IHWGA STANDING RULES
Revised 1/2024
MEMBERSHIP
One of the following requirements is necessary for
membership:
(Revised format 2/2010)
A. Proof of a valid/active USGA Handicap Index, regardless of
where it resides, resulting in an Indian Hills handicap of 42 or
less. (revised 4/2014) (revised 1/2017) (revised 3/2020)
B. Three or more adjusted 18 hole scores producing an index
which results in an Indian Hills handicap of 42 or less. The
scores must be attested to, dated within 9 months of
presentation and turned in to the Pro Shop. (revised 4/2014)
(revised 1/2017) (revised 2/2020).
C. If a potential new member is in the process of establishing
a handicap they may be allowed to schedule tee-times during
our regular play days at the discretion of the Weekly
Tournament Chair. They will not be allowed to compete in
those play days until their handicap is established and they are
a full member. (revised 8/2021)
D. At the discretion of the board, an honorary membership
may be awarded to members who are no longer able to play
golf but wish to remain involved with the activities of the
group. Dues will not be charged (new 3/2014) (Revised 1/2022)
COMPETITION
A. Only Indian Hills Country Club members in good standing,
according to Club policy, are eligible to play in any IHWGA
events.
B. All weekly play day games shall be scheduled and
supervised by the Tournament Committee.
C. USGA rules will govern play with allowances for local rules
and specific conditions laid down by the Tournament
Committee.
D. Members may be paired for all competitions (including
regular play days and/or Major Tournaments) at a specified
time. (revised 2/2015)
E. All putts must be holed out unless otherwise instructed by
the Tournament Committee.
F. Requirements presented below under “Scorecards and
Handicaps” apply. (revised 1/2017 and 2/2019)
G. For regular weekly play days, the ball will be played down
unless cart path only has been designated, in which case, if
your ball is in the fairway of the hole you are playing, you may
lift, clean and place within on club length no closer to the hole.
Exceptions will be posted prior to play. Unless otherwise
announced by the Tournament Committee, this rule WILL NOT
APPLY for any Major Tournament (revised 2/2015)
MAJOR TOURNAMENTS
The following are considered Major Tournaments: The Johnnie
Meyers Championship Tournament and the Handicap
Tournament.
Team Event Tournaments will be the following: The Solheim
Cup, the Member-Member and the Member-Guest. Revised
1/2022)
1. Scores that are considered Competition scores in GHIN will
be posted by the Pro Shop. All other scores will be posted
by the player. (Revised 1/2022)
2. The current tournament committees’ notebooks and
records shall be maintained for future tournament
committees. The format for Major Tournaments will be
Stroke Play. The format for Team Event Tournaments will
be determined by each tournament committee, except for
the Solheim Cup, as that format is preset.
3. Eligibility for all Major Tournaments requires 3 confirmed
scheduled play days, which include Team Play, Team Event
Tournaments, as well as weekly play day events.
4. A maximum Course Handicap of 39 will be used for all
IHWGA events including those designated as Majors and
Team Event Tournaments. (Revised 5/2024) USGA Appendix C, which allows
for application of recommended allowances may require a
reduction in the maximum playing handicap based upon the
format and/or number of players in the field. (Revised
1/2022). The Tournament Committee will announce when it
is appropriate to use the % reduction based on the
format/number of players in the field (Revised1/2022) at
least a week before the day of the tournament.
5. Each individual/team is responsible for making sure their
written and signed scorecards match what they post in Golf
Genius. If there are discrepancies, the Pro Shop is
authorized to enforce disqualification. (Revised 1/2022)
6. An entry fee may be assessed for all Tournaments.
7. The Qualifying age for our Johnnie Meyers Championship
Tournament, Senior Division, will be 65.
8. Carts are required for all Majors as well as Team
Tournaments. No walking allowed.
SCORECARDS AND HANDICAPS
A. Scorecards for IHWGA play day competitions and Major
Tournaments shall be kept as follows:
1. A scorecard shall be kept on each cart in the group.
2. A maximum course handicap of 39 will be used for all tournaments. (Revised 1/2022) (Revised 5/2024) For posting scores in the GHIN system, a player should still apply her maximum hole
score as required under USGA rules. (revised 1/2017) (revised
4/2018), (revised 7/2019) (revised 3/2020)
3. A player should post scores the day of play. The
maximum score for each hole is limited to Net Double Bogey:
Par + 2 strokes + any handicap strokes the player would receive
on that particular hole. (Revised 3/2023)
4. A player who picks up on a hole will place an “X” by the
score for the hole. The player is then not eligible for that
competition unless otherwise stated by the Tournament
Committee. However, the player must still post their score for
that day (see #3 for posting procedure) (revised 1/2024) There
will be no refunds for dropping out of any Playday.
5. Scorecards must be turned in to the Tournament
Committee, either physically or digitally, to be eligible for
awards.
B. Members MUST post all adjusted scores on the day
played, unless otherwise instructed by the Tournament
Committee.
(revised 3/2020)
C. Scores MUST be posted for all IHWGA related events,
including but not limited to Team Play, River North and Tara.
(Revised 3/13)
D. All competitors must turn in signed and dated scorecards
to be eligible for awards in any IHWGA competitions. Failure to
do so will result in disqualification. Further, players are
responsible for ensuring their scorecards match what they post
in Golf Genius. (Revised 1/2022) (moved from Competition and
added 2/2010) (revised 3/2020) When possible, scores will be
posted in Golf Genius (revised 3/2023)
YEAR LONG MATCH PLAY
Year Long Match Play (YLMP) is NOT an IHWGA sponsored
event. It is open to the entire membership of IHCC. The
following rules are in effect for our IHWGA members that play
in the YLMP to accommodate participation. (Revised 1/2022)
A. An IHWGA member may play her YLMP match on one of
our regular play days except for shotgun starts or other
major tournaments. (Revised 1/2022)
B. If playing on a regularly scheduled “Free Play” day, the
YLMP match can be played at any tee time, however, only one
match per tee time is allowed and you will not be eligible for
that day’s tournament. If you choose to play a YLMP match on
other regularly scheduled play days, you are required to play at
the end of the field and you will not be eligible for that day’s
tournament. (Revised 7/2022)
C. The IHWGA member is not eligible to compete in the
scheduled format for that day or the player’s pool. Chip-ins,
birdies and ringers will be counted if the match is played on one
of our regularly scheduled play days or regularly scheduled
“Free Play” days. (Revised 7/2022)
CELL PHONE USE
Cell phones should be kept on silent mode and as a courtesy to
the other players in your group, you should refrain from talking
on your phone until the turn or after the round (unless an
emergency occurs).
If a problem persists with cell phone use, it will be addressed by
the Tournament Committee. (Revised 1/2022)
Hole-in-One Payout
A hole-in-one payout shall be paid when the hole-in-one occurs
on our home course during the
IHWGA season during a round that produces a postable score
under USGA rules and is
witnessed. Each player who has joined the IHWGA Hole-in-One
Club is eligible to receive a
payout. (revised 1/2014) (revised 2/2018) (Revised 1/2022),
(Revised 12/2023)
SLOW PLAY
Players must keep up with the group in front of them. If the
marshal, after one warning, asks the group to pick up their balls
and move to the next hole (at 2 holes behind), players must
immediately do so. Each player must place an “X” on that hole
on the scorecard and record their most likely score or their
handicap maximum (whichever is less) for that hole for posting
purposes. This may result in disqualification from the
competition depending on the game or tournament format and
as ruled by the Tournament Committee (ie stroke play=DQ;
quota format=no DQ but no points on that hole) (revised
2/2018)
UNDERAGE GUESTS (added 2/2015)
The minimum age requirement for membership in the IHWGA
is 21. All tournaments will adhere to this age requirement
including Member-Guest Tournament. (Revised 1/2022)
Distance Measuring Devices: Rule 4 - The Players Equipment
Rule 4-3 Use of Equipment
(1) Distance and Directional Information.
Allowed. Getting information on distance or direction (such as
from a distance-measuring device or compass).
Not Allowed. Measuring elevation changes, i.e. Slope
Penalty for Breach of Rule 4.3: Penalty for first breach: General
Penalty: Loss of hole in match play or two penalty strokes in
stroke play.
If the breach happens between two holes, the penalty applies
to the next hole.
Penalty for second breach: Disqualification. (Revised 1/2023)
OPTIONAL LOCAL RULE 8E-5 NOT ADOPTED (added 2/2019)
The IHWGA will NOT adopt the USGA’s optional Local Rule 8E-5
for the alternative relief option in the case of a lost or out of
bounds ball. Accordingly, the relief options in these situations
will remain as they are presented in USGA Rule 18.2. This is in
accordance with the IHCC Local Rules that did not adopt this
optional new local rule.
DRESS CODE
Members will adhere to official Indian Hills Country Club policy.
AWARDS FOR WEEKLY PLAY DAYS
A. Players breaking 100, 90, 80, or 70 for the first time will
receive an award. Scores may be counted as long as from
a round played at IHCC, during the IHWGA season - which
runs from the first play day to the last play day - is
witnessed by another IHWGA member, and all holes were
putted out. The player must notify the Weekly
Tournament Chair. (Revised 2/2020) (Revised 2/2019)
(Revised 1/2022)
B. Each week during the IHWGA season, there will be
either a free play day, a Play Day Tournament, or a Major
Tournament. Free play days are days that you play golf
with no payout. Play Day Tournaments are competitions
where there will be monetary and/or prize payouts based
on the number of players in the field. Members that have
won a monetary payout during the season will receive
their accumulated money at the end of the year. Major
Tournaments are play days where the winners will be
presented a trophy and/or prizes. (Revised 1/2024)
C. Peggy Award. An award will be given for the most play days
played during the season.
JOHNNIE MEYERS CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT
(added 7/2019)
To honor this inspirational founder of the IHWGA, the
Championship Tournament will be renamed as the Johnnie
Meyers Championship Tournament. The permanent Crystal
trophy will be engraved and remain in the IHCC trophy case.
(revised 3/2020)
SUNSHINE ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The following suggestions will be the standard, but not limited
to Sunshine acknowledgement from the IHWGA Membership:
Flowers and card will be sent to the family upon the passing of
an IHWGA member; a plant and card will be delivered to the
home of an IHWGA member that has surgery and spends the
night in the hospital; upon the loss of a spouse or child, a card
will be sent to the IHWGA member and a contribution will be
made in memory of their loved one; a sympathy card will be
sent to an IHWGA member upon the passing of other family
members. (Revised 1/2022)
BUDGET (added 2/6/2015)
The IHWGA shall maintain a Long-Term Capital Reserve Fund to
accumulate funds to be held in reserve for the purpose of
replacing and/or purchasing Award Plaques and Trophies as
needed. An amount of $83 from each year’s annual budget will
go to fund that year’s contribution to the fund. The purpose of
funding this reserve is to prevent future major expenditures for
such items having to be covered by a single year’s budget. The
annual budget of IHWGA will be set to end up with a carryover
amount to the next year in the amount of $500.00 in General
Funds, in addition to the $83 annual funding of the LongTerm
Capital Reserve Fund. (revised 2/2019)
AMENDMENTS AND REVISIONS
The Standing Rules may be amended or revised at any time by a
vote of the Board. A majority of the members of the Board
must approve the change.