Rules & Etiquette

FAIRWEATHER GOLFERS RULES AND ETIQUETTE

1.  MULLIGANS:   You can take one mulligan during the front nine and one mulligan on the back nine (9 hole golfers receive one mulligan) .   A mulligan can only be used off the tee. You CANNOT take more than 3 minutes looking for the first ball when you use a mulligan.  Once you hit a declared mulligan, you can choose either ball but the mulligan is gone. If you do not like your tee shot, you can declare a mulligan to your playing partners.  Then you can hit a second shot and take either shot without a penalty (unless both end up out of bounds or unplayable).  But once you hit the shot, the mulligan is gone even if you use the first shot.  Mulligans are available during the Club Championship rounds.  It is up to Tournament hosts to determine if they will allow mulligan's in their tournament.

2. PROVISIONALS:  You can hit a provisional shot at any location between tee and green when you think your ball is lost, out of bounds or unplayable.  You can declare a provisional and hit another shot from where you hit the previous shot.  If you find the first ball, you can play it as normal.  If not, you can use the provisional shot but you must take a penalty, in other words count both the lost ball shot and the provisional shot. For example, if you lose a ball off the tee and hit a provisional off the tee then the next shot of the provisional ball will be your third shot. (An alternative to this is stated in Rule 3 Lost Ball, where you can drop another ball within a club length of where the previous ball was lost or OB and take a stroke penalty.) The advantage of hitting a provisional versus declaring a lost ball is if the first shot was really lousy and the provisional shot puts you way further up the fairway for your third shot.

3. LOST OR OUT-OF-BOUNDS BALL:  lf any shot goes into the rough and is probably lost or is OB you may either take a provisional ball as described in Rule 2, or you may place the ball no more than a club length back in play where it was lost or entered the out of bounds area, with a one (l) stroke penalty.  For example, if you lost your first ball off the tee your next shot after dropping the new ball will be your third shot. If you find your first ball in play, you can play it without penalty.  No more than three (3) minutes should be taken to search for any lost ball. After 3 minutes or less, you should drop a ball no more than a club length back in play at the place you estimated the ball was lost or went OB (may be in the rough) and take a one (1) stroke penalty.

4. SPEED OF PLAY:  Please play "READY GOLF" to speed up the play. You must do everything possible to keep pace with the group in front of you. DO NOT SPEND MORE THAN 3 MINUTES looking for any lost ball and never ever go backwards (unless you hit a tree or other immovable object and your ball ends up behind you).

PERMITTED METHODS TO SPEED UP PLAY:


PACE OF PLAY SUGGESTIONS

5. COMPETITION:  In order to promote fairer competition for weekly and tournament prizes, the gold tees can be used by any Fair Weather Golfer with a 25 handicap or higher or any Fair Weather Golfer age 85 or older.  Anyone that is deemed to be on "injured reserve" by the Co-chairmen will also be allowed to play from the gold tees. Everyone else must hit from the white tees.  Once you qualify for the gold tees,  your gold tee qualification remains intact until your handicap falls to lower than 23, after which you must hit from the white tees.  If your handicap again increases to 25 or greater, you are again eligible to play from the Gold tees.  The reason we picked 23 as the tee adjustment number is that at Mt. Si, there is a 2-stroke advantage when playing the gold tees.  We will be recalculating handicaps on a monthly basis.    Note:  Hitting off the gold tees is not mandatory…it is a choice for those qualified to play the gold tees.  Gold tee qualified players may play any number of Gold Tees holes of their choosing  (say only par 5’s, or a mix of 5’s , 4’s or 3’s at their choosing )  There is no need to designate those “Gold tee “ holes on the scorecard. Note this option may not apply to certain tournament events, so check with the organizers. 

6. WINTER RULES:  Winter rules are in effect year round. Preferred lies will be used. This means that the ball may be moved within one (1) foot of the original spot, but not closer to the green without penalty. This includes the rough but NOT hazards. Balls played from the hazard must be played as they lie. This rule may be used to improve your lie, but not your stroke. You may NOT use this rule to move a ball from behind a tree. You may NOT use this rule to move your ball from the fringe of the green to the putting surface or to remove a ball from a grass or sand bunker. If your ball is behind a tree you can move it up to one (1) foot so that you have a better lie to hit it out laterally from behind the tree, such as if it's against the tree or against a root. However, the tree must remain between your ball and the green.

7. ADJACENT FAIRWAY:  If you hit a ball into another fairway, you can hit it from the place it landed or have the option of taking a one (l) stroke penalty and dropping the ball no more than a club length within play, on the correct fairway, but no closer to the hole.

8. PUTTS:  lf your putt is within one foot of the edge of the hole the next putt is a gimmie.  If a golfer self-claims a gimmie for a putt longer than 12 inches, the player will be assessed a 2 stroke penalty.  If other members of the party agree to permit the gimmie, no penalty will apply.

9.  SCORING: After a double par, please pick up your ball and put the double par as your score.  REMEMBER TO KEEP THE PACE OF PLAY UP WITH THE GROUP IN FRONT OF YOU!

10. Tournament directors can make up their own rules so long as they don’t slow down pace of play.

11.  HANDICAPS:  We calculate handicaps using the software Golf League Tracker. The Co-chairs have the right to limit the maximum handicap for a player.

12.  USGA RULES:  Unless modified in the Fairweather Golfers rules stated above the standard USGA Rules of Golf apply.

13. Hole in One Payout:  A special “Hole in One” fund has been included in the annual budget.  If there is a “No Pay Out”  year, the “Hole in One” pool will be carried over to the following year.  Each “Hole in One” will be paid at a fixed (minimum) rate of $300 per “Hole in One” event.  This fixed payout may be revised from year to year depending on the funds in the “Hole in One” account.