Residents Bowl to celebrate champion, moderator
Urology residents put passion and knowledge to the test.
The Residents Bowl has become an exciting tradition and perennial favorite at the AUA Annual Meeting. Members enjoy supporting their resident colleagues and watching them duke it out for the title.
This year’s event in San Antonio will have more than a winning team to celebrate. The AUA will recognize and thank Gary J. Faerber, MD, FACS, its inaugural Residents Bowl moderator. Dr. Faerber previously served as emcee for the AUA North Central Section Residents Bowl, and he helped usher the competition to the national stage in 2012 after being approached by Drs. Dennis Pessis (then incoming AUA president) and Gopal Badlani (then AUA secretary). Dr. Faerber continued to donate his time and talent to the annual event but has decided that AUA2024 will be his last year. 
Dr. Gary J. Faerber, Residents Bowl emcee
“It's wonderful that the AUA provides this truly entertaining format for the residents at the Annual Meeting,” said Dr. Faerber, who is professor of urology and interim chair of urology at Duke University School of Medicine in Durham, North Carolina. “My hope is that the AUA will continue to support this great annual event for the foreseeable future.”
Bradley Schwartz, DO, FACS, who has co-moderated the bowl with Dr. Faerber for the past several years, said his colleague has had much to do with its success.
“Without his mentorship, guidance and leadership, the AUA Residents Bowl would not have flourished into what it is today,” said Dr. Schwartz, who is professor and Frank and Linda Vala Endowed Chairman of Urology at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine in Springfield. “The future is bright because of his dedication and ownership of this event.”
As in past years, teams from each of the eight AUA Sections will compete, tackling topics from the history of urology to urological subspecialties and new research. Residents will answer quiz-style questions in front of the live audience and will get the chance to call on lifelines, use passes or solve bonus questions—all of which make the games more interactive and engaging.
Each Section team has also once again been paired with a nominated resident from one of AUA’s international society partners. This year’s global trainees come from Brazil, Egypt, India, Italy, Japan, Korea, the United Kingdom and Argentina—of which the Sociedad Argentina de Urología is participating for the first time.
AUA Member Engagement Coordinator Amanda Burns said the Residents Bowl is truly unique because it involves the contributions of so many, including subspecialty experts who develop the questions, Section leaders who judge the games, committee members who help with logistics and residents who participate, as well as AUA staff members and others.
“I’m incredibly impressed with how intelligent the resident participants are,” Dr. Faerber said. “It seems each year the question writers have to step up their game to create challenging questions for the resident contestants.”
The teams competing this year are:
- GU Tang Clan (Mid-Atlantic Section)
- I Knew LUER Trouble When You LOCKed In (New England Section)
- P-Unit (Western Section)
- Pirates of the Perineum (North Central Section)
- Scrotal Recall (South Central Section)
- The City That Never Sleepwets (New York Section)
- The Dribblers (Northeastern Section)
- UroJet Setters (Southeastern Section)
“Both attendees and participants get into the spirit of the game, and it makes for great entertainment,” said AUA Member Engagement Manager Stephen Alleyne. “This year is particularly exciting because the reigning champions from the Mid-Atlantic Section are two-time winners. I think everyone is waiting to see if they clinch a three-peat.”
The Resident Bowl will take place over three days, located at the Residents Pavilion (Booth 159) in the Science & Technology Hall. All eight teams will compete Friday, May 3, with the winner of each game advancing to the semifinals on Saturday, May 4. The final showdown will be held at 1 p.m. Sunday, May 5, where one team will be crowned victor.
Alleyne and Burns urge members to attend and be part of the action—either cheering on a favorite team or playing along with the residents to test their own knowledge. No matter the reason, they said celebrating Dr. Faerber’s contributions will be icing on the cake.
“Urology is a competitive specialty … and the [event] gives residents the opportunity to show how passionate and knowledgeable they are about their field of expertise,” Alleyne said. “And when you add a little friendly competition to all of that passion and energy, you get the perfect recipe for a fun event.”
