GENERAL TOURNAMENT RULES

A. RULES OF PLAY

The tournament is for MALE AMATEUR GOLFERS ONLY and shall be conducted in accordance with the R&A Rules Limited, the USGA and the Local Rules of both Baguio Country Club and Camp John Hay Golf Club.

B. SCHEDULE

The tournament is for MALE AMATEUR GOLFERS ONLY and shall be conducted in accordance with the R&A Rules Limited, the USGA and the Local Rules of both Baguio Country Club and Camp John Hay Golf Club.

C. MANNER OF COMPETITION

  1. The tournament will be divided into two (2) groups, the “FIL” and the “AM” Divisions.
  2. Both Divisions shall play 72 holes using Stableford scoring system.
  3. For Team and Individual competitions, there will be a SENIORS Division bracketed into six (6) flights – “Championship” to “E”, while the Men’s REGULARS will be bracketed into seven (7) flights- “Championship” to “F”. Each bracket will still be separate into an “Fil” and “Am” Division.
  4. Practice rounds are for bonafide Fil-Am participants only. Guests are strictly prohibited. Teams violating such will be subject to disqualification. Both courses will be available for practice rounds on November 26, 2024, to 12:00 noon of November 28, 2024, for SENIORS and REGULAR FLIGHT F and December 6, 2024, to 12:00 noon of December 8, 2024, for REGULAR FLIGHTS CH, A, B, C, D & E. Practice rounds for both courses must be scheduled in advance upon registration.

D. ENTRIES

  1. Participating Team Priority.
    • Invited Golf Clubs in the Philippines and Baguio Local Teams
    • Invited Golf Clubs outside the Philippines
    • Sponsor Teams
    • Local Teams with invitation
    • New Teams and Local Teams
  2. Team Composition
      • A team must be composed of at least five (5) players and up to three (3) additional alternates.
        *Alternate players are subject to the same fee as regular player.
  3. Eligible teams must confirm their participation in the tournament by submitting to the Tournament Committee their completed entry forms and the corresponding fees on or before October 1, 2024. Waitlisted teams will be entertained after October 1.
  4. Each team must designate one (1) Team Captain who will be the primary point of contact for the Tournament Committee and the Secretariat. All official communications between the Tournament Committee and the team will be conducted through the designated Team Captain only. He shall ensure that his team members are familiar with the rules of golf, tournament rules and other rules applicable to the competition.

    ***The Team Captain is responsible for providing a verifiable World Handicap System (WHS) or
    a GHIN HANDICAP his team members.

  5. Team Captains can confirm and amend their line-ups at the Baguio Country Club Secretariat. All changes in a team’s line-up must be done at the Team Captains meeting in writing not later than 12:00nn of November 26, 2024, for the Seniors and Regular Flights F and 12:00nn of December 6, 2024 for the Regular Flights CH, A, B, C, D & E. Failure of the Team Captain to confirm and certify his team will relieve the Committee of any responsibility for any errors in line-ups or handicaps.

E. TEEING AREA

Regulars – BLUE TEE
Seniors – WHITE TEE
Super Seniors (70 years of age as of November 29, 2024) – GREEN TEE

F. HANDICAP

  1. Handicap indexes shall be submitted with the team’s application and will be used by the Tournament Committee as a reference. All participants must have a valid and verifiable World Handicap System (WHS) or a US GHIN handicap. NO WHS/GHIN, NO PLAY.
  2. In light of recent updates to the World Handicap System (WHS) affecting the calculation of player handicaps, the Tournament Committee will be retrieving player indices on an undisclosed date. This adjustment is being made to ensure accurate and fair handicap calculations for all participants.
  3. The Tournament Committee reserves the right to reject or adjust handicap indexes of a player before or during tournament proper.
  4. The Maximum allowable index of a player is 28. Players with indexes of 28.1 and above are ineligible to participate.
  5. The average of the 3 lowest Handicap indexes will be used for classification of teams. No player in the “AM” Division shall have a lower handicap than those players in the “FIL” Division.
  6. Questions on handicap indexes of other teams/players shall ONLY be considered until 6:00 PM of November 28, 2024 for the Seniors and Regular Flights F, and December 8, 2024 for the Regular Flights CH, A, B, C, D & E.
  7. Teams/ individuals shall be disqualified for submitting confirmed false handicap indexes (Rule 3.3b, Rules of Golf) and may be banned from future participation in the FIL-AM. Team protests must be submitted in writing with an attached proof to the Tournament Committee. The Committee reserves the right to investigate any handicaps.

NOTE: If a player has more than one (1) handicap index, the lowest handicap index shall be used. It is the Team Captain’s responsibility to ensure the lowest handicap index of his player is submitted. Failure to report a handicap index may result in disqualification.

G. CLASSIFICATION

  1. Team placements in the different flights will be based on the average of the three (3) lowest handicap indexes in the team.
    • First Week (November 26 to December 4, 2024)
      • Seniors Division Championship, A, B, C D and E Flights
      • Regulars Division Flights F
    • Second Week (December 6 – 14, 2024)
      • Regulars Division Championship, A, B, C, D and E Flights
  2. All players for the Seniors Division must be 55 years of age by November 29, 2024.
  3. All team champions of the different classifications from last year’s tournament may be advanced to a higher classification at the discretion of the Tournament Committee.
  4. Request for team classification, elevation or preferred playing week SHALL NOT BE ENTERTAINED.
  5. Players wanting to play both weeks of the tournament are permitted to do so.
  6. The Tournament Committee reserves the right to classify or reclassify any team/s if it deems such change is for the good of the tournament.

H. SCORECARD SUBMISSION

Official Scorecard Box shall be placed in the designated scoring area on the 9th and 18th Hole of both Baguio Country Club and Camp John Hay Golf Club. Once the scorecard has been placed/dropped into the scorecard box, the scorecard is deemed to have been submitted.

The player is responsible for the correctness of the score recorded for each hole on his scorecard. If he returns a score for any hole lower than actually taken, he is disqualified for the stipulated round. If he/she returns a score for any hole higher than actually taken, the score as returned stands.

Each player shall be assigned by the Committee to be a Marker and record the scores of another player in the same flight. The Marker is responsible for the recording of the scores himself and NOT THE CADDIE. The Marker shall record the GROSS SCORE (NOT POINTS) of the player and mark pick-ups with an “X”.

NOTE: The Committee may disqualify the Marker if it is shown that he knowingly and/or deliberately violated this rule and/or deliberately performed actions so another player may be disqualified. The Scorecard is deemed submitted when it is dropped in the Drop Box provided for.

TO AVOID PENALTIES, PLAYERS ARE REMINDED TO:

  • Retrieve their Scorecard from their Marker IMMEDIATELY after they leave the putting green of their last hole.
  • Check their scores for correctness and make sure that their GROSS SCORES are legibly indicated on the card. Holes picked-up must be marked with an “X”.
  • Settle any doubtful rulings with the Marker and/or the Committee before signing the scorecard. Any alteration on the Scorecard must be clarified with the Marker before it is submitted. Scores not legibly written will be interpreted by the Committee at its discretion.
  • Ensure that both player and marker have signed and attested the scorecard before submission.
  • Return the scorecard to the Committee before any member of the flight following them submits
    their scorecard/s or within fifteen (15) minutes of holing out if they are the last flight of the
    morning or afternoon set. Penalty for breach of this Rule is Disqualification without appeal.

I. SCORING SYSTEM

    1. The tournament will be scored by the following system:
      6 pointsHole-In-One on par 4 or Double Eagle/ Albatross
      5 pointsHole-In-One on par 3
      4 pointstwo under par (Eagle)
      3 pointsone under par (Birdie)
      2 pointspar
      1 pointone over par (Bogey)

      *Note: Players are reminded to record strokes and not points on the official scorecard.

  1. Each team may field five (5) players with four (4) scores to count for the team for the day.
  2. Ties shall be broken as follows:
    • Team Competition
      • Final round score of the 5th player. (Score that did not count)
      • Best team score for the last 18 holes
      • Best team score for the last 36 holes
      • Best team score for the last 54 holes
      • Most number of eagles then birdies, then pars, then bogeys
    • Individual Competition
      • Final round score of the player
      • Final 36 holes score of the player
      • Final 54 holes score of the player
      • If still tied, final 9 holes, final 6 holes, final 3 holes, hole by hole count back from the 72nd hole.

J. TEAM & INDIVIDUAL AWARDS

    1. Team trophies will be awarded to Champions, 1st Runners-up and 2nd Runners-up from the “Championship” flights through “F” flights in the Regulars, from “CH” flights through “E” flights for the Seniors.
    2. Five (5) trophies will be awarded to the members of the winning teams. In case of teams having more than five (5) players, additional trophies will be sent at a later date.
    3. A Trophy will be awarded to the medalist of each individual classification as determined by handicap indexes.

      *** All players competing in the Championship Division will be automatically placed in the Championship Group.
    4. Hole-in-one awards and prizes will only be issued for those made during the tournament proper. 

K. TEE TIMES AND REQUEST FOR TEE TIME PAIRINGS

    1. Pairings and starting times will be released and posted through the official Fil-Am Website or at the Secretariat.

      Team Captains are required to submit their pairings on or BEFORE 7:00 P.M. Changes in player’s starting times will not be allowed.
      A Team Captain may replace a player with a registered alternate/s up until one (1) hour prior to scheduled tee time.

    2. Teams who fail to field the minimum number of four (4) players daily may be disqualified and automatically lose their standing for an invitation to the following year’s tournament.
    3. The Tournament Committee will not entertain any requests for tee times or playing dates. Players who join the tournament must be ready to play on any day of the tournament dates and tee times assigned to them by the Tournament Committee.

L. RULES DECISION

    1. Questions regarding Rules of Golf shall be referred ONLY to the Rules Committee.
    2. Any protest must be submitted immediately in writing (signed by the Team Captain) not later than 6:00 pm of the day of the stipulated round.
    3. Decisions of the Rules Committee shall be final.

M. FIL-AM LOCAL RULES

    1. PACE OF PLAY GUIDELINES
      • All players must always maintain the proper pace of play. If a group falls behind by having an open hole in front of them, they will be warned by a course marshal/rules official and asked to speed up play and keep pace with the group ahead.
        • If they do not, in the opinion of the marshal/official, make a conscious effort to speed up
          play in the next few holes, the marshal/rules official will time all members of the group.
        • The rules official doing the timing shall be the sole judge of when it is the players turn to play and he is able to play without interference or distraction. Any player who takes more than forty (40) seconds to play his shot from the time it is his turn to play shall incur a BAD TIME and be subject to the following penalties:
          1st Bad TimeWarning
          2nd Bad TimeOne (1) point deduction from total team points
          3rd Bad TimeTwo (2) point deduction from total team points
          4th Bad TimeDisqualification for the stipulated round. Player will be asked to discontinue play
        • The group will be timed until they have regained their proper position on the course. A player will carry his bad time for the rest of the round in case their flight falls out of position again.
    2. MANDATORY PICK-UP AFTER BOGEY
      • A player who fails to score a bogey is mandated by the Tournament Committee to stop play of the hole, to speed up play. The player must pick-up his ball and not make a stroke for a doublebogey. He must mark his score with an “X” to indicate a pick-up. Failure to do so is an automatic two (2) point deduction from the team’s points total score for the stipulated round.
    3. WRONG SCORE FOR HOLE
      • The player is responsible for the correctness of the score recorded for each hole on his scorecard. If the player returns a score for any hole lower than actually taken, PLAYER IS DISQUALIFIED FOR THE STIPULATED ROUND. If he returns a score for any hole higher than actually taken, the score as returned stands.

N. CADDIES

Caddies of the host clubs will be available for the players under a rotation basis. Participants may also bring their own personal caddies provided they register their caddies to the Tournament Secretariat or Caddie Master. They must be in proper golf attire, preferably white collared shirt and khaki pants. Duly accredited caddies of hosts clubs may not be appointed as personal caddies of players.

O. DISQUALIFICATION/ SUSPENSION

At any time, the Tournament Committee reserves the right to disqualify and / or suspend any team or individual from their participation in the FIL – AM Invitational Golf Tournament. Reasons for disqualification/ suspension may include the following:

  1. Disrespect to the sponsors, tournament officials and staff.
  2. Unbecoming conduct and gross violations of the Rules of Golf and serious breach of golf etiquette by any team member/s during the tournament.
  3. Violation of the House Rules of both Host Clubs/Hotels.
  4. Whether intentional or not, misrepresentation and/or playing under any other identity.

P. CLOSE OF COMPETITION

The Tournament is deemed to be closed after the awarding of trophy prize in each division.

THE TOURNAMENT COMMITTEE RESERVES THE RIGHT TO MAKE REVISIONS AT ITS DISCRETION – TO ADJUST OR FOREGO – IF IT FEELS THAT SUCH ACTIONS ARE IN THE BEST INTERESTS OF THE TOURNAMENT.