Rules

Rules

 

Effective August 2022

SECTION I    GENERAL PROVISIONS

Purpose

The Senior Men’s Interclub (SMI) provides monthly competition and a yearly championship event for eight-man teams from Member Clubs in the Jacksonville area. It has been doing that since 1997.

Organization

The SMI governing organization consists of an annually elected Chairman, Vice Chairman, Treasurer, Secretary (the SMI Officers) and a Club Representative from each Member Club. The SMI Officers conduct the league’s business with the advice and consent of the Club Representatives who meet twice a year, in December and June. The duties of each are appended.

The league maintains a website (https://smitestbed.org) and an email list as its principal means of communication between the SMI Officers, Club Representatives, and team members.

Member Clubs

The member Clubs include: Deercreek CC, Eagle Harbor, Eagle Landing, Hidden Hills, Jacksonville Golf, Long Point, Marsh Creek, Marsh Landing, Osprey Cove, Palencia, Queen’s Harbour, San Jose, Sawgrass, and World Golf Village.

Club Representatives will be notified on a proposed addition of a new Member Club or subtraction of an existing Club. A majority of the Club Representatives must approve either action. Any Club’s membership may be revoked for lack of participation or conduct detrimental to the organization.

The number of Member Clubs and size of teams is directly related and cannot be arbitrarily changed without affecting Host Club finances and pace of play.

Annual Championship

The regular season begins in January with monthly events rotating among our Member Clubs’ courses. The season ends in November with the Barney Poston Cup Tournament played at a neutral site chosen to ensure no team has an unfair advantage. The neutral site’s fees are apt to be higher than our Member Clubs’ fees because they are courses that are unaffiliated with our organization.

SECTION II    CONDITIONS OF COMPETITION

Eligibility

1-1. Participation

Participation in SMI events are limited to males aged 55 or more from our Member Clubs. New members may play in a SMI event during the month they attain age 55. In order to play in a SMI event a player must have a verifiable USGA handicap index.

Team Composition

2-1. Teams

Teams consist of eight or fewer players, all of whom must be from the same Member Club; dual affiliation with clubs is permitted but a player may only play and represent one club within our membership clubs during a given season (January to November).

2-2. Partial Teams

Each Member Club is expected to make a good faith effort to field an eight-man team but there is no penalty for falling short of that objective.

2-3. Vacant Slots

Players from other clubs may fill any vacant slots but their scores will neither count in the competition nor toward handicap calculations and prizes. They will pay the normal price for the round less the amount charged for prize money.

SECTION III The Game

3-1. USGA Rules of Golf

Play is governed by the USGA Rules of Golf except as modified by local rules of the host club and the SMI.

3-2. Format

The format for all competitions is the net Stableford scoring system in accordance with USGA Rule 21.1b.

3-3. Starting Time

SMI competitions use a shotgun start, normally at 9:00 a.m. Some Member Clubs may require a different starting time. The host Pro and Club Representative will brief players 15 minutes before the starting time to ensure that players will arrive at their designated teeing areas at the starting time.

3-4.  Tees

The SMI league will maintain and publish the tees and associated data (see list here) to be used for each match.  The total yardage shall be between 5,350 and 6,000 yards.  The SMI Team Club Representative will be responsible for maintaining the accuracy of this information and must forward the required information (total course yardage, course rating and slope, the hole-by-hole yardage, and hole-by-hole handicap rating) to the SMI league webmaster, technical support, and the scoring support 2 months before the date of the match at their Club.  For each match, the Host Club Representative shall place, coordinated with the Club Pro and their Staff, the tee markers at the published yardages.  In addition, the pins should be placed in locations for good pace of play to be consistent with a senior golfer’s skill level.  In the middle of most greens and away from bunkers would be best.  Please do not provide any championship pin locations.  It is in everyone’s interest to complete the matches as quickly as possible.

3-5. Pace of Play

Each group is requested to maintain a steady pace of play and to keep up with the group in front of them. We play Ready Golf.  To help speed up play, please proceed to your cart after making your putt instead of waiting until all players hole out.

3-6. Inclement Weather

The SMI Chairman, in consultation with the host club’s Pro and Club Representative, shall decide when play is to be cancelled or suspended. The Host Club should do everything possible to protect players from lightning. He should not cancel or suspend play simply on account of rain, unless the rain is so heavy that the course becomes unplayable and it would be unfair to require players to continue. When practicable, the Host Club Representative may reschedule a cancelled round after consultation with the SMI Scheduling Chairman and the SMI Chairman.  If play is cancelled with only 4 holes or less to complete, equitable scoring will be used giving a net par to each player that didn’t finish the round.

3-7. Communications

The Host Club will communicate changes in conditions or other issues affecting play either using GPS systems, horns or Marshalls.

3-8. Tournament Day

The Host Club Representative shall arrange for all necessary activities to ensure a successful event in coordination with the Host Club staff. A list of duties and checklist are appended. In addition, the Chairman will designate someone to fulfill Host Club Representative duties for the Barney Poston Cup.

SECTION IV Local Rules

4.1        Alternative to Stroke and Distance for Lost Ball or Ball Out of Bounds

4.2. Provisional Ball for Ball in a Penalty Area

4-3  Immovable Obstructions Close to Putting Greens

SECTION V   Handicaps

5-1. SMI Handicap System

To ensure a level playing field, we use our own system to calculate handicap indexes based on each player’s adjusted gross scores in SMI competitions. All scores, including those for holes not finished and holes not played, are subject to the application of Equitable Stroke Control.

5-2. SMI Handicap Index

Players must use their USGA Handicap Index until they have played in three SMI competitions and are thereby limited to a maximum of 38 Stableford points. Once players have competed in three SMI competitions, they will be assigned a handicap index based on their scores in SMI competitions taking the best 3 scores from the last 6 rounds.

5-3. Tournament Score

For purposes of reporting their SMI round to their home club handicapping system, players should report their round as a Tournament Score.

SECTION VI   Scoring

6.1. Leaderboard King

Leaderboard King is a web-based scoring system that is used for SMI events. Each foursome shall designate only one person in the group to enter data into the system. The scoring system is launched using your mobile phone by scanning a bar code that will take to the website. Once there, it is essential that each player’s score is input prior to proceeding to the next hole in the scoring system. The designated scorer can look at the complete electronic scorecard by selected card then select show foursome. In addition, other players in the foursome may look at the entered scores in the Leaderboard King system, but they shall not make any changes. Any errors identified, shall be brought up to the designated scorer to make the corrections.

6-2. Scorecards

Scorecards will be provided by the Host club listing all four player’s names, handicaps and a barcode to access the Leaderboard King website. We require complete and legible scorecards signed by all players in the foursome. These scorecards shall be compared to and validated against the scores in Leaderboard King prior to turning in the card as Leaderboard King is the official source for scores.  A player’s gross score and Stableford points in Leaderboard King are final after turning in the signed scorecard; no changes in a player’s gross score or Stableford points will be made once results of the tournament have been announced absent manifest fraud or Committee error affecting the entire field.

Once a scorecard is signed by all players and submitted to the scoring table, no alterations to the scorecard may be made without permission of the Committee.

6-3. Picking Up

If a player should pick up on a hole after achieving his ESC score for that hole, the marker and Leaderboard King scorer must record a “10”. The committee will calculate the player’s adjusted gross score for that hole.

6-4. Incomplete Scorecards

The committee will reject incomplete scorecards, including those that have not been signed by all players. If an incomplete scorecard is not corrected and submitted in a timely manner, the player will be treated as not present.

6-5. Leaving the Course

If the Host Club has not suspended the competition and a player should leave the course, his marker will submit his score up to the time he left. The player will receive a 10 (zero points) for the unfinished holes.

SECTION VII   Team Competition and Prizes

7-1. Monthly Competition

At each monthly competition, including the Cup Tournament, the team with the most Stableford points scored by the best six of its eight players is declared the winner.

7-2. Monthly Competition Tie-breaker

In the event of ties in the team scores of two or more teams, the USGA Tie-Breaking Protocol will be used to determine how the tie will be broken, provided only the tied teams’ top 6 scores will be used to compare points, initially on holes 10-18.  If still tied, holes 13-18, if still tied, holes 16-18, If still tied, hole 18.  If that fails to break the tie, then a coin flip will be used to break the tie.

7-3. Monthly Prizes

We award merchandise certificates to the top three teams in each monthly competition.  The amounts of the merchandise prize certificates to be awarded are based on total number of players are as listed in this chart.

7-3.1 In the event prize winners cannot be determined in a timely manner at the completion of a match, the host club’s team representative will be responsible for determining the distribution of prize certificates.  He will contact the team representatives of the three winning clubs and work out equitable alternatives (i.e. equivalent golf balls, certificates to be redeemed in the future, etc.)

7-4. Barney Poston Cup (was John Brady Cup)

To cap off the season, the points scored at the annual Cup Tournament are doubled. The team with the most Stableford points for the season will be recognized as that season’s SMI Champion and awarded the Cup). The SMI Champion retains the Cup for one year.

7-5. Cup match Tie-Breaker

If two or more teams tie for the Cup, then the Cup is awarded to the team that was ahead in the season’s standings immediately prior to the Cup Tournament.

7-6. Policy Statements

  1. SMI will not delay more than five minutes the scheduled time to depart the cart staging area due to late arrival of a Club’s team members; if one or more of a Club’s team members are not present when the carts depart the staging area, those players may join their assigned foursomes on the course ASAP after their arrival, with a score of 10 assigned for all holes missed by such players in catching up with their assigned foursomes. The Committee may modify application of this Policy in any particular situation as it determines at that time.
  1. The SMI Chairman in conjunction with each host Club Representative shall designate two Course Marshalls or Rangers to monitor the front nine and back nine of the course for slow play or undue delay. Upon observation after the first hour of play, the Course Marshall or Ranger shall give a warning for the first slow play or undue delay offense by a group, give notice of any further offenses by a group and report to the Committee so it might determine if any penalties should be assessed pursuant to Rule 32-1(b) of the Rules of Golf. In general, if a group has one or more holes open in front of it, that would be evidence of slow play.