Writing off bowling expenses on taxes

[JaxBowlingGuy]

Ok so heres the thing..I have won a good chunkof $$ this season and will have to claim it this year on taxes... Whats is the process for writing off expenses..entries..travel...equipment..practice... I know all of this can be done but have never been sure how.. and also do you need to have proof of all the the purchases?? I mean i can write off almost all my winnings just in equipment..just not sure if i still have all the papers for it.. Any help would be great

[kev3inp]

I'm pretty sure you can write off expenses to the amount of winnings, but not more than that. You'll be itemizing deductions, too, if I understand it correctly. You might want to ask KAKCPA about it and see if he'll give you some free advice.

[NoTapNorm]

kev3inp is correct. You can only write off the expenses if you already itemize. If you dont already itemize, usually the standard deduction is more than what you have to write off. If I'm not mistaken, you can write off nearly everything- as long as you have documented proof-receipts.

[JaxBowlingGuy]

i guess ill just start saving all my receipts from here on outand see what i come up with

[kev3inp]

This is one instance where it's not better to have gifts than receipts.

[JaxBowlingGuy]

well i buy like 99.9% of all my own stuff so im good if i can find the receipts...lol

[JAnderson]

It helps to think about running your bowling as a business if you're going to be getting a tax form 1099. You will also need to pay payroll taxes quarterly. If you wait until the end of the year, you end up paying the payroll taxes plus penalties and interest. Depending on the number of digits on your 1099, the penalties and interest can be anything from about $50 on up. Fortunately, 2009 will be my third year getting a 1099 for my bowling, so I'm getting this down to an art form, thanks to my accountant.

Anything related to winning money via bowling becomes a related expense and is tax deductible. Save all receipts that you can. Airfare, food, hotel, rental car, practice games, bowling equipment, tournament entry fees, side pot entry fees, can all be itemized and deducted. If you're on a strictly bowling trip, the IRS will cut you some slack on certain things such as not having food receipts. They expect you to eat a reasonable amount of feed every day, even if you don't have receipts. You should document what you spend - how much, when, and where. Keep things organized, it makes putting together documentation for taxes at the end of the year easier.

Certain other expenses - such as mileage to and from the bowling center using your own vehicle - can be itemized and deducted, but to be safe, you should keep detailed records. With mileage as an example, my wife and I have one car that we use for all bowling trips. When we take that car anywhere - bowling related or not - we keep detailed notes in a journal for starting and ending mileage. Even if I'm just driving to the center and back for practice, it's deducted: when, where, why, and how many miles. If we are ever audited, we can show the IRS that we're not just making up numbers out of the air - we have detailed records.

My wife and I use an accountant. He costs us $200 per year and is worth every penny because he always finds things we miss which results in a larger return. (The first year, his return was $2500 more than the return we would have gotten based on the return we did ourselves). He also keeps us out of the legal gray areas in case we are ever audited. Not everyone needs an accountant, but it has been a big help to us.