With the coronavirus pandemic continuing to grip the nation, the United States Bowling Congress announced Wednesday it has canceled every remaining national event for 2020.

The expected news comes after USBC had rescheduled the USBC Open Championships and USBC Women’s Championships for the fall. With the surge in coronavirus cases across the country, USBC pulled the plug on the events.

The news also means other events that were postponed are now canceled, including the USBC Masters, USBC Senior Masters, USBC Senior Queens and Super Senior Classic.

“These decisions are tough on everyone, but mostly our players, athletes and members,” USBC Executive Director Chad Murphy said in a release. “USBC's mission is to serve our bowlers, and canceling the most significant events in the sport certainly is heartbreaking for all involved. Nevertheless, USBC has a responsibility to consider the health of its members and their communities. Given the increasing spread of COVID-19 in several states, along with constantly changing guidelines and travel restrictions, we sadly do not see a responsible way to conduct national events in 2020.”

USBC also said the 2020-21 USBC Collegiate season will not start in 2020 as it normally would, instead pushing the start of competition until at least January 2021. Additionally, USA Bowling events and in-person coaching seminars for 2020 also have been postponed to 2021, USBC reported.

According to Wednesday’s press release, USBC’s next planned national event will now be the USBC Team USA Trials scheduled for January.

Given state-by-state quarantine orders that have been issued recently, it seemed nearly impossible for USBC to conduct large-scale national events.

For example, under the current orders if a bowler from New York traveled to Nevada right now to compete in an event, that bowler would have to self-quarantine for 14 days when they return home.

The logistics of such orders, plus the uncertainty surrounding what future restrictions may be put in place, put USBC in a no-win situation.

“While USBC national events are canceled, bowling certainly is not shut down for 2020,” Murphy said in the release. “USBC is confident competitive bowling can take place locally, and we are seeing many proprietors taking proactive steps to responsibly host leagues in accordance with local guidelines. Those steps will help leagues begin and tournaments to take place during the rest of the summer and into the fall. Our hope is that conditions improve to allow national events again in 2021.”

USBC’s news comes days after the PBA announced it had postponed the PBA50 World Series of Bowling, which had been scheduled for August. That event is now expected to take place in 2021.

The PBA has been able to conduct events on a much smaller scale amid the pandemic, holding the PBA Strike Derby and PBA Summer Clash last month with a limited number of players.

This weekend the PBA will hold the PBA Tour Finals with eight players, while the PBA King of the Lanes will take place early next week, also with a limited field.