Effective August 1st, 2019, you are only allowed to use a dry towel during competition. This includes any league or tournament that is USBC sanctioned. You should wipe your bowling ball off every shot to get keep your ball reaction consistent. Here is a quick video showing why it's important to wipe your bowling ball off every shot.
So what happens if you get something on your bowling ball that a dry towel won't remove? The most common situation is a black scuff mark like what you see on this all gold ball. You aren't getting that off with a dry towel; and to be honest, most ball cleaners are not getting that off either. That scuff mark is going to change your ball reaction. If you roll over it, your ball will hook less and your reaction will be inconsistent. There is a provision for this type of situation.
The new rules permit you to get permission from a league or tournament official to clean off scuff marks, or other foreign debris, with a product that is on the approved product list. No, you cannot use acetone. Actually, you should never use it on your bowling ball, EVER.
All products on the anytime approved list, like That Purple Stuff, will now only be allowed before and after bowling - no matter what the label says. Here is a link to all products approved by USBC:
Any of these products can be used to clean the ball before or after bowling. During competition, they are only allowed with the approval of a league or tournament official.
Remember that scuff mark on the gold bowling ball? We said most ball cleaners won’t get that off. So what do you do about it? We developed a Scuff Mark Remover that is made to be used with our ball life extender product, So Fresh and So Clean. This combination turns into the fastest way to remove any scuff mark as you can see in this video:
So Fresh and So Clean is an Approved Bowling Product and can be used Before and After Competition. If you need to use this product during competition, you MUST have permission from a league or tournament official. We are currently running a special called New Rule Combo which includes an 8 oz bottle of So Fresh and So Clean with a Scuff Mark Remover. It can be purchased here: https://ctdbowling.com/products/new-rule-combo?_pos=1&_sid=9fbd7e31c&_ss=r&variant=29460993769570
If you want to learn more about the Scuff Mark Remover, check out the whole blog. Click here to read it now.
The official USBC Playing Rules can be found on their website: https://bowl.com/Rules/Rules_Home/USBC_Playing_Rules/ This particular rule change is regarding Rule 18.
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