Census Golf League Rules and Scoring Guide

Transcription

1 Census Golf League Rules and Scoring Guide Version Season Document Approval

2 Golf Committee John Leidich Census Golf Club Executive Board Census Golf Club President Matthew Konya Census Golf Club Executive Board Golf League Commissioner Frank Fisiorek Census Golf Club Executive Board Census Golf Events Cathy Ayoob Census Golf Club Executive Board Census Golf Club Treasurer David Adams Census Golf Club Executive Board Census Golf Club Championship Commissioner

3 Table of Contents Section 1 League rules Pre Match rules Tee times, late arrivals no show, cancellation, and forfeits Cancellations 6 4. Matching scorecards.7 5. Eligible Subs 7 6. Players on a team Pace of play 9 8. Conceding putts Golden Rule 10 Section 2 League Scoring...10 Part 1 Handicap and Scoring...10 Part 2 Special Conditions and FAQs...16 Signature Page.18

4 Section 1 League Rules Purpose This guide was created to address ongoing issues and concerns with league play. This document does not contain PGA official rules unless explicitly stated, which are also to be adhered to for match play. THIS GUIDE ONLY APPLIES TO SITUATIONS WHERE TEAMS, PLAYERS, OR INDIVIDUALS, CAN NOT AGREE TO TERMS ON THEIR OWN PRIOR OR POST MATCH, OR ANY OTHER REASON A PLAYER/S MAY NEED TO REFERENCE IT. The Census Golf League consists of match play events. PGA official rules define match play as: Match play's basic regulations are contained in Rule 2 of the United States Golf Association's standard Rules of Golf, which defines match play as one side playing against another over a stipulated round." Match competition is played by holes. Note the word stipulated. While we have rules for scoring and other guidelines, it is important to understand that the four individuals involved in the Census Golf League match, have the responsibility to come to agreements prior to a match. The CGL rules are intended to set a standar d of what can and cannot be done when agreements cannot be reached. These rules are also meant to help all teams understand the importance of the competition of the league, and to take it serious, yet have fun while doing so. However, having fun does not mean a team does not have to commit to the golf league they signed up for, as well as the agreements that go with signing up. The CGL is a firm commitment and only teams that can firmly commit, should sign up. 1. Pre-Match Rules Prior to a match, the parties involved, should communicate on a time to appear at the course and exchange cell phone numbers. 1.1 It is the responsibility of all parties involved, to agree on handicaps before the match is played. 1.2 Players should have an established handicap, or trend that can be used, from the MSGA (Maryland State Golf Association) 1.3 A player can have an official handicap elsewhere, but it must be an official recognize d handicap service sanctioned by the USGA 1.4 If an agreement cannot be reached on what a players index/handicap is prior to the match, then the following rule applies: If a player does not have an established handicap or trend

5 index, and an agreement cannot be reached prior to the tee off of a match, then he/she has a one round grace period where he/she can play as having the following index for 18 holes: Scratch or 0 if he/she believes he/she usually shoot below an 85. If he/she usually shoot above an 85 he/she can have a max index for 18 holes of 10. An index of 10 plays as follows at Enterprise: Blue White Gold Red B W W G R Gender Index B Back G Back R Back Front Front Back Front Front M F If a team plays with a player more than once, who does not have an official handicap, that individu al player will now play as scratch or 0 from there on out, until a handicap or trend is established. *Note the CGL can accept a trend index for its play. We have had major issues in the past years with players playing without a handicap. *Note when bringing a player for your team who does not have an index, or a player playing without an index, it puts the opponent in a very favorable situation to win, thus taking the competitive nature out of the sport. This matters because you re giving a team points, where other teams are fighting to get those points, and this all takes from the competitive spirit. However, it is difficult to prove a person s handicap without data, therefore it is strongly encouraged that a handicap be establish e d and used prior to any match for the CGL. *Note the following websites can be referenced to help establish an ad hoc handicap trend, if team memebers agree to it. Free Handicap Calculator or.net /golf-handicap-calculat or 2. Tee times, late arrivals no show, cancellation, and forfeits Tee times, or times to meet at the club house, will be agreed on prior to a match. If a team member is not on time, they will be given a 15 minute grace period. After the grace period is over, the opposing team will have the right to decide if they want to start the match. If they decide to start the match, the the late/absent team/player(s) they are playing against will have to join at the subsequent hole, and incur scores of 0 for the match play card on prior hole/s un-played. Tee times should be made prior to a match and teams will now have the ability to enforce a no later than start policy. This is due to constraints of darkness and also to be considerat e of your opponent s time.

6 The latest a tee time can be made, unless all players involved agree to something different, will follow the below stated guidelines: March 1-May 31-5:15pm May 31-end of season- 5:45 This means any team not at the club house on the schedule time, and using their grace period, which would be 5:30pm March 1-May 31, or 6:00pm May 31-end of season, can expect their opponents start the round without them, if the opponents so desire. No show-if a team does not show up after there is evidence of an agreed time and date to meet, that is considered a forfeit and the opposing team will receive all match points. 2.1 The forfeiting team will be issued a warning if this happen once. If it happens a second time during the year, the team will forfeit their league place, and be placed on a one year suspension to return. Lastly, they will not be refunded any portion of their League fees. 2.2 Opponents of team who lost their place due to a suspension, will still play their match on the scheduled dates if no back fill team can be developed. The opponents of the suspended team will play against a card from a prior match of the suspended team. The match card will be drawn at random post match. This is assuming the card is from the current season. If no card exists, a random card will be drawn from another team during the same week that the complaint team is playing against the suspended team. 2.3 Opponents of team who lost their place due to a suspension, will still play their match on the scheduled dates if no back fill team can be developed. The opponents of the suspend e d team will play against a card from a prior match of the suspended team. The match card will be drawn at random post match. This is assuming the card is from the current season. If no card exists, a random card will be drawn from another team during the same week that the complaint team is playing against the suspended team. 3. Cancellations the day of a match 3.1 Teams should be courteous of other people s time and dedication and should avoid day of cancellations Each team will be allowed one day of cancel without penalty. After that, the team will be subject to possible suspension if it occurs again Extenuating circumstances can happen, and exceptions can be made Note-The following are not considered extenuating circumstances Deciding to work late the day of a match If a member or team decide to work late, the team will still be expected to show up to the course, even if late, and follow the Later arrival policy in part 1 #5 of this document. If a team does not show up, because of working late, it will be treated as a forfeit. Partner is unavailable Couldn t find a sub the day of with no prior day/s communication If communications occurs prior to the day of a match suggesting one team is actively looking for a sub and they hope to find one, and that the other team should plan on playing, this will be considered an acceptable form of communication

7 4. Matching scorecards 4.1 Matching of scorecards should be avoided at all costs and teams should try to play all matches for fairness and competiveness If teams agree on matching cards from a previous week it is allowed under the following conditions: A team will not be allowed to use a week to match multiple scorecards. This means that any one scorecard can only have a max of one allowed scorecard match to go along with it. The max a team can match scorecards is for 2 matches, and that has to be two different scorecards. If a team has three matches left, and they can only play one, then they will need to use a scorecard from a prior week drawn at random. If a team needs to match more than two scorecards, they will be subject to possible suspension for the current and subsequent season, and may also forfeit their chances to participate in the playoffs. The team who cannot make the Wednesday night will be subject to the team who gets counted against for scorecards being matched towards the 2 allowed It is recommend the teams try and make up matches on bye or open nights, or any other day and time that works for them Extenuating circumstances can be granted with Executive Board approval for matching scorecards more than twice, but this will not be granted without due process. 5. Eligible subs 5.1 This part intends to provide guidance on who can, and cannot sub for a golf league match. The CGL (Census Golf League) would like to always try and recruit new talent, or individu al s looking to play for fun but understand the competition aspect of the CGL also.a team may sponsor a non-census golf club member up to two times a year. This is a player who is not a member of the CGL or CGC (Census Golf Cub). It is recommended the player have an official handicap or use the guidelines above stated in part 2.1, or agree upon a handicap with their opponents. If a player has some scores, but not an official index, and the other team is ok with taking the scores to get an index, the below may be useful. Useful links To calculate an index visit: Free Handicap Calculator or.net /golf-handicap-calculat or 5.2 If a team uses a player more than twice outside of the CGC, that player will have to play as 0 that match, and all subsequent matches, until they become a member with an established handicap.

8 5.3 If a player on one CGL team, wants to sub for another team, it is ok to do one time only if the following conditions occur: The player subbing is not the sole cause for missing their match on the same day The player subbing is not playing on a team with another sub who is in the CGL, as one of the players must be a an official team member *Note-In other words, we will allow everyone one change and one chance only to play or sub on another team. Once a player subs on another team, they cannot sub again for any team the remainder of the season. *Note-this is a change from the usual norm or word of mouth was. However, in order to help meet the demand of getting matches in, and also bringing a fun aspect into the league of getting to play with other possible friends and colleagues and experiment with possible future playing partners for league outings or events, we will allow all a one time sub play for another team. 6. How many players can be on a team? 6.1 A team must have two players, but it is not limited to two players. However for record keeping and scoring, only two names will be used for the team name and at registration. 6.2 A team can have more than two players, and those additional players are eligible to sub and must follow rules associated with Entry fees will be based on per an individual, per team. Therefore a team with 6 players at a cost of $20 a player, will pay $120 to enter the league. A team of 2, will pay $40. The reasoning for this is because the more people considered in the league, the more backend work needs to be done. In addition, the league wants to promote teams of two, while teams with more than two can also be potential subs for other teams. 7. Pace of Play and on course rules 7.1 Please adhere to the following rules for pace of play USGA rules for pace of play will be enforced Turn cell phone ringers off during matches Do not talk on the phone if it is going to affect your pace of play during a match Teams who get reported as violating these rules and causing a disturbance, will be issued a warning. If behavior continues, they are subject to suspension for the year. 8. Conceding Putts 8.1 Conceding putts is allowed. If anyone of an individuals two opponents during a match concedes a put to their opponent, then that person who has been told they no longer need to putt the ball, must not putt it in order to prevent revealing the line of the roll. If they do putt, both the individual and their teammate lose the hole for violating this rule. If you want to putt for fun after the hole is scored and conceded just for fun, that is fine.

9 9. The Golden Rule 9.1 The golden rule for CGL is simple. Whatever parties agree to pre-match, that is what is followed. If agreements cannot be reached for whatever reason, then one can look to these rules or guidelines The CGL Commissioner, and Golf Committee, want to intervene as little as possible and want to create a clear approach on when what needs to be done for certain situations, citing these rules and guidelines. The idea of let s play now and we ll figure it out later is one of caution and is advised against for fear of how it can impact the post round score. Communication prior to the match, as always, is key.

10 Section 2 League Scoring Purpose The purpose of this section is to explain how scoring works for the CGL play. Introduction to Census Golf League Scoring This scoring system is unique to Census and designed to provide a fun, competitive atmosphere where every player has a chance to contribute on every hole. For each 9 hole 2 team competition, there are 3 course handicap adjusted match play style games with a maximum of 1 point that can be earned for the winner of each match. Ties will result in the 1 point being split in half between the two participants/teams. Match play is a scoring system for golf in which a player, or team, earns a point for each hole in which they have bested their opponents; this is as opposed to stroke play, in which the total number of strokes is counted over one or more rounds of 18 holes. At the end of the match, the player or team with the most points wins that game resulting in 1 point earned for that team. If at the end of 9 holes the score is tied, each team will get ½ a point for that game. For the Census golf league, the 3 match play games are played as follows: Game 1: Team 1 Player A (golfer with the lowest handicap) versus Team 2 Player A (golfer with lowest handicap). Game 2: Team 1 Player B (golfer with the highest handicap) versus Team 2 Player B (golfer with the highest handicap). Game 3: Team 1 lowest score versus Team 2 lowest score for each hole. In the event that both players on a team have the same handicap, that team must identify who is player A and Player B prior to the start of the match. Part 1 Handicap and scoring What is my Course Handicap? A "Handicap Index" is the USGA's service mark used to indicate a measurement of a player's potential ability on a course of standard playing difficulty. It is expressed as a number taken to one decimal place (e.g., 10.4) and is used for conversion to a Course Handicap. Every member of the Census golf league is required to maintain a Handicap Index. To determine your Handicap Index, you'll need your last five scores and information from the courses you shot those scores on, namely slope and course rating. Please note that the golf league committee handles entering scores from the golf league matches. Once you've got your Handicap Index, you can easily transfer it from your home course to any USGA course in the country. A Course Handicap represents the number of strokes needed to play to the level of a scratch golfer or the Course Rating of a particular set of tees. A Course Handicap is expressed as a whole number (e.g. 10). To get your Course Handicap, take the Handicap Index and multiply it by the slope rating of the tees played. Once you have that number, divide it by Standard Slope Rating (113) to get your answer (rounded to the nearest whole number,.4 rounds down and.5 rounds up). An example of a course handicap for 18 holes is: Player Index: 18.7

11 18 hole slope rating: 123 Course Handicap = (18.7 * 123) / 113 = 20.35, which is 20.4, gets rounded down to 20. *Note, if a handicap would happen to be 20.45, that would get rounded to 20.5 which then goes to 21, this is particular tricky situation that is often misunderstood. When you are playing 9 holes, the course handicap calculation is conducted in a similar manner with the following exceptions: Since you are only playing 9 holes, you divide your Handicap Index by 2 to get your 9 hole index. Instead of using the slope rating for 18 holes, use the slope rating for the 9 holes. Each set of tees is rated on a nine hole basis and it is not always the case that half of the strokes fall on the front nine and half on the back nine. An example of a course handicap for 9 holes is: Player Index: hole slope rating: 125 Course Handicap = ((18.7 / 2) * 125) / 113 = 10.3 rounded down to 10. NOTE*.45 gets rounded to.5 which gets rounded again to the next whole number, a common error not always accounted for For your convenience, the golf league will provide the following for all players in the golf league: Handicap Index Course Handicap for each set of tees at Enterprise. If you are playing at a different course, the follow resources are available to support course slope/rating identification and your Course Handicap: The Golfnet Course Database TM for the most up to date ratings, Also, the USGA has a Course Handicap calculator available online at, The USGA Handicap System manual is available to view online at, Books/Handicap System Manual/Handicap Manual/ Who gets strokes? If you are playing at Enterprise, the easiest way to calculate who gets strokes is to use the course scorecard tool located at: An example of how to use the tool will be provided in the subsequent section. From a counting perspective, let s examine who would get strokes given the following scenario playing on the Front 9 at Enterprise: CH = Course Handicap AD = Adjustments from playing different tees (explained in a subsequent section) MH = Match Handicap: CH AD Player Tee CH AD MH Team Game Team 1 Player 1 Team 2 Player 1 Team 1 Player 1 (M) White N/A Team 1 Player 2 (M) White N/A 0 Team 2 Player 1 (M) White N/A Team 2 Player 2 (M) White N/A 13 Team 1 Player 2 Team 2 Player 2 NOTE: The N/A refers to not applicable since these players are part of that team game. What happens if we play different tees? If one or more of the players are playing different tees, strokes are adjusted based on the rating for the

12 set of 9 holes. The golf league provides a table to help calculate the adjustments at: From a counting perspective, let s examine who would get strokes using the previous scenario and changing Team 1 Player 1 from the White to the Blue Tees. This scenario could be represented in the Multitee matrix as depicted below where all the player playing from the Blue Tees gets a 1 stroke addition to their Course Handicap.

13 This 1 stroke adjustment for the player playing at the Blue Tess is further illustrated by the table below. CH = Course Handicap AD = Adjustments from playing different tees (explained in a subsequent section) MH = Match Handicap: CH AD Player Tee CH AD MH Team Game Team 1 Player 1 Team 2 Player 1 Team 1 Player 1 (M) Blue N/A Team 1 Player 2 (M) White N/A 0 Team 2 Player 1 (M) White N/A Team 2 Player 2 (M) White N/A 13 Team 1 Player 2 Team 2 Player 2 How do you determine what holes to apply the strokes on? Each hole is assigned a level of difficulty with the lower number representing the more difficult hole. When playing a match, the golfer with the higher handicap receives handicap strokes equal to the difference between his handicap and that of his opponent. Strokes are applied to the more difficult holes first, with multiple strokes being assigned for handicap differences of more than 9. From our running example where Team 2 Player 1 is getting 14 strokes from Team 1 Player 1 in their match, Team 2 Player 1 would 2 strokes on the hardest 5 holes and 1 stroke on the remaining 4 holes as depicted below:

14 Keeping Score During Play As identified in the Introduction section, for each 9 hole 2 team competition, there are 3 course handicap adjusted match play style games with a maximum of 1 point that can be earned for the winner of each match. Game 1: Team 1 Player with the highest handicap index versus Team 2 Player with the highest handicap index Game 2: Team 1 Player with the lowest handicap index versus Team 2 Player with the lowest handicap index Game 3: Team game where the player with the lowest score for the hole wins that hole for their team The following point allocations are possible as a final outcome of the 9 hole round. Team 1 Team An example of how to create the scorce card from the Census Golf website, read the symbols and keep score is illustrated in the processing series of graphics using the scenario previously described in this document. Visit to create the scorecard entering the players names, tee and handicap. When you hit Make Card, a score card will be generated with the appropriate stroke allocations. This card can be printed and used to keep score on during the round. From the perspective of Team 1, the score card has been filled out and scores have been talleyed as an example of how to keep score during play.

15 The score card will come with symbols and a ledgend to interpet the symbols. Here are some examples of the symbols and their meaning. / = Player gets 1 stroke for the Team game only / = Player gets 1 stroke for both the Team game and Individual game // = Player gets 2 strokes for both the Team game and Individual game //ˉ = Player gets 2 strokes for the Team game and 1 stroke for the Individual game The example scoring below has Team 1 winning 1 point and Team 2 winning 2 points. Also note that Hole 2 for Team 1 Player 1 is an example of where Equitable Stroke Control comes into play. Equitable Stroke Control is part of the USGA Handicap System, and is a feature of that system that is designed to minimize the effects of "disaster holes" on a golfer's handicap index. In this case, Team 1 Player 1 has a Handicap Index of 2 which carries a Maximum per hole score of a double bogey. On hole 2, this player had a triple bogey. For the purposes of the Census golf league this is scored as a triple bogey. When the score for this player is entered into the handicap tracking system, this score will be entered as a 7 for this hole instead of an 8.

16 T T T2 Team 1: 1 point Team 2: 2 points Part 2 Special Conditions and FAQ There a number of special conditions that can occur while playing your round. Here are a few possible Q and A: 1) How many holes are needed for a match to be official? 5 holes need to be completed. The last completed hole is considered final. If less than 5 holes have been completed, the match is rescheduled and starts with a fresh score. For example, you have 4 completed holes and midway through the 5 th you get rained out and can t start up the same day, then you need to restart the match. You just finished the 5 th hole, and get rained out, you can score your match and count it as complete 2) What happens if a player is injured during play and cannot continue? Follow USGA official rule?

17 3) What happens if I m not sure about a particular rule, or a situation that is occurring and I don t know my options? It is a player s responsibility to understand the rules and know how to use and enforce them. Therefore all players are encouraged to read up on and understand USGA rules. 4) What happens if during a round me and a player disagree on a rule? During play, each player is responsible for their own play. If a player is suspected of making the wrong play or an illegal play, the scorecard can be subject to being changed after the match if another player identifies the wrong or illegal move, and can show how that was considered illegal.