The 50th annual Owensboro Dust Bowl is set to returns to Kendall-Perkins Park on July 21-29. The tournament features both 5-on-5 and 3-on-3 formats with several divisions for ages 3rd grade to adults, but the event goes beyond playing basketball.
“The spectators, the fans, the people. That’s what makes the Dust Bowl to me and that’s what it’s all about is people and diversity,” said Byron Owen, who’s served at President of the event for the last few years.
The tournament will include the following divisions: Men’s Open; Women’s Open, High School Boys; High School Girls; JV Boys (9th and 10th grades); JV Girls (9th and 10th grades); 7th and 8th Grade Boys; 7th and 8th Grade Girls; 5th and 6th Grade Boys; 5th and 6th Grade Girls; 3rd and 4th Grade Boys; and 3rd and 4th Grade Girls.
The overall event will also have different themed nights throughout the week, such as Praise in the Park on July 23 and Kids Day on July 26.
Owen said the spirit of the Dust Bowl is bringing people together, and he’s thankful that the tournament has continuously grown and become a diverse event for the community — all while remaining a free event for the public to attend.
“We’ve got a lot of people that are originally from Owensboro that live all around the country and they make their plans to come by, and we get calls all year long to confirm the dates so people can travel,” he said.
In addition to the tournament, Owen mentioned that it’s a great opportunity for local businesses to connect with customers as they set up booths throughout the park.
Owen said all applications to be involved — whether as a player, vendor, sponsor or otherwise — must be turned in by July 1. Applications be filled out on their website.
