The Bowlers of Eastern Scholarship Tours (BEST) Tournament is primarily a scratch event which offers one of the largest top prizes of any junior bowling tournament. A $5,000 top prize has been awarded to the winner in each of the seven years of the tournament's existence and will once again be guaranteed in the 2012 BEST Tournament. Over $20,000 in scholarships was awarded in each of the 2007 through 2011 BEST Tournaments.
The BEST Tournament is a joint effort of various junior tournament organizations. Each organization runs qualifying events in which bowlers earn a spot in the BEST Tournament, which is held in June. The 2012 BEST Tournament will once again be held at LAUREL LANES in Maple Shade, NJ in June of 2012.
BEST qualifier brackets are run at all Junior Bowlers Tour singles events as an optional side event. In each BEST qualifier bracket, one large bracket is run (using scores from four consecutive games) to determine the winner. Interested bowlers may enter the BEST bracket once for $3 or twice for $5.
In each BEST bracket, the winner will receive a partial or fully paid entry into the BEST Tournament (depending on entries). Additional prizes to the second and third place finishers will be awarded if entries warrant.
As of January 16, 2012, the 82 bowlers who have qualified to compete in the 2012 BEST Tournament are listed below:
| BOWLER | CITY, STATE |
| Adams, Casey | Bristol, CT |
| Adams, Joe | Bristol, CT |
| Allman, Zachary | Wilmington, DE |
| Ashby, Jackie | Philadelphia, PA |
| Barboza, Brandon | Brick, NJ |
| Barna, Amanda | Westminster, MD |
| Barna, Tom | Westminster, MD |
| Bavazzano, Sean | Totowa, NJ |
| Bell, Catie | Averill Park, NY |
| Berke, Alyssa | Mt. Kisko, NY |
| Brusco, Mike | Stamford, CT |
| Bukovsky, Mike | Baldwin, NY |
| Cannon, Mitch | Sudlersville, MD |
| Carbonetto, Jackie | Blauvelt, NY |
| Caruana, Nick | Holbrook, NY |
| Cereby, Steve | Levittown, PA |
| Channell, Jake | Middle River, MD |
| Clark, Taylor | Bristol, CT |
| Combs, Cathy | Elkton, MD |
| Conner, Ben | Hamilton, NJ |
| Cook, Jack | Denville, NJ |
| Critides, Bobby | Glen Ridge, NJ |
| Fields, Diante | Middletown, DE |
| Florentino, Michael | East Haven, CT |
| Garrison, Christian | Hamden, CT |
| Goldberg, Keith | Yonkers, NY |
| Graham, Jonathan | Trumbull, CT |
| Greco, Steven | Bridgeton, NJ |
| Hanrahan, Packy | Greenwich, CT |
| Hicks, Matt | Wallingford, CT |
| Irvin, Casey | Selbyville, DE |
| Kallas, Johnnie | Edgemont, NY |
| Kenny, Randy Jr. | Maple Shade, NJ |
| Kent, Jacob | Newark, NY |
| Kimball, Mason | Jackson, NJ |
| King, George | Palmyra, NJ |
| Knight, Amoni | Dover, DE |
| Kochanski, Kristen | Bristol, CT |
| Lagace, Lex | Bristol, CT |
| Laube, Holly | Newark, DE |
| Laube, Justin | Newark, DE |
| Laube, Sean | Newark, DE |
| Lee, Lenny Jr. | Monroe, CT |
| Lenk, Daniel | East Brunswick, NJ |
| Lenk, Matthew | East Brunswick, NJ |
| Leyen, Aidan | Perry Hall, MD |
| Loch, Matt | Nicholson, PA |
| Machin, Hunter | Dundalk, MD |
| Makszin, Ronnie | Norwalk, CT |
| Marien, Nick | Lisbon, CT |
| Martin, Jeff | Staten Island, NY |
| McDowell, Jon | Philadelphia, PA |
| McEwan, Danielle | Stony Point, NY |
| Murtha, Jeff | Langhorne, PA |
| Ostrander, Greg | Howell, NJ |
| Pagliei, Bobby Jr. | Talleyville, DE |
| Paley, Justin | Warren, NJ |
| Perry, Matt | Shelton, CT |
| Pezzano, Jarod | Stevensville, MD |
| Phillips, Andrew | Norristown, PA |
| Riccardelli, Jake | Middletown, NJ |
| Rogers, Stephen | Poughkeepsie, NY |
| Rollins, Jake | Glen Rock, NJ |
| Ryan, Kenny | Ocean, NJ |
| Schneider, Erica | Levittown, NY |
| Schubert, Eric | Fairfield, CT |
| Sexton, Ken | Manalapan, NJ |
| Shine, Robby | Yonkers, NY |
| Shirak, Sonja | Clifton, NJ |
| Smirnow, Shannon | Old Saybrook, CT |
| Smith, Taylor | Felton, DE |
| Snyder, Dustin | Middletown, DE |
| Stout, Christian | Cranbury, NJ |
| Surmaczewicz, Dennis | Stratford, CT |
| Tardona, Tyler | Wilmington, DE |
| Thompson, Ken | Fairless Hills, PA |
| Tkacz, Tommy | Barkhamsted, CT |
| Vidulich, Will | Hewitt, NJ |
| Vitelli, Tyler | Annandale, NJ |
| Vitelli, Zack | Annandale, NJ |
| Wagner, Morgan | Bear, DE |
| Whitehead, Ross | Walden, NY |
CLICK HERE for Results of the 2011 BEST Tournament
CLICK HERE for 2011 Best Tournament Entry Blank
CLICK
HERE for more information on the JUNIOR BOWLERS TOUR