4/21/19 - Notes regarding tournaments

Greetings to all members and especially all who played in our Opening Day Tournament despite the threat of a little rain.  It turned out to be a great day!

A few things popped up that I thought needed a little attention and enlightenment.  


First off, we had a few "no shows".  The pairings and payouts are calculated ahead of time in order to print out the necessary tournament materials.  Those that do not show up create extra work and sometimes recalculation of payouts.  Please, if you put your name on the sign-up sheet you are expected to show up or give ample notification ahead of time.  The closing for sign-ups is noon on the Thursday prior to the tournament.  If you have a cancellation please let me know before that time. 


We are very grateful for all the new members that have signed up this year.  Through no fault of their own, some showed up to sign in without cash for the entry fee.  It has always been our club's only way of payment and will continue until someone else figures out another way.


Most of you who are eligible to play from the gold tees during tournaments know who you are.  If you want to play from the gold tees in tournaments, please designate on the sign-up sheet with a "G" by your name.  This is designated at the bottom of the sign-up sheet but many neglect to do so.  This is important ahead of time to make sure you are handicapped properly.


Every Friday before a tournament I will post right on the front page a link to the tournament tee times and pairings.  When you look at the page on the link, the default will be alphabetically by players last name.  There are two tabs above the list, and the second tab will show pairings by time.


A lot of this website information is new to most of our members and it appears a lot are not taking advantage of it.  So please spread the info around among yourselves.  Our club is trying to educate all members that this website is our greatest tool for keeping members informed.  The only thing is we can't make each member use, so again, please spread the word.


Best Regards,

Paul Halttunen

Tournament Chairman

3/15/19 - from the Tournament Chairman, Paul Halttunen

2019 will be an auspicious year for us all what with all the new rule changes for competition.

As of this writing we are not off to a great start to the year!  The golf courses are still well covered in snow with no immediate end in sight.  Who knows when we will get started.  We can only hope it is before Opening Day on April 20.


The one positive to getting a late start is that it gives us all plenty of time to read and review the many rule changes for 2019.  There have been a couple of seminars at MeadowWood Golf Course for the rules.  And, if you haven't already done so order your new rule book from WSGA.  It does not look like they will be providing to the club rule books for everyone.  We have included several links and videos on this website for your information.  There is a very good easy reference guide that you can download and print of the main rule changes and how they compare to the old rules.  All these links are under the "Competition" tab of the website heading.  I have also included downloadable and printable files of our local rules.  These are all the same as we have used for several years with the addition of the new local rule for an alternative to stroke and distance for lost ball or ball out of bounds.  Be sure to check out the video of this rule as it explains it very efficiently.  Remember it is up to us all individually to get acquainted and understand the rules.  The new rules put an emphasis on player honesty and integrity.


You can see our website has a new look this year, but we will continue to post all relevant information here.  I will post right on the front page when tournament sign up sheets are up on the bulletin boards and post results shortly after each tournament.  We will still have sign-ups the old fashioned way on the bulletin boards, but if you need to sign up and can't make it to the course you can always call me and I will get you signed up.  Remember, if you sign up for a tournament please be there or let me know well in advance.


This year's tournament schedule includes most of our popular events that we have had in the past.  I know that some of you have asked about events such as the 4-Man Scramble not being included.  I eliminated that a few years ago because attendance had taken a dip.  Many players couldn't organize a team of 4.  Another reason was that it was a 2 day event.  I've heard that many players can't do 2-day events, so we have reduced that number to 3 tournaments for the year.  There are many factors involved in scheduling our tournaments, so if you have any thoughts or suggestions, I am willing to hear them.


I look forward to another great year!  I hope Mother Nature cooperates and we can get started.

Cheers, Paul