TBA50 National Masters Preview
By Matt Stevens
The curtain falls on the 2025 TBA Senior and Grand Senior tournament season this weekend.
The fifth and final ranked event of the 2025 TBA Senior and Grand Senior calendar takes centre stage this weekend at the TBA National High Performance Centre / Suncity Tenpin on the Sunshine Coast.
For the third straight year, the venue will host the TBA National Senior Championships, featuring two showcase events – the TBA50 National Masters and the TBA50 National Teams Challenge.
The action begins Friday night with the 39th edition of the TBA50 National Masters – an event steeped in history since its debut in 1986, when John Zoratti (ACT) and Muriel Smith (QLD) etched their names as the inaugural champions. Both went on to defend their titles the following year, setting the tone for nearly four decades of legends and rivalries.
Format at a Glance
Qualifying:
All bowlers will complete 12 games over two appearances (6 per block) on two different oil patterns.
- Block 1: PBA Jr Tackett 44ft pattern
- Block 2: 2025 World Seniors Championships 42ft pattern
Stage 2:
The top 16 bowlers in each division advance, with pinfall carried over into four additional games.
Stage 3:
The top 8 progress to a seven-game round robin, with 20 bonus pins for a win and 10 for a tie. The bowler with the highest total pinfall (including bonuses) will be crowned the 2025 TBA50 National Masters Champions.
Defending Champions
Few bowlers have dominated quite like Dena Buxton (VIC). Fresh off a medal-winning campaign at the International Bowling Federation (IBF) World Senior Championships – Bronze in All-Events and Silver in Teams – Buxton returns to defend her crown and chase a historic third consecutive Masters title.
Only June Marks (NSW) and Hall of Famer Jeanette Baker (VIC) (with a record eight titles) have achieved the feat.
On the men’s side, Barry Dodds (VIC) returns after capturing his maiden title last year. Should he repeat, he’d join a rare group of just five men to win back-to-back Masters titles – a streak not seen since Andrew Frawley’s 2014-15 run.
With Senior and Grand Senior rankings determined by each bowler’s best three results plus the Masters, this event doubles as the decisive finale to the 2025 season.
Division Breakdown
Senior Women
Buxton leads the rankings on 280 points, but the gap has narrowed.
- Samantha Matthews (WA) remains within striking distance on 245 points
- Jenny Notman (VIC) has impressed in her debut season in the Senior Division and sits on 203 points within reach
- Sue Cassell (QLD), the TBA Hall of Famer and fellow Aussie representative – still looms as a threat on 195 points.
Senior Men
Tasmania’s Ashley Riley (203) holds a slender seven-point lead over Queensland’s Graham Morgan (196). Close behind sits a deep chasing pack of Adam Hayes (180), Michael Muir (151), George Frilingos (137), Shayne Melton (137), Andrew Lloyd (108), Andrew Thorpe (103), and Alan Notman (103) – all within reach of a late surge.
Grand Senior Women
The storyline writes itself – the same quartet who claimed Gold for Australia in the Grand Senior Women’s Team event at the World Seniors Championship occupy the top four spots in the rankings.
- Heather Robertson (300) leads with three wins (Hammer, John Sullivan Australian Open, SA Seniors Classic).
- Julie Harrison (240), fresh off a multi-medal international campaign, is the only bowler who can spoil Robertson’s incredible year with a Masters victory.
Grand Senior Men
Jim Bakirtzidis (NSW) continues his reign atop the Grand Senior division, chasing what could be a third straight rankings crown.
He currently sits on 280 points, ahead of David Farquharson (235) and Jim Karakostas (181) – both within striking distance should Bakirtzidis falter.
Schedule
Saturday 8 November
· 8:00AM: Squad A check-in by 8:00AM
· 8:30AM: Squad A Qualifying Block 1 – 6 Games
· 11:30AM: Lane Maintenance
· 12:00pm Squad B check in by 12:00pm
· 12:30PM: Squad B Qualifying Block 1 – 6 Games
· 4:00PM: Squad C check-in closes
· 4:00PM: Squad C Qualification Block 2 – 6 Games
Sunday 9 November
· 8:00AM: Squad B check in by 8:00AM
· 8:30AM: Squad B Qualifying Block 2 – 6 Games
· 11:30AM: Lane Maintenance
· 12:00pm : Squad A check in by 12:00pm
· 12:30PM: Squad A Qualifying Block 2 – 6 Games
· 3:30PM: Lane Maintenance
· 4:30PM: TBA50 National Masters Stage 2
Monday 10 November
· 9:30AM: TBA50 National Masters Stage 3: Matchplay Finals
· 1:30PM: Presentations to occur following the Matchplay Finals
The Final Frame
By Monday lunchtime, we’ll know not only the 2025 TBA50 National Masters champions, but also the final national rankings for each division.
After a whirlwind year of medals, milestones, and memories, the 2025 TBA Senior and Grand Senior season reaches its crescendo – a weekend of high stakes, high scores, and high drama on the Sunshine Coast.
Tenpin Bowling Australia wishes all bowlers the best of luck and high scoring as they chase one final moment of glory in 2025.
TBA50 NATIONAL MASTERS
PAST CHAMPIONS
| Year | Men | Women |
| 1986 | John Zoratti (ACT) | Muriel Smith (QLD) |
| 1987 | John Zoratti (ACT) | Muriel Smith (QLD) |
| 1988 | Graham Bacon (NSW) | B. Pauschmann (NSW) |
| 1989 | Graham Bacon (NSW) | Lillian Bruce (NSW) |
| 1990 | John Zoratti (ACT) | P. Thompson (QLD) |
| 1991 | Keith Caddy (NSW) | Margaret Condon (QLD) |
| 1992 | Keith Caddy (NSW) | June Marks (NSW) |
| 1993 | Ron Gray (NSW) | June Marks (NSW) |
| 1994 | George | June Marks (NSW) |
| 1995 | Ian Castle (VIC) | Dawn Hall (WA) |
| 1996 | Bob Bruce (SA) | Renato Maglieri (NT) |
| 1997 | Renzo Pellegrini (SA) | Joan Dillon (NSW) |
| 1998 | Brian May (QLD) | Bev Freestone (NSW) |
| 1999 | Barry Lonsdale (NSW) | Ronnie Petersen (NT) |
| 2000 | Stephen Bell (VIC) | Penny Strik (NSW) |
| 2001 | Jeff Elliott (SA) | Maxine Forrest (WA) |
| 2002 | Kevin Quinn (NSW) | Maxine Forrest (WA) |
| 2003 | Allan Smith (NSW) | Cecily Walton (NSW) |
| 2004 | Rod Stewart (VIC) | Sue Raphael (VIC) |
| 2005 | Brian Looby (QLD) | Barbara Richmond (QLD) |
| 2006 | Vaughan White (QLD) | Jeanette Baker (VIC) |
| 2007 | Ray Krueger (ACT) | Christene Webster (QLD) |
| 2008 | Fred Housham (NZ) | Jeanette Baker (VIC) |
| 2009 | Mike Kennedy (VIC) | Jeanette Baker (VIC) |
| 2010 | Tony Stoppel (SA) | Julie Hird (NSW) |
| 2011 | Paul Terry (WA) | Jeanette Baker (VIC) |
| 2012 | Kevin Webb (NSW) | Julie Hird (QLD) |
| 2013 | Chris Kirwin (NT) | Jeanette Baker (VIC) |
| 2014 | Andrew Frawley (NSW) | Jeanette Baker (VIC) |
| 2015 | Andrew Frawley (NSW) | Julie Harrison (QLD) |
| 2016 | Chris Kirwin (NT) | Julie Harrison (QLD) |
| 2017 | Mick Talevski (VIC) | Jeanette Baker (VIC) |
| 2018 | Greg Nicolas (NZ) | Jeanette Baker (VIC) |
| 2019 | Andrew Lloyd (NSW) | Cheryl Womack (QLD) |
| 2021 | Morty Douglass (QLD) | Jo Babic (SA) |
| 2022 | Andrew Lloyd (NSW) | Jenny Burton-Douglas (ACT) |
| 2023 | Tony Hamilton (QLD) | Dena Buxton (VIC) |
| 2025 | Barry Dodds (VIC) | Dena Buxton (VIC) |
