WEEKDAY SENIOR CHAMPIONS TO BE ANNOUNCED SOON

After tomorrow's second round, we will be announcing the Low Net, Low Gross and Flight winners for the Senior Weekday Championship.  In addition to the tournament prizes, some of these winners will have an opportunity to qualify for a slot in the SCGA Tournament of Club Champions in December.

Torrey Pines South Update

Torrey Pines South is undergoing deferred maintenance through August 2019. During this project, 2 holes will be closed while under construction. The closed holes will change during the course of the project. The other 16 holes will be completely playable. Holes 6 and 13 will be split into two holes with one temporary green added to each hole. We will play the 16 open holes in our tournaments. We will not play the temporary greens. If you play the course during open play, you should post your score by taking net pars on the two closed holes. If you play the temporary greens on 6 and 13, then you should also take net pars on 6 and 13 when posting your score.

Accurate Scorekeeping and Protecting the Field

Golf is a gentleman’s game, a game of integrity. It is each member’s responsibility to ensure scores are recorded accurately. Remember – by signing the scorecard it is a confirmation that scores are recorded properly. 

  • Our Club has zero tolerance for members who intentionally record their scores inaccurately, nor for members who observe this and do nothing about it. If you observe an irregularity and do not want to confront the member, you should notify a Board Member of what you observed.
  • After each hole, each member of the foursome should state his/her score. If you disagree with one of the scores, tell the member what the score should be. Resolve it there. It is very often a simple unintentional mistake. If you don’t question it, you are not protecting the field.
  • We recently had a situation where scores were intentionally recorded incorrectly. All members of this group have been disciplined. 

So, remember this. If you intentionally record inaccurate scores, there will be consequences ranging from a long suspension to expulsion from the club and possibly forfeiture of some winnings. If you observe another member doing this and you do nothing about it, you are not respecting the game and are also subjecting yourself to disciplinary action.

2019 Rules of Golf

The Rules of Golf are undergoing a major change beginning in 2019. You, the golfer, are responsible for knowing the rules and playing by the rules. Here are some of the major changes:

  • Search time for a lost ball is now 3 minutes, not 5 minutes.
  • When dropping a ball, it is no longer dropped from shoulder height. It is now dropped from knee height.
  • If you accidentally double hit the golf ball, it is no longer a penalty stroke.
  • You cannot ground your golf club in a bunker, but incidental touching is permitted.
  • Loose impediments in hazards, including bunkers, can be removed without penalty. However, the golf ball still cannot be moved.
  • You may ground your club in a penalty area.
  • If you mark your ball on the putting green and then put it back and the ball then either moves by itself or by the wind, you are to replace the ball, no penalty.
  • You are allowed to leave the flagstick in the hole.
  • Lost ball: This is a local rule which the club has elected to adopt for all tournament play. The video below best describes this new rule. To summarize, (1) estimate where the ball was lost; (2) estimate a straight line running from the hole to the point your ball was lost; (3) estimate the nearest edge of the fairway, no closer to the hole; (4) take two club lengths from that point, no nearer the hole; (5) your drop area is now between the edge of the two club lengths in the fairway to the point where your ball was estimated to have been lost. Note that you may still opt to hit a provisional shot and if you do, you must play that ball and this local rule will not come into play.

Scorecards

The most common reason members are DQ'd from a tournament is they either did not turn in their scorecard or they didn't sign it. Most members are using Golf Genius for real time scoring and that really improves your golf experience especially if you use the leaderboard. But remember, the Golf Genius scorecard is not your official scorecard. If there is a difference between your scorecard and the score recorded on Golf Genius, your scorecard is your official score.

Interested in marshaling for the upcoming 2021 USOpen?

Members, we are attempting to gauge the interest of our members in volunteering to marshal during the 2021 US Open. Those who participated in 2008 found it to be very rewarding! Please be advised the USGA will be looking at those individuals who have had recent marshaling experience. With this in mind, the Farmers has made available to our members the opportunity to marshal during the upcoming Farmers events. If you want to be a marshal for 2021 I suggest you make arrangements to marshal this year! Please contact John Hoffman at jhoffman@tpmgc.org and make sure to include the days you are available.

Pace of Play

Q: Why does the club emphasize Pace of Play so much?

A:

  1. To preserve our ability to have morning tournaments at Torrey Pines GC.
  2. Golf is a lot more fun when pace of play is good! The club has a Special Use Permit with the City. This Permit includes a clause which says the City can move our tournaments to later in the day if we don’t maintain an acceptable pace of play.

You can’t always control how long it takes to play your round if the course is slow ahead of you, but you can control the gap between your finishing time and the group ahead of you. If you have a gap of greater than 15 minutes, you are playing too slow! You will be subject to consequences outlined in the Pace of Play Policy which is on the website. Golf is just a game. Its more fun when the pace is good. Don’t be responsible for jeopardizing the club’s ability to play morning golf at Torrey Pines.

Use of Measuring Devices

Rules of golf allow for the use of electronic devices only to measure distance from you to the hole, bunkers, etc. The same rules prohibit the use of devices that measure elevation change, wind speed, etc. They may only measure distance. This rule is not changing in 2019. Members using devices which measure anything other than distance will be disqualified.

Prize Fund - How To Access

The only thing better than playing at Torrey Pines is to play well and collect some winnings. This explains how to use your prize winnings. To check the balance of your prize fund account or to request a certificate, go to the Prize Fund tab on this site, click on Prize Fund Balance and enter your GHIN and last name. There are instructions at the bottom of that page that explain how to request some or all of your prize fund. Prize Fund Certificates are only issued to the Authorized Stores indicated on the website or for $500 VISA Gift Cards. The certificate to a store must be for a minimum of $50 or the balance of your account if less than $50. When your request is completed the certificate will be emailed directly to the store for you to redeem. You will receive a confirming email indicating that the certificate has been issued. Certificates must be redeemed within 90 days or they will expire. Replacement certificates will not be issued. There are additional processing fees charged by VISA (currently $15.90) that are taken from your account for a $500 VISA Gift Card. You should receive your VISA Gift Card about 7-10 days after it is ordered.