Our Own Golf League

Our Own Golf League (OOGL) is a nine-hole golf league that was established in 1999 and is open to men and women golfers of all skill levels. The League plays on Monday afternoons at the Horn Rapids Golf Course, with tee times from ~3:30pm-5:00pm. Our mission is to provide a weekly opportunity for a fun, informal round of golf where you can make new friends and win some prizes.

In 2022, we will play every Monday from April 4 through September 26 (except for Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Labor Day), alternating between the front and back nines each week. The format for our events is individual stroke play and we award prizes for gross and net scores, birdies, eagles, and a number of different hole prizes. Events typically have three flights, so low-handicappers, mid-handicappers, and high-handicappers compete within their respective flights.

For extra fun, there are five 9-hole tournaments interspersed with our regular rounds, and an 18-hole championship tournament at the end of the season (see the Schedule below).

The League plays a 9-hole round every Monday from April 4 through September 26 (except for Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Labor Day), alternating between the front and back nines each week. In total, there are 23 events in the 2022 season (including five special tournaments), followed by the OOGL Championship on October 2. You can find a complete calendar here.

Special dates

• April 4: Opening Day! First round of the season.

• April 25: 3 Club tournament (you may bring only three clubs to play. Choose wisely!).

• May 23: Aquaman Tournament (everyone plays from the aqua tees).

• June 20: Second Chance Tournament (players have the option of hitting a second ball on each shot).

• July 25: Two-Player Mixer (Two-player teams play 3 holes of scramble, 3 holes of better ball, and 3 holes of alternating shot).

• August 29: Red, White, and Blue Tournament (tees may change every hole depending on your score on the previous hole).

• September 26: Last round of the regular season.

• October 2: OOGL Championship Tournament (18-hole tournament to crown the 2022 Champion, with prizes on every hole!).

One-time League fee

OOGL League fee: $30. Payable to the Commissioner when you play your first round. The OOGL League fee is a one-time fee that is used to pay special prizes, subsidize the cost of the year-end lunch, and cover administrative expenses.

On Mondays that you play

9-hole green fee: $18. Payable to the Pro Shop. Add a power cart for an additional $9.

Prize Pool fee: $4. Payable to the Commissioner for each event that you play. This fee will be recorded in your account in the Commissioner's Ledger.

The Commissioner's Ledger

Instead of collecting fees and paying prize money every week, the Commissioner will keep track of the fees due and the prizes won by each player in the Commissioner's Ledger. Players are assessed a $4 Prize Pool fee each week they play. Half of this fee is used for the weekly prize payouts; the other half is used to fund the prize pool for the OOGL Championship in October. On the positive side, as players win prizes during the season, credits will be added to their accounts in the Ledger.

We will "balance the books" twice during the season - once in July and again at the end of the season in October. If you owe the League money, you pay; if the League owes you money, you collect.

Example 1: You've played 6 times between April and July. During that time, you won one low net prize and shot 3 birdies. 6 rounds x $4 = $24 owed; 1 scoring prize x $8 plus 3 birdies x $2 = $14 won. In July, you owe the League $10.

Example 2: You've played 6 times between April and July. In 3 of those rounds, you won a gross or net prize and you've shot a total of 6 birdies. 6 rounds x $4 = $24 owed; 3 scoring prizes x $8 plus 6 birdies x $2 = $36 won. In July, you collect $12 from the League!

You are not required to establish a handicap in order to join and play in the OOGL League. However, without an established handicap, your net score will be equal to your gross score (i.e., your handicap will be zero), which makes it very difficult to win net score prizes. If you don’t already have a handicap and would like to establish one, you have two options:

USGA GHIN handicap index

Join the Horn Rapids Players Club ($55), which will provide you with a USGA GHIN handicap index. Membership in the Players Club also confers a number of other benefits, such as a free 18-hole round, discounts on greens fees, and invitations to Players Club tournaments. To join the Players Club, fill out the Players Club Registration Form. Almost all OOGL players choose this option.

The Grint

Create an account on TheGrint, a free online handicap service. This service uses the USGA formulas to calculate your handicap index and also keeps track of playing statistics. If you use TheGrint, please inform the Commissioner of your username on this service.

OK, you’ve joined OOGL – now what?

Welcome to best golf league in the Northern Hemisphere! Every Tuesday at noon, you’ll receive a Call for Players email from the Commissioner asking if you’d like to play in the OOGL round on the following Monday. If yes, you can sign up for a tee time using the online OOGL Tee Sheet (a link to the Tee Sheet will be provided in the email). If you’re not available to play, no problem – there’s no penalty if you miss any of the events.

Sign up to play a round

The OOGL Tee Sheet will show tee times beginning at 3:34 p.m. and continuing every 8 minutes until 5:18 p.m. Choose an open slot and add your name and select the tees from which you'll play (e.g., white, gold, red). Not sure which tees to choose? Here's some advice.

When you sign up, please don’t erase or write over anyone else’s name! You should add only your own name, but it’s OK to name a playing partner if you have their explicit permission to do so.

Weekly timetable

Signups for specific tee times are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis, so it’s helpful to be aware of the timetable. During the week before each OOGL round:

• Tuesday 12:00 pm: The Call for Players email will be sent out and the Tee Sheet will be activated for signups.

• Friday 6:00 pm: Signups close and the Tee Sheet will be deactivated.

• Saturday afternoon: The Commissioner will publish the Pairings (including each player's tee time, course handicap, and selected tees) on the Golf Genius website. The Commissioner will also specify the number of flights and the assignment of players to each flight.

• Monday afternoon: Please double-check the Pairings before you play - the Commissioner may have slightly adjusted your tee time to optimize pairings.

Front or Back?

OOGL rounds alternate between the front 9 and the back 9 during the course of the season. Check the Call for Players email to make sure you're playing the correct side.

USGA Rules

OOGL is an open league that welcomes players of all skill levels. We want rounds to be relaxing and fun – with a little friendly competition. To make sure that everyone enjoys their round, we play strictly by the USGA Rules of Golf.

Every once in awhile, players may face a situation in which no one in the group is sure about how to apply the rules. If a player is uncertain about the right procedure while playing, he/she may complete the hole by playing two balls (one for each interpretation of the Rules) without penalty. After the round, the player shall get a ruling from the Horn Rapids Head Pro or the OOGL Commissioner to decide which of the two balls should be used for the score on that hole. See USGA Rule 20.1 for more information.

Local Rules

In addition to the USGA Rules of Golf, we also use these Local Rules to address specific conditions for our League.

Who is the scorekeeper?

The player with the lowest handicap in each group is designated as the group’s scorekeeper. The scorekeeper is responsible for:

• Recording each player's gross score on each hole

• Ensuring that all players in the group follow the USGA Rules of Golf and applicable Local Rules

• Encouraging a brisk pace of play

Speed of play is an OOGL hallmark

Despite having a wide range of skill levels, OOGL players pride themselves on efficient play. Rounds are almost always completed in two hours or less. In OOGL, we play "Ready Golf," which means that players should play when they are ready to do so, rather than adhering strictly to the “farthest from the hole plays first” stipulation in the Rules of Golf.

Another time-saver is the adoption of USGA Local Rule E-5 that provides an alternative to the stroke-and-distance penalty for a ball that is lost or out of bounds. Instead of hitting again from the original location, players have to option to drop a ball two club-lengths in the fairway near where the ball went out of bounds (or was lost) and take a penalty of two strokes.

Post your adjusted score

USGA handicapping rules require that players post their adjusted scores as soon as practicable after their rounds, and strongly encourage posting by midnight of the day that they play. For players who use the USGA GHIN handicap service, this is most easily done by using the GHIN Mobile app on your mobile device or the GHIN website from your home computer. There is also TheGrint Mobile app for players who use this service.

There's a formula for determining your adjusted score for posting purposes. If you don't want to do the math, though, we recommend that you use the "hole-by-hole" posting method: just enter your gross score for each hole and the computer will automatically adjust your score for posting purposes.

Note: Scores from our special 9-hole tournaments (3 Club, Aquaman, Second Chance, 2-Player Mixer, RWB Tournament) are not acceptable for handicap posting. Please do not post scores from these tournaments.

Scorekeeper duties

After the completion of the round, the scorekeeper should:

1. Sign the card

2. Take a clear picture of it, and

3. Text the picture to the Commissioner at 509-205-1804.

Scorecard photos must be transmitted no later than two hours after the completion of the round to ensure that the scores are considered for prizes.

Results and prize awards are posted on the Golf Genius website after each round. Players who win prizes receive credits to their accounts in the Commissioner's Ledger. Payouts will be made twice during the season: once in July and again after the Championship Tournament in October. At the end of the season, we will also recognize the Chief Ornithologist (player with the most birdies) and the Money List Winner (player with the most winnings).

Weekly Prizes

For each weekly event, the Commissioner will divide the field into one, two, or three flights by handicap, depending on the number of players who participate. Prizes awarded each week include:

• Low gross score in each flight: $8

• Low net score in each flight: $8

• Hole prizes, e.g., closest to the pin (KP), long drive, long putt: $8 each

• Natural (gross) birdies: $2 each

• Natural eagles: $8 each

There may may more than one gross and/or net prize in each flight, depending on the number of players.

9-Hole Tournament Prizes

Low gross and low net prizes during the five special tournaments have a higher cash value than regular events – usually double or more. Some of the events have special prizes, such as the "Drive The Green" prize in the Aquaman tournament.

OOGL Championship Prizes

The OOGL Championship has a ~$1500 purse, and about one-third of the participants will win a gross or net scoring prize. There are hole prizes on every hole, and both gross and net skins prizes.

Chief Ornithologist

The Chief Ornithologist is the player who scores the most birdies during the course of the season. There is no cash award for being Chief Ornithologist, but the bragging rights are significant.

2021 Chief Ornithologist: John Richardson (33 birdies)

Money List Winner

The Money List Winner is the player who accumulates the most prize money over the course of the season. Given the purse size of the OOGL Championship, a good performance in this final tournament can have a significant impact on a player's standing on the Money List.

2021 Money List Winner: John Richardson ($262)