TOP-LEVEL tenpin bowling is set to make a return to the region after almost two decades.

The Gold Coast Tenpin Cup, which will be held at Coolangatta-Tweed Tenpin in August, will see Australia's best bowlers converge for a nationally ranked event for the first time since an Australian Masters event at Burleigh Heads in 1998.

After such a long absence, tournament director Doug Kirby said the time to act was now to breathe life back into tenpin bowling, which has long been a staple of social sport in the region.

He said with some 2000 regular league bowlers registered across the Gold Coast and Tweed, the tournament would also create an elite pathway.

"It's tournaments like this that keep bowls in the spotlight, and to be bringing a national-ranked tournament back will help to keep the sport alive on the coast and throughout the country,” Kirby said.

"We want to put our sport back in the forefront of the minds of the public and showcase what a great spectacle our sport is.

"It will also generate thousands of dollars for the Gold Coast and Tweed regions in revenue through the participation of bowlers from all over Australia and overseas.”

The tournament forms the evolution of the Gold Coast Tenpin Cup, which began four years ago at Robina as a non-national ranked event.

Increasing in participation and popularity, this year signals the first time Tenpin Bowling Australia-registered bowlers will compete for more than $21,000 in prizes and Australian Championship Masters tally points.

Running from August 18-20, the Cup has attracted male and female TBA bowlers from Australia and abroad, who will go head to head in 10 games of qualifying to decide a top 24.

The top 24 will play-off to make the top 15, which will become a top five, who'll battle it out for the championship crown.

"It's all individual bowling, an open event with men, women and youth bowlers, which is really good to see. The experience they get out of facing the country's best is invaluable,” Kirby said.

"It's also really good that females are coming out and showing they can mix it with the best men in the country.”

Kirby said the decision to hold the Cup south of the border was an easy one, with Coolangatta-Tweed Tenpin and local businesses, including naming sponsor Global Travel & Cruise, strongly behind the concept.

"Coolangatta-Tweed is a great little centre. This is where a lot of bowling careers start, so it's good to get back to the grassroots of bowling,” he said.

"I couldn't be more thankful to sponsors like Global Travel & Cruise, who make it all possible.

"I started bowling here when I was six years old. My nan and mum worked here. It's great to come back to where it all started and to be bringing a national-ranked tournament back to the coast.”

Limited spots remain for open for TBA bowlers. Visit Gold Coast Tenpin Cup on Facebook for more.