Fothergill 1972: Dorothy Fothergill 1971: Mildred Martorella 1970: Mildred Martorella 1969: Ann Feigel 1968: Phyllis Massey 1967: Mildred Martorella 1966: Judy Lee 1965: Betty Kuczynski 1964: D.D. Jacobson 1963: Irene Monterosso 1962: Dorothy Wilkinson 1961: Janet Harman
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