MATCHPLAY CHAMPIONSHIP POLICY

The Match Play Championship is our second Major Tournament of the year, and the following comprises everything you need to know about the format and rules. If you have further questions, contact the Tournament Chairman.

 

You can follow the tournament as teams advance by checking the brackets page.

ELIGIBILITY
This tournament is open to RPGC Members who have an established low index and have competed in at least six (6) RPGC-sanctioned tournaments within 12 months before this tournament. Participation in the same event the year prior does not count as an eligible round.

 

PLAY-IN ROUND 
The top 16 players in each flight, according to net scores, advance to the Knock-Out stage of the tournament.

 

A net card-off will determine tiebreakers for the Play-In round: Back nine, back six, back three, then 18, 17, 16, etc., until a winner is determined. In the rare event that the players are still tied after all tiebreaking procedures have been exhausted, a coin flip shall determine the winner.

 

In the Knock-Out stage, #1 will play #16, #2 will play #15, #3 will play #14, etc.

 

FLIGHTS

The field will consist of three flights and teams will tee off according to flight. Championship, then President, then Vice President. 

 

HANDICAPS:
Because this is a Major Tournament, all competitors must use their 12-month "Low Index" or "Club Index" - whichever is lower. This index will be frozen from moving up during the tournament, but your index (either Low or Club) can always move down mid-tournament. 

 

KNOCK-OUT STAGE 

Once the Play-In round is over, all further rounds will be head-to-head, single-elimination (match play) matches.  

 

STROKES/POPS

If Player A is a 10 handicap and Player B is a 14 handicap, Player A plays to zero and Player B plays to a 4. Player B will receive a stroke on each of the four lowest handicap holes.

 

GROUND UNDER REPAIR (GUR):
Ground Under Repair (GUR) will be marked with yellow (not white) paint. A ball in GUR may be played as it lies, or relief may be taken per Rule 16-1. An area with a sign that reads Ground Under Repair shall be treated as such. If the player elects to take relief from this GUR, they shall do so outside of the line, rope, or chain that identifies the border of the GUR. 

 

If you believe a ball is in an unmarked Abnormal Ground Condition, including GUR, apply Rule 20.1.c(3) and play a second ball. In this case, a photo of the area MUST be taken and emailed to RANCHOGOLFRULES@GMAIL.COM. Include a description of what transpired and a phone number where you can be reached.

TEES

Championship Flight competitors shall play from the tees closest to 6,800 yards, the President flight shall play from the tees closest to 6,400 yards, and the Vice President flight shall play from the tees closest to 6,000 yards (which represent the yardages of Rancho Black, Blue, and White, respectively). That said, if both players agree, they can play from any tees they like.

 

SELF-SCHEDULED PLAY:
It is the responsibility of ALL players in each match to find a mutually agreeable date, time, and course for the match to be completed by the deadline. Failure to complete your match by the deadline may result in disqualification. Please communicate with the Tournament Director by EMAIL if there are any problems or difficulties in scheduling and completing your match by the deadline. 

 

If players cannot agree on a date, time, or course to play, the following tiebreakers will be used:

 

  • If players cannot agree to play during the week or on the weekend, the weekend takes preference.
  • If players cannot agree on Saturday or Sunday, Saturday takes preference.
  • If players cannot agree on a time to play, the tee time closest to 9:00 am will be used.
  • If players cannot agree on what course to play, the following list is used to select a course in order: Rancho, Wilson, Harding, Encino, Balboa, Hansen Dam, Woodley.


Because this is a self-scheduled tournament after the first round, it will run from June until September.  RPGC encourages players to have a current City of Los Angeles Golf Reservation Card to schedule tee times at any City golf course. 

Failure to effectively communicate with the Tournament Director and play your match by the deadline WILL result in disqualification.

 

POSTING OF SCORES

After completing the round, report the match results via email (NOT TEXT) to ranchocards@gmail.com.  Again, for the second round and beyond, post your scores as (CH) Competition rounds and post your scores IMMEDIATELY AFTER your round. Failure to post your score immediately after the round will result in a penalty score added to your file. There will be no exceptions to this rule, so if you find a penalty score on your record please don't bother complaining or sending an email. 


RULES OF GOLF
Matches shall be played according to the USGA Rules of Golf, and each player must know how the rules of match play differ from those of stroke play. 

TIEBREAKERS
Before commencing play of your match, all competitors shall agree on how to determine the tiebreaker. Consensus shall be reached before the start of your match. Tiebreaker examples include:

  • Resume with hole-by-hole play if the golf course operator permits until a hole is won.
  • Play another 18-hole match, so long as this match is completed by the posted deadline.
  • Use a card-off to determine the winner. Back nine, back six, back three, then 18, 17, 16, etc until a winner is determined. In the rare event that the players are still tied after all tiebreaking procedures have been exhausted, a coin flip shall determine the winner.
  • Flip a coin.


If the competitors cannot reasonably settle who the winner is by the deadline, it will be up to the Tournament Chairman's discretion on how the winner of the match will be decided. 

WHEN THE MATCH IS CLOSED OUT
If the match is closed out before 18 holes have been played, the round is deemed to have been completed. Once the Match has been completed, each player MUST post Net Par (based on that day's handicap) for any holes remaining to be played. 

 

SUBMITTING SCORECARDS 
Upon completing a match, it is the responsibility of both players to immediately post their scores (as Competition "C" rounds) and for the winning player to email the completed scorecard to the Tournament Chairman.

POST SCORES AS COMPETITION (CH) SCORES

The club will post your score for the first round only. After that, you are responsible for posting scores as Competition (CH) scores. Failure to post as a Tournament Score or failing to post immediately after completing your match will result in a penalty round being issued to your scoring file. No exceptions. There's a great GHIN app that makes it easy to post your scores from your phone, we suggest you download it.

DEADLINES FOR COMPLETION OF ROUNDS:
Play-in round – May 11
2nd round – June 9
3rd round – June 30
Semi-Final – July 21
Final - August 12

SCRIP PRIZE PAYOUTS ($5,100 TOTAL PRIZE PURSE)
Champion (3): $800
Runner-up (3): $400
Semi-Finalists (6): $250 per player

POINTS (GOLFER OF THE YEAR):
30 points for the Champion (1 player)
24 points for the Runner-Up (1 player)
15 points each for Semi-Finalists (2 players)
6 points each for Quarter Finalists (4 players)


(One additional participation point is awarded to all players participating in the tournament).

 

If you have any questions or comments please contact me.

 


Thor Tandberg

Tournament Chairman