Vega Baja Premier Golf League

VEGA BAJA PREMIER GOLF LEAGUE

Premier and Championship Divisions

REGULATIONS AND RULES OF THE LEAGUE

All matches will conform to the Rules of Golf as administered by The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews.

The Premier Division will be a maximum of eight teams.

The Championship Division will be a maximum of eight teams.

The following details of the league will remain in force for the season and no changes will be made during the season.

The last two teams of the Premier Division will be relegated to the Championship Division and the first and second place teams promoted to the Premier Division.

In the case of teams having the same number of points, the team with the most wins will be the victor. If they were, still the same then the team that scored the most Stableford points over the season will be awarded the first place.

The two divisions will be administered by the committee, which will consist of Secretary, Treasurer, with input from each participating Society of the two divisions.

Any meetings will be held as called by The Secretary.

HANDICAPPING

This will be carried out using the Slope System as introduced in June 2000 and amended in July 2008 by The Spanish Golf Federation, including utilising of the 5 categories as specified for making any adjustments. (Also see NOTES at the end of this document)

RULES & REGULATIONS

The rules and regulations of the League for the coming season are:

1.     Each society that joins the League will be required to pay an annual 50€ registration fee to cover the administration costs of the League.

2.     There will be a maximum of 25 registered players for each society from which the eight players will be selected. The names of the players have to be emailed to the League Secretary on the Player Registration Sheet provided, NO LATER than the 23rd of August. It is preferred that each registered player has a current Spanish Federation licence, its number to be entered with the player’s name.

3.     The selection of the 8 players for the matches will be supplied to The League Secretary by 20:00hrs Tuesday evening prior to the game, on the Team Sheet provided, the two reserves can be named on the Team Sheet.

The Team Sheet has to be sent to the Caddy Master on the Wednesday morning.

The two reserves will be in the order of 1 and 2 and would replace a player that has   dropped out and the playing order would not be changed. It will be on a one for one basis.

In the event of a second player being unable to play then reserve number 2 would be    used, again the playing order would not change.

The League Secretary should be notified where possible prior to the matches. If

unable to do this, then the Match Secretary is advised immediately on arrival at the venue

4.     There will be no change to these named players when the League matches have commenced. This includes the inability to field a full strength team.

5.     Each player will be registered with his/her LOWEST exact handicap, wherever or whatever that is.

6.     All exact handicaps of all players will use the Slope Chart of the course.

7.     The maximum handicaps including the Slope of a course will be: -  

                                  22 Men and 26 Ladies.

8.     After Society competitions adjustments to registered players handicaps should be made and form part of the team selection to the League Secretary. Past handicaps for players will be checked from the Result Sheets, Team selections and media reports.

9.     R&A: The committee and/or referees will have the right to make a decision in equity when it is not possible to complete the matches for reasons such as, inclement weather.

10.  R&A: In respect of “Professional” players (e.g. teaching professionals) that have a golf handicap the committee will allow entry into the League competitions. Team competitions are not governed by the R&A, this explanation is provided by the R&A. Others will play from a scratch handicap.

11.  R&A: Distance – Measuring Devices

For all play, a player may obtain distance in formation by using a device that measures distance only. If a player uses such a device that is designed to gauge or measure other conditions that might affect his play the player is in breach of Rule 14-3 for which the penalty is disqualification, regardless of whether any such function is used. The League prefer GPS devices as these provide instant measurements as Laser devices can contribute to slow play.

HANDICAP ADJUSTMENTS

1. To ensure there is no suspicion of handicap protection.. It is an essential requirement of Handicapping, that all Qualifying competitions will have the players Exact Handicap adjusted with the Slope of the Course, on which the competition is being played, thus providing a Playing Handicap. Should any registered member have membership of another society,  the Secretaries will advise their opposite number of any under par scores or changes

2. As soon as all the registered players’ lists are in, and exact handicaps calculated, they will be made available to each Secretary.

3. Stableford points will be used for all cards, even if the competition is Medal or Stroke play, the Conversion Chart can be used for this purpose.

4. All adjustments will be based on Stableford points

The success of ensuring that handicaps are correctly administered is in the honesty of us all and the individual players, overall it is the player’s responsibility to ensure that they are playing off the correct and lowest handicap.

Any handicap discrepancies could result in disqualification

FIXTURES & SCORING

FIXTURES

1.     The Fixture Schedule will be made available in August with the Premier Division Champions playing the first match.

2.     The first games for the Premier Division will be on the first Friday of the month.(With the exception of January where it be the second Friday) All games to be played on the same day.

3.     Championship Division games will be played on the second Friday of the month. (With the exception of January where it be the third Friday) All games to be played on the same day.

4.     It will be a condition that Teams are committed to the Fixtures, and there will be no changes to these fixtures or dates, other than that created by adverse weather conditions. Failure to play will result in 12 points being award to the opposing team.

SCORING and SCORE CARDS

1. Each game will be combined Stableford, playing off FULL Playing Handicap. That is the total points of the teams two players are added together and compared with that of the other team, and the team with the highest number of points will be declared the winner. The society with the most number of wins takes the points.

2. The points will be allocated 3 points for a pair’s win and 1 point for a draw.

3. At the end of each game the total points scored by each match will be totalled and the Society with the most points will gain an extra 3 bonus points.

4. If the two Societies have equal Stableford points at the end of their match then each Society will be allocated one point each.

5. Adjustments to handicaps will be made for each player, directly after the games and handicap secretaries notified of the scores and results.

6. All games will be played on the same day and on the same course.

7. R&A Rule 32 Stableford Competitions. The marker is responsible for marking only the gross number of strokes at each hole where the competitor’s net score earns one or more points.

8. R&A Rule 33.5 Score Card. In stroke play, the Committee must provide each competitor with a score card containing the date and the compeitiors name or, in foursome or four ball competitors names. In bogey, par and Stableford competitions, the Committee is responsible for applying the handicap recorded on the score card and determining the result of each hole and the overall result or point’s total.

9. R&A Rule 6 Players Responsibilities – Rule 6.6 Scoring in Stroke Play.

a: Recording Scores.

After each Hole the marker should check the score with the competitor and record it. On completion of the round the marker must sign the score card and hand it to the competitor. If more than one marker records the scores, each must sign for which he is responsible.

Note: Please only enter the GROSS scores in the box for the competitors’ name. Any points should be entered in other boxes.

b: Signing and Returning Score Card.

After completion of the round, the competitor should check his score for each hole and settle any doubtful points with the Committee. He must ensure that the marker or markers have signed the score card himself and return it to the committee as soon as possible (To the designated area and where the scores are administered) Penalty for breach of Rule 6-6b is disqualification.

c: Alteration of the Score Card

No alteration may be made on a score card after the competitior has returned it to the Committee.

d: Wrong Score for the Hole

The competitor is responsible for the correctness of the score recorded for each hole on the scorecard. If he returns a score for any hole lower than actually taken, he is disqualified. If he returns a score higher than actually taken, the scores stands.

10.  R&A Rule 34.1b. Stroke Play.

In stroke play, a penalty must not be rescinded, modified or imposed after the competition has been closed. A competition is closed when the results have been officially announced .

TEAM DISCIPLINE & PENALTIES

1.     Failure of the whole team to arrive at the allotted tee time, will forfeit the match and 12 points will be award to the opposition.

2.     Failure of individual players not arriving before the allotted tee time will be disqualified (according to the Rules of Golf).

3.     No changes will be made to the playing order as published.

4.     SLOWPLAY. In an effort to eradicate Slow Play the following will apply;

           Any four ball coming in more than 15 minutes, after the 4 ball in front will be liable for

           a 2 shot penalty per player.

5.     Scorecards should be signed and handed in to the Scorer/Competition Secretary within 15 minutes after individual matches have been completed.

The success of ensuring that handicaps are correctly administered is in the honesty of us all and the individual players, overall it is the player’s responsibility to ensure that they are playing off the correct and lowest handicap.

Any handicap discrepancies could result in disqualification.

To provide an additional aid on the day there will be a Start Sheet for all teams, which will include the exact and playing handicaps, pairings and tee times.

The League Table will be published and updated after every match.

In any disputes, the League Committee’s decision will be final.

NOTES

1

This document and Team Sheets and Registered Players Sheets can be downloaded from the VBPGL website www.vegabajapremiergolfleague.com as can the R&A Rules of Golf, Decisions on the Rules of Golf and The EGA Handicapping System.

2

Procedure for conversion of CONGU Handicap to EGA Handicap

According to EGA Handicapping System January 2007 to 2010 www.ega-golf.ch

A player living in England has a CONGU Exact Handicap of 19.5. He moves to a

Country where the EGA Handicap System has been adopted and becomes a member of an Affiliated Club in that country.

The procedure for conversion of a CONGU Handicap to an EGA Handicap is as follows:

As Slope Rating is not part of the CONGU Unified Handicapping System, the CONGU handicaps are not readily comparable with the EGA handicaps.

However, the EGA recommends the following formula for conversion:

Multiply CONGU Exact handicap by 113 and divide by the Slope of receiving course to arrive at EGA Exact handicap.

The player, playing off that handicap, shall as soon as practical return three scores played under Handicap Conditions to provide his Handicapping Authority enough information to adjust or confirm his Exact Handicap in accordance with the requirements of clause 25