CDI Memorial Golf League
League Rules
2007
Purpose
The purpose of the league is to encourage fun and competitive spirit – and to give us an excuse to go golfing every week.
This document outlines the rules of the league in detail. The rules are almost identical to last year’s.
The league format is each player playing for themselves, in two simultaneous matches each week for sixteen weeks, for a total of 32 matches. Each player will play each other player four times during the season. Semi-final matches for those that qualify follow the regular season. Those that did not qualify for the playoffs are invited to open golf, and are eligible to win the weekly prizes. The two semi-final winners will play an 18-hole championship on a date to be determined – but probably Saturday, September 1st. The championship round has been pre-paid for all league members, but other friends, or spouses are welcome to attend (at their own expense). A three-club scramble will also be played at the end of the season. The format and teams for this event will be determined at a later date.
The cost is $250 for the season, of which $203 is for weekly greens fees, $27 is for the championship round, and $20 is for the prize fund.
Players must pay for the entire season in advance.
Each week each player will play two matches simultaneously – one against each of the other players in their group. The player’s score for each hole and the round will be compared against each of their opponents’ scores.
Before a match begins, the handicap for each match will be calculated by subtracting the smaller handicap from the larger. The higher handicap player will receive that many handicap strokes for the match, and the lower handicap player will use their scratch score. Note that each player may end up using a different handicap for each match.
Before determining the winner of a hole or round, the high handicap player’s match handicap will be subtracted for the hole or round. The handicap will be the same as last year’s handicap rule. See below for the exact calculation of a handicap.
Each player will begin with an initial handicap that will be taken from the previous year’s league, if one is available, or a best guess to be determined by the player and the league commissioner if no official handicap is available.
Each match consists of nine holes in which 20 possible points can be earned as follows:
- Two points awarded to the winner of each hole, or one point to each player in the case of a tie.
- Two points awarded to the winner of the round, or one point to each player in the case of a tie.
As an example, assume the following two rounds between two opponents.
|
Name |
Hdcp |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
Total |
|
Par |
|
4 |
4 |
5 |
3 |
5 |
4 |
4 |
3 |
4 |
36 |
|
Hole Hdcp |
|
8 |
2 |
9 |
7 |
6 |
1 |
3 |
5 |
4 |
|
|
John |
6 |
4 |
4 |
6 |
5 |
5 |
4 |
5 |
5 |
5 |
43 |
|
John w/hdcp |
|
4 |
4 |
6 |
5 |
5 |
4 |
5 |
5 |
5 |
43 |
|
Tom |
11 |
5 |
5 |
5 |
3 |
6 |
6 |
6 |
6 |
6 |
48 |
|
Tom w/hdcp |
|
5 |
4 |
5 |
3 |
6 |
5 |
5 |
5 |
5 |
43 |
Before the match began, Tom and John compared their handicaps. The difference is 5, so Tom (the higher handicap) will receive 5 strokes during the match. Handicap strokes are allotted evenly to each hole, with any remaining strokes assigned to the holes with the lowest handicap rating. In this example Tom gets one stroke on the five hardest holes: #’s 6, 2, 7, 9, and 8.
Therefore, the match score would be 11-9 in favor of John. Tom won two holes and tied four for 8 points. John won three holes, and tied four others for 10 points. John and Tom had the same net total for the round, so they each get an additional point. Notice that for match scoring purposes, we only pay attention to the handicap line of scores.
You should also note that while playing you only have to write down your actual score for each hole. The league secretary will calculate the net score for each hole and the final match score.
For each hole you will find a handicap rating. This rating ranks the holes from 1 (the hardest) to 9 (the easiest) (18 hole course holes are ranked 1-18). These ratings are determined by the course using who knows what methods and are used to allocate handicap shots during a match. To make things a little more realistic, we will be using our own league results to handicap the holes for each course.
The average score to par will be used to rank the holes from one to nine and these rankings will be used as the holes’ handicaps. These handicaps will be printed on your weekly scorecard.
Players are responsible for their appearance each week. Refunds are not available. If a player is absent in a week their score for the round will be determined by adding 25% to their average score to par (rounded to the nearest whole number), broken evenly by hole, with remainder strokes being applied to the lowest handicap holes. For example, if a player’s average score to par is + 8.7, the 25% penalty brings it to +10.9 (rounded to 11), so the player will score one over par on each hole and two over par on the two hardest holes. The player’s regular handicap will be used in scoring. The absent round will not count toward the player’s future handicap or averages.
To avoid this, players may supply a substitute golfer. The substitute’s scores will be used to compute the match outcome for that week. If the substitute has a league-approved handicap, it may be used. Substitute’s handicaps will be approved if from play in this or another league, or from a good faith estimate if that week’s group agrees. Since the round is paid for in advance, it is the responsibility of the absent golfer to collect any fees from the substitute.
The league playoff champion will receive a trophy and other prizes. The new league champion will have his name added to the CDI Memorial trophy and may take possession of the trophy until his reign ends. The runner up will receive a lesser prize. In addition to these prizes, three sleeves of balls will be awarded each week to winners of various contests. The contests are divided to award the good and not-so-good golfers alike.
Each week one
contest will be selected at random from the following list and the winner will
receive a sleeve. Once a contest has been selected, it cannot be selected again
for three weeks.
The Best-Worst
contest winner is determined by comparing each golfer’s worst hole for the
round (no handicaps). The winner is the one with the best of these. In the case
of ties, the winner is the player with the fewest of these worst scores,
followed by the fewest of the next worse scores and so on.
Smallest
Difference contest winner is determined by comparing the difference between a
golfer’s highest and lowest scores for their round. The smallest such
difference is the winner. In the case of ties, the player with the lowest score
prevails. Further ties split the prize.
Each week three
contests will be selected from the following list. At the end of the round one
of these three will be drawn randomly and the winner will receive a sleeve.
Once a sleeve has been awarded for a contest, it cannot be selected again for
three weeks.
The Worst-Best
contest is similar to the best-worse. The winner is determined by comparing
each golfer’s best hole for the round (no handicaps). The winner is the one
with the highest of these. In the case of ties, the winner is the player with
the fewest of these best scores, followed by the fewest of the next best and so
on.
The Largest Difference
contest winner is determined in a manner similar to the smallest difference
contest, except that the larger difference and (in the case of ties) higher
scores determine the winner.
An additional
sleeve will be awarded to the player whose gross score matches the mystery
number drawn after the rounds are completed. Scores of thirty through
sixty-five are represented and drawn randomly until there is a winner. Ties split the sleeve for this and the other
contests (unless specific tiebreakers are described).
Finally, playing
cards can be won throughout each round by winning long drive and closest to the
hole contests, and making bonus scores on holes. Each
week two holes will be designated as long drive holes and both par threes will
be closest to the pin holes. The winner of each of the contest in each group
will randomly receive one playing card from a standard deck of cards. Every
four weeks (after which at least 48 of the 52 cards will have been distributed)
the player with the best five card hand will win a sleeve. Players with less
than five cards at the end of a four week period are still eligible to win, but
can only play pairs, three of kind and four of a kind (along with high card).
Only five card flushes, straights and full houses may be played. The contests will
begin again the next week with a new deck.
The longest drive
contest will be won by the player in each group that has driven the ball
furthest from the tee in his own fairway. If no members of the group hit the
fairway, then the player closest to the pin and in play is the winner. If no
one has hit the play to a playable position then you all suck and no card is
awarded for that group on that hole.
The closest to
the pin contest is won by the player whose first shot is closest to the pin,
except that:
Bonus scores are
any birdie and any 10 or higher. The first four bonus scores in each four-week
hand-session will be awarded a bonus card.
Note that a sub
is eligible to win cards for the league player they are subbing for. Other than
this, substitutes cannot win any weekly prizes.
At the conclusion of 16 weeks of match play the top four teams, ranked by match points, will be seeded for single elimination match play playoffs. Tiebreakers for each position (including any ties for the final playoff spot(s)) will be broken in the following manner:
1. Points in head to head matches
2. Overall holes won-lost-tied percentage
3. Overall rounds won-lost tied percentage
4. Overall holes won
1. Overall rounds won
2. Coin toss
For multi-way ties if at any step one player is better than all the rest, they win the tiebreak. Begin again at step #1 with the remaining teams to determine the next placement, if necessary. Otherwise, if one player is worse than all the others, eliminate that team and start again at step #1 with the remaining players.
Match play is the same as the match point system used in the weekly play, except that no bonus is given for the round score. Ties in the playoffs will be broken by extra holes, starting at the first and continuing until one player wins a hole.
The first round will take place on week 17. The groupings for that week will be as follows:
1st vs. 4th
2nd vs. 3rd
The remaining players will fill in the groups and play open golf.
The two winners in the semi finals will play in the 18 hole championship match on a date to be determined, but probably Saturday, September 1st. The rest of the league is also invited and encouraged to attend as the round has been prepaid. Feel free to invite friends or spouses to join our year-end outing / Championship match.
Our starting time this year is 5:30. It is important that each player be prepared to tee off at the league starting time. Complete groups will start first. Remaining groups will start short handed. Late players may join their group out on the course, but missed holes will be counted using a 25% penalty method, similar to the one described for absent golfers.
All attempts will be made to keep all leagues on pace by the course management. The league in front of us will probably fix our pace, but it is very important we do not fall behind them. If we keep up with them, and still finish in the dark we can take our complaints to the management, but if it gets dark because we are slow we have no legitimate recourse.
Timely play does not have to mean rushing your shots. It is usually sufficient that each player be ready to hit when it is his or her turn. Don’t be too concerned about hitting in the proper order. Give preference to those that are away, but if you are ready and they are still walking up to their ball – go ahead and hit. The same applies on the green. Line up your putt while others are hitting. If you are ready and others are not, go ahead and putt, even if you are not away.
The other potential time waster is hunting for a lost ball. None of us likes to lose a ball, especially if it costs a stroke. But if everyone else has hit and they’re waiting for you, give it up and take the drop.
Last year’s handicap system worked pretty well. I know this because nobody complained about it. Here is how the handicaps are calculated:
Each player’s handicap is calculated using their last seven round scores to par, applying weights to each based on their age, and averaging these weighted scores. If a player has played fewer than seven rounds (such as in the first six weeks of the season) the initial handicap is substituted as many times as needed to get seven scores.
The rounds scores are not the raw scores recorded by the player, but rather each round’s scores adjusted to account for maximum scores allowed per hole and are weighted by the rating and slope of the course on which it was played.
A maximum score per hole is counted for handicap purposes based on your handicap. These maximums are:
|
Handicap |
Worst score allowed |
|
Less than 5 |
Double bogey |
|
5-9 |
7 |
|
10-14 |
8 |
|
15-19 |
9 |
|
20 or more |
10 |
The course rating is subtracted from this modified round score and multiplied by 56.5. Finally, this value is divided by the course’s slope to arrive at the round’s adjusted score. It is these scores that are used to calculate your handicap.
Course |
Rating |
Slope |
Blue
|
34.0
|
58.5 |
Gold
|
34.6
|
61.0 |
Red
|
33.6
|
56.0 |
White
|
36.1
|
61.5 |
The weights used to calculate the average are:
Most recent round: 100%
Two rounds ago: 100%
Three rounds ago: 100%
Four rounds ago: 80%
Five rounds ago: 60%
Six rounds ago: 40%
Seven rounds ago: 20%
The player’s handicap is then calculated by multiplying their weighted seven score average by 0.9 and rounded to the nearest integer. Note that negative handicaps are possible.
Here’s an example:
John’s rounds so far this year after nine weeks have been (in order):
|
Course |
Score |
Adjusted handicap score |
|
Blue |
48 |
13.5 |
|
Gold |
44 |
8.7 |
|
Red |
42 |
8.5 |
|
White |
45 |
8.2 |
|
Blue |
45 |
10.6 |
|
Gold |
41 |
5.9 |
|
Red |
47 |
13.5 |
|
White |
44 |
7.3 |
|
Blue |
42 |
7.7 |
The last seven rounds, weighted are added:
13.5 x 100% = 13.50
8.7 x 100% = 8.70
8.5 x 100% = 8.50
8.2 x 80% = 6.56
10.6 x 60% = 6.36
5.9 x 40% = 2.36
13.5 x 20% = 2.70
The sum = 48.68, weighted average = 9.74
The handicap: 9.74 times 0.9 = 8.76, rounded to 9
There are a few good topics to address here. People play golf in different ways. To make the league competition fair, everybody should be playing by the same set of rules. Fortunately, the rules of golf are already published and I don’t have to type them all out.
There are only two or three issues that commonly come up, however:
1. Stroke and distance
According to the rules of golf, when you lose a ball, or hit one out of bounds the correct penalty is one stroke, plus you must hit the next shot from where you were before. This is commonly called “stroke and distance” as you lose any distance you hit the ball along with your penalty stroke. This doesn’t really work for league play, as it would tend to slow things way down if you had to go back to your last ball position after looking for a lost ball for five minutes.
What we will do instead (and how the game is commonly played anyway) is this: The next shot after a lost ball or a ball out of bounds will be played from within one club length from the spot as close as possible to where the ball traveled out of bounds or where the player judges his lost ball ended up. The one stroke penalty still applies, however.
2. Preferred Lies
Also called “fluffing”, it is picking up and placing or nudging your ball into a better lie for your next shot. This is totally against the foundation the game: “play it as it lies”. However, recognizing that we don’t play on PGA level courses maintenance-wise here is a common compromise.
On any fairway a player may nudge, or otherwise fluff their ball before the next shot if they deem it necessary to obtain a “fairway” lie. This would include things like having your ball stop in a divot or un-mowed portion of the fairway. Let’s face it – its rare enough that we hit it in the fairway at all. It only seems fair that we should get a good lie for our efforts. Note that this only applies to your own fairway. No fluffing bonus for slicing the ball far enough to get it into the next fairway!
The only other comprise is anywhere on a hole, except in a hazard (water, sand trap), if your ball is “plugged”, or has a large clump of dirt or mud on it you may pick it up, clean it, and place it near the old spot before your next shot.
3. The Mulligan and other “gimmies”
For obvious reasons, a player may not declare a mulligan during league play. Every shot counts. For the same reasons, each hole must be played to its conclusion, except where shots are conceded. To help speed play anyone can concede the next shot to any of his opponents. Provided that there are no objections from any of the other opponents, that shot is considered to have been made. Note that conceded shots cannot be declined or refused.
4. Course Etiquette
This year, the course is asking all league players to observe the 90 degree rule when using carts. Not many of us use carts, but when you do, please drive in the rough as much as possible, and when crossing fairways, please do so at a 90 degree angle.
As usual, I would like to point out that all the money collected is returned to the players, either in the form of greens fees, or as prizes. I am paying a full share. The only benefits I get from running the league are 1) having a league to play in! And 2) It’s another outlet for my over-developed sense of competition. Oh yeah, and in case you didn’t guess, I will be serving as league secretary again this year as no one came running to me begging for the job. After this year, anyone else is welcome to try it if they want. J