To all Texas Bowling Centers Association members:

It is with hope and desire that we will be able to open our centers soon and we can get back to providing fun and
memories. We all have a responsibility to protect our guests and employees from contracting the COVID-19
virus when we reopen. If there is any unfavorable press about our beloved industry due to our lack of
prevention, it will affect us all.

You have probably been receiving numerous emails daily with checklists on what procedures to put in place
prior to reopening. Here is another. Below are some basic “best practices” that fellow operators are using.
With every center being unique, you must decide what is best for you. The following lists are not
exhaustive. You should always follow the state and local requirements as well as the recommendations from
the CDC. There are additional valuable lists/resources found on the BPAA.com home page, including a
module on Media Preparedness.

For starters, use the “Minimum Standard Health Protocols” checklists found in The Governor’s Report to Open
Texas as a basis for setting the protocols at your establishment. The report is available at
Gov.Texas.Gov/organization/opentexas. Whereas Bowling / FEC centers do not have a checklist, you will
notice that the checklists for ALL EMPLOYERS, RETAILERS, RESTAURANTS, and MOVIE THEATERS
(pages 21 – 34) have similar requirements.

CENTER
□ Place signage and posters throughout your center informing your guests of your commitment to stop the
spread of the COVID-19 virus through your sanitation and social distancing policies.
□ Place hand sanitizers at each entrance of your center, outside each restroom, at the bowling counter, café
counter, bar, in the arcade, pro shop, and at any other attractions (i.e. laser tag).
□ Use stanchions or floor decals to control social distancing at the bowling counter, café, bar, anywhere a
guest line may form.
□ Consider having limited operating hours to begin with. Give yourself enough time to thoroughly clean
and sanitize your center every night. Will your market immediately support your center being open
7 days a week or being open until late night?
□ Assign an employee(s) who’s only job is to continuously wipe down all contact surfaces throughout
your center, including counters, restrooms, arcade games, door handles, etc.
□ When you are limited to a total number of guests in your center, have a greeter assigned to count guests
entering and leaving to ensure compliance. If you have multiple entrances, use additional employees,
and communicate using walkie talkies. These employees should greet and direct your guests.
□ Encourage contactless payment, using only credit / debit / game cards.
□ Cover/put out of use your water fountains.
□ Install plexiglass barriers at counters, between your employees and guests.
□ In your restrooms, cover/put out of use every other hand washing faucet and men’s urinal to insure
social distancing.

EMPLOYEES
□ Screen all employees before their shifts for any illness. Use a touchless thermometer to take
temperatures of all employees.
□ Train all employees the proper method of washing their hands.
□ Require the use of face masks by all employees.
□ Require the use of gloves for all employees handling food and beverage.
BOWLING
□ Use every other lane to insure social distancing of at least 6 feet. If two separate parties are using the
same ball return, a bowler from one party may accidentally pick up a bowling ball from the other party
– hence a possible transfer of the virus.
□ Require online lane reservations for all or certain times of the day. This will help limit your traffic
flow and potentially maximize it.
□ Remove tables and seating to allow social distancing. Or use different color tablecloths, signage,
yellow caution tape, etc. to mark the seating area not in use.
□ Determine if your spectator seating follows social distancing. Remove or mark seating if not in
compliance.
□ Remove all House Balls from the racks. Have a variety of balls on each ball return. A guest can go to
the bowling counter to get a different ball if necessary. Staff needs to disinfect only those balls on the
ball return.
□ OR, give each bowler a single use disinfect wipe so they can wipe down the ball that they choose off
the rack. Have your guests leave the House Balls on the ball return after use. Have your employees
disinfect the balls and place them back on the rack.
□ When disinfecting the seating area, make sure all surface areas are wiped down, including
tablets/consoles, ball returns, and both the topside and underside of chairs and tables.
□ Disinfect Rental Shoes after use, including the shoelaces/Velcro strap. An additional quick
disinfectant spray when issuing Rental Shoes could give a positive perception.

LEAGUE BOWLING
□ Consider your long season/spring leagues to be finished. You may have bowlers who feel that they
“have to” finish because everyone else wants to. It is unknown if there would be any liability on the
center if a league bowler contracts COVID-19 because they had to finish a league.
□ Start fresh with summer leagues. Have the leagues start in mid to late June. If social distancing is still
in place have each team bowl on their own pair of lanes.

ARCADE
□ Move games to have at least 6 feet between them; remove games from the arcade; or only turn on
enough games to have social distancing. This includes your game card dispensers.
□ Allow only members of the same party to ride/play any multi-player games at the same time.
□ Limit the number of people or groups in the arcade.
□ Use stanchions or floor decals at the card/token dispenser and at the redemption counter for social
distancing.
□ If using a card system, have the guest hold their card as your employee scans the card to get the point
values.
□ Once the guest touches a redemption prize, there are no returns.
□ Disinfect all games continuously.

PRO SHOP
□ Have concourse service only. Place a table at the door so only the Pro Shop employees are in the shop.
□ Have signage limiting the number of guests in the Pro Shop.
□ Have Pro Shop lane to lane concierge service. An employee brings requested products to the guests on
the lanes.
CAFÉ/BAR
□ Have single-use menus. Create your menu using Word or Photoshop. Print/copy a limited number of
menus so you can make changes often based on product availability and price changes.
□ Cover/remove any self-serve items or dispensers.
□ Provide individual condiment/seasoning packets.
□ Use disposables when possible.
□ Provide prepackaged utensils.
□ Do not offer refills. Use only new cups or clean glasses to touch a soda dispenser/beer tap.
□ Use stanchion or floor decals to control social distancing.
□ Remove tables and seating to allow social distancing. Or use different color tablecloths, signage, yellow
caution tape, etc. to mark the seating area not in use.

LASER TAG
□ Limit the number of players based on your arena size to allow social distancing.
□ Have at least two employees in the arena during play to monitor social distancing.
□ Sanitize the vests after each use.
□ Sanitize any contact points in the arena between matches.

ALL OTHER ATTRACTIONS

□ Ensure that the attraction has social distancing controls by limiting group sizes.
□ Sanitize all contact points after use.