HARBOUR POINTE MEN’S CLUB GENERAL INFORMATION
AND RULES OF COMPETITION
All Harbour Pointe Men’s Club tournaments shall be governed by the USGA Rules, the USGA Rules of Handicapping, the HPMC Local Rules, and the Local Course Rules. It is each player’s responsibility to know all rules governing competitions, including proper application of Winter Rules when applicable, free drop areas, etc. See the Local Rules, which have been revised for 2024. In the event of a conflict between these general rules and the Local Rules or tournament specific rules, the Local Rules and/or the tournament specific rules take precedence.
Members from the previous year are encouraged to pay their membership dues before January 31st. As defined by the USGA 5.5, a Handicap Index only lapses if a player is no longer a member of at least one golf club. Members from the previous year who have not paid the HPMC annual membership fee prior to
any tournament that occurs on or after March 1st are not eligible to receive winnings or compete for KP’s, Skins, and/or the Deuce pot in that event. No first-event exemption will be granted.
The Rhodes Cup: The Rhodes Cup is named after Mark Rhodes, an original partner of Harbour Pointe Golf Club and the founder of the Harbour Pointe Men’s Club. This annual 2-day Ryder Cup-style event rewards the top 32 participation point’s earners. Points are earned by participating in HPMC events. The top two Rhodes Cup point’s earners act as team captains. The Harbour Pointe Golf Club comps the golf rounds both days. The prize for winning is a piece of a small cash side game, bragging rights for a year, and your name forever memorialized on the perpetual Rhodes Cup trophy, proudly displayed in the Pro Shop. Rhodes Cup points for events are earned only after the current year membership dues are paid.
Guest Participation: A guest may only play in three non-major tournaments during the active posting season and be eligible to receive winnings. A guest is not eligible to participate in side games during the active season unless explicitly expressed in the written rules for the particular tournament. Winnings in any subsequent event will be forfeited if the HPMC annual membership fee is not paid prior to the event. For events during the inactive season, guests (non-members of the previous calendar year) may win any number of times and are eligible to participate in side games. A guest fee of $15 will be charged for guests playing in non-posting season events and will be contributed to the tournament payouts.
Handicapping: HPMC follows the USGA Rules of Handicapping manual. Only active GHIN Handicap Indexes are acceptable for HPMC tournaments (See Appendix A, Player Responsibilities). Except for rounds played at Harbour Pointe during a Men’s tournament, HPMC members are expected to self-post to GHIN all acceptable scores for rounds played during the active posting season where the round is played. For example, an acceptable score for a round played in Arizona during Washington’s inactive
season must be posted. An acceptable score is a round played in an authorized format played over at least the minimum number of holes required either for a 9-hole round (completed 7 holes) or 18-hole round (completed 14 holes). For posting purposes, incomplete holes shall be given a score of net-double bogey.
For major tournaments, course handicaps will be set the Monday before the tournament and will be used for the duration of the tournament. For all other tournaments, course handicaps will be set the day before the event.
Handicap adjustments may only be made by the HPMC Handicap Committee. The Handicap Committee consists of the Handicap Chair, the Tournament Chair, and two At-Large Board members, and the head Golf Professional. A session of the Handicap Committee includes the attendance of the Handicap Chair, Tournament Chair, head Golf Professional and at least one At-Large Board member. The Handicap Chair, Tournament Chair, and head Golf Professional are mandatory participants in any session of the Handicap Committee absent exigent circumstances. Access to the HPMC Handicap Committee cannot be guaranteed the day of an event, therefore golfers are advised to address any handicap grievances at least 24 hours prior to play. For all major tournaments, golfers are advised to address any handicap grievances
by midnight Tuesday prior to the Tournament. Commencement of play shall indicate a golfer’s affirmation of his listed handicap, as well as acceptance of the rules for adjustments set forth herein. Handicap adjustments, after play, shall be at the sole discretion of the Handicap Committee. The Harbour Pointe Golf professionals alone do not have the authority to grant handicap adjustments for HPMC events.
Requests for temporary handicap adjustments may be made by requesting a hearing before the Handicap Committee not less than 24 hours prior to the event to be played, and subject to the availability of the Committee members. For all major tournaments, golfers are advised to address any handicap adjustments concerns by midnight Tuesday prior to the Tournament. Temporary handicaps may be requested based on temporary or extenuating circumstances, including but not limited to illness,
injury, leave of absence from play, etc.
The maximum course handicap allowed for any Men’s Club tournament is 32. Players with a course handicap greater than 32 will receive a course handicap of 32 for the event, unless the Handicap Committee has granted an exception.
The Harbour Pointe professionals will post all Men’s Club tournament scores during the active season. Rounds played in a “Boy’s Game” will also be posted for the player. Only rounds from the HP Memorial Classic , Member-Guest, Club Championship, Member-Member, and Players Championship will be posted as “Competition” scores. All other tournaments will be posted as “Home” scores.
If members are interested in learning how a handicap index is calculated and how a handicap index is converted to a course handicap before adjustments to a playing handicap, members are encouraged to read Section III, Rule 5 of the Rules of Handicapping. The Rules of Handicapping can be found in the USGA Rules of Golf App, or online at: https://www.usga.org/handicapping/roh/2020-rules-of-handicapping.html.
| Rating | Slope | Tees |
| 73.8 | 144 | Black |
| 72.3 | 139 | Blue |
| 71.4 | 136 | Member |
| 70.0 | 131 | White |
| 67.0 | 115 | Gold |
An 18-hole Course Handicap is calculated as follows:
Course Handicap = Handicap Index x (Slope Rating ÷ 113) + (Course Rating – par)
Note: An 18-hole Course Handicap based on the same 9 holes is calculated as follows:
Course Handicap = Handicap Index x (9-hole Slope Rating ÷ 113) + (2 x 9-hole Course Rating – 2 x 9-hole par)
All team tournaments will use the USGA recommended handicap allowances for Team Competitions.
● Four-Ball (aka 2-Person Best ball)
o 90% of course handicap
o Team members whose course handicaps differ by more than 8 strokes will have both team members’ course handicaps reduced by 10%.
o For the HP Memorial Classic, Member-Guest and Member-Member, team members whose course handicaps differ by more than 12 strokes, the team member with the higher course handicap will have their course handicap reduced to be within 12 strokes of the lower team member’s course handicap.
● Foursome (aka Alternate Shot)
o Teams receive 50% of the partners’ combined course handicap
● Chapman
o The partner with the lower course handicap receives 60% of course handicap and the partner with the higher course handicap receives 40% of course handicap.
● Scramble
o 4 Man - The player with the lowest course handicap receives 20% of their course handicap, the next lowest receives 15%, the next lowest 10%, and the highest course
handicap of the group receives 5%.
o 2 Man - The player with the lowest course handicap receives 35% and the player with the higher course handicap receives 15%.
HPMC follows USGA Handicap of Handicapping 6.2(b) - guidance for allowing players to play from different tee markers. However, members will be asked to declare upon registering for the HPMC, and before the first event the member plays in, a “Default Tee.” Members will have the option of playing from the Member (Green), White, or Gold tee markers. When participating in competitions in which a set of tees is not defined by the competition itself, the Default Tee the member declares becomes the tee from which they intend to play the majority of their competition rounds throughout the season and shall be their selected tee for the all four major events (The HP Memorial Classic, Club Championship/President’s Cup, Member-Member, and Players Championship). The only exception to the major event Default Tee box rule is the Club Championship is played from the Blue tee markers.
Members who declare the Gold tee as their Default Tee may be subject to review by the tournament committee and the HPMC Board to ensure that using the opportunity to move up to the Gold tee is as intended and is fair to the membership and competitive balance. The true intention of allowing a member to play from their desired tee marker is to maximize the enjoyment they receive from competing in the HPMC.
If a member decides to play from a tee other than their Default Tee in a non-major event for pace of play or social reasons (the majority of players in the group are playing from a certain tee), the member must inform as soon as possible, and no later than the conclusion of the member’s round, the club professional so that the correct tee is used for handicap and posting purposes.
Members who decide to play from the White tee or the Gold tees in "Member Tee" or “Blue Tee” events will only be eligible to win net prizes and are not allowed to win gross prizes unless there are enough players to create a dedicated White or Gold tee flight (see flight rules). Members playing from the White or Gold tees qualify for the side games.
In team competitions, if one player plays from a different tee, the team is only eligible to win net prizes.
Members shall declare their Default Tee by informing the club pro (Dave Castleberry) when they register for membership with HPMC.
Seniors Division This division is open to members who are at least 60 years of age and are participating in Individual Competition HPMC events only, provided that a minimum of 10 senior players are signed up. Senior division players may pay an optional $5.00 cash competition fee at the time of check-in, can play from any tee box, except the red box and qualify for first and second place gross and net payouts.
The Seniors Division competition is excluded for the Majors and Member Guest.
CRYSTAL QUALIFICATION FOR THE MAJORS
For the four majors only. (The HP Memorial Classic, Club Championship/President’s Cup, Member-Member, and Players Championship), members have the opportunity to win crystal in any of the four “major” events. However, to qualify and compete to win crystal, a returning member, new member or member not in good standing must have an active GHIN, paid the annual membership fee and have a minimum of three 18-hole rounds posted scores at Harbour Pointe in Men’s Club competitions. For members returning from the previous year, the three 18-hole rounds must have been posted within the previous 6 months.
For members returning from the previous year, the three 18-hole rounds must have been posted within the previous 6 months. For new members, the three 18-hole rounds must be posted any time between March 1st (Nine posting possibilities) of the current calendar year and the Wednesday immediately before the first round of The HP Memorial Classic, Club Championship/President’s Cup, Member-Member, and Players Championship as the case may be, regardless of whether the round was played as a guest.
Members who do not meet the qualifying requirements for crystal may still compete in the tournament and still win the gross or net division. In the event a member who does not qualify for crystal wins a division, the crystal will be awarded to the member with the next lowest gross or net score, as the case may be, who qualifies for crystal. The member’s handicap may be adjusted as set forth in these rules should the member have an inactive GHIN that is reactivated before a major event. Guests are not permitted to play in the four majors.
Members that are 60 years of age or older, qualify for the “Senior Club Championship”. This championship is by acclamation only and is played during the Club Championship and Presidents Cup event from any tee box, except the red tee box. It is non-paying and without crystal. The winner will be announced during the Club Championship/President’s Cup crystal presentation. Participants are still eligible to win the Club Championship or President’s Cup.
To qualify for crystal in the Players Championship major only: In addition to the round requirement, a member must be in the top 75 tournament money leaders earned through official HPMC events held during the same calendar year (excluding side game monies such as, but not limited to, Gross Skins, Net Skins, Honey Pot, and KP winnings). Past champions of the Players Championship (gross or net) and major event winners (gross or net) in the same calendar year who are members in good standing are exempt from the money leader qualification. Members subject to the Leave of Absence Policy and Snowbird Rule are subject to the top 75 tournament money leader requirement to qualify for crystal.
Leave of Absence Policy: The HPMC Board has adopted a Leave of Absence policy whereby past members who were in good standing with HPMC may maintain their GHIN through another Home Club as provided in the Rules of Handicapping. Providing the past member remains in good standing with their Home Club, including maintaining an active GHIN. Said member who wishes to compete in the any of the four majors, may do so by regaining active membership in HPMC by paying the annual
membership dues and otherwise meetings the requirements as outlined in these rules. Said member is exempt from the crystal qualification round requirement as long as they played in at least one major event the previous year and have posted three 18-hole rounds in GHIN. This provision follows Rule of Handicapping, 1.4b, Interpretations.
Snowbird Rule: Additionally, members who are in good standing, may maintain their GHIN through HPMC even though said member is posting rounds played out of state away from Harbour Pointe at various times of the year. In this case, those members playing out of state at various times of the year shall post their rounds in accordance with the Rules of Handicapping. Said member is exempt from the crystal qualification round requirement as long as they played in at least one major event the previous
year and have posted three 18-hole rounds in GHIN during their time away from Harbour Pointe.
The Handicap and Tournament Chairman’s are responsible for ensuring that members meet the criteria for Crystal Qualifications for the Majors. The HPMC BOD reserves the right to review exceptions for participants qualifying criteria for the Crystal Qualifications for the Majors.
Men’s Club Tournaments: For each Men’s Club tournament, a minimum of 30 players (individual event) or 30 teams (team event) will be required to split into two flights. A minimum of 60 players or 60 teams will be required to split into three flights. No tournament will have more than 3 flights.
HPMC uses Golf Genius to score rounds in real-time during Men’s Club competitions. At least one person in the group must have a Smartphone with the Golf Genius App installed in order to keep score for the group. The golf shop will email and/or text before the round the group’s GGID for the round. See the published Local Rules for additional requirements for keeping score, and HPMC’s slow play policy.
A golfer may only win in one division, net or gross – whichever yields the higher payout – unless the golfer is playing from a tee box other than the tee box specified for the event, in which case the golfer may only win net, unless there is a dedicated forward tee flight (e.g. white). For majors only, when there is a tie for 1st place, there shall be a sudden-death playoff. The HPMC Board of Directors, in consultation with the Harbour Pointe golf professionals, reserve the right to modify how a tie is resolved if circumstances, such as course conditions and/or course operations, do not allow for a sudden-death playoff. In the gross division, the player or team losing the playoff still qualifies to place in the net division, including winning the net division, if placing in the net division yields the higher payout. Payouts will be determined at the discretion of the Harbour Pointe professional who is managing the event based on the size of the net and gross pots, the number of competitors in each, the number of flights where applicable, and other factors. Harbour Pointe Professionals are welcome to play in HPMC tournaments and are eligible to win gross or net.
Honey Pots and Side Games (Net Skins, Gross Skins, Deuce Pot, KP): Tournament participants have the option of buying into side games, and when available, honey pots. Side game winnings shall be paid in cash in majors and book money in all other events, except for KP’s. KP’s are always paid in cash.
Side Games: If there is no winner in a side game (Net Skins, Gross Skins, Deuce Pot) during a tournament, the money collected for the side game with no winner goes into the HPMC general fund.
KP’s: A portion of the KP pot for each tournament is set aside to create the pot for the KP Shootout, which usually occurs at the end of September.
50/50 Raffle/Hole-in-One Pot: At the discretion of the HPMC Board, during certain tournaments (majors, Field Days, Wednesday Kick-off and Finale), participants will have the option of entering the “50/50 Pot” raffle. At the conclusion of the event, half of the pot is raffled off and the other half is deposited into the HPMC general fund to be used to defray the cost of drinks in the event of a hole-in-one. Policy decisions regarding the operation of the 50/50 Raffle/Hole-in-One Pot shall be decided by a majority vote of the HPMC BOD.
Hole in One: When a HPMC member, or their guest, scores a hole-in-one in an HPMC tournament (Wednesdays or weekend tournaments (the “Boy’s Game” does not qualify)), HPMC will extend a credit in the HP Restaurant/Lounge to help defray the cost of buying a round of drinks for his fellow HPMC tournament participants. The credit amount shall not exceed $300 and is subject to adjustment at the discretion of the HPMC Board based on the size of the field, the available balance in the account, and the
number of holes-in-one scored in the event. If there is more than one hole-in-one in an event, a $300 credit will be extended for each hole-in-one, subject to the discretion of the HPMC Board. There will be a one drink maximum per hole-in-one for each person in the bar that can be put on the Hole-In-One tab. Drinks must be ordered in the bar (no drinks off the beverage cart for the Hole-In-One tab) and only beer, wine, and well drinks will be covered. The tab will not start until the person(s) who scored the hole in one has entered the bar.
If a member has paid into the side games and scores a hole-in-one, the member scoring the hole-in-one will win the KP for that hole, the complete deuce pot for that hole (the deuce pot will remain active for other holes), the gross skin, and the net skin if not capped by a non-hole-in-one score. If two or more players have a hole-in-one on the same hole, all of the above will be split between the players scoring the hole-in-one.
The HPMC Board of Directors reserves the right to amend the Rules of Competition and Local Rules as they deem necessary for the competitive balance, fairness, and enjoyment of HPMC tournaments. Changes shall be communicated to the membership at-large via e-mail, posting to Golf Genius, or written rules of play governing any individual event. Please direct any questions to an HPMC Board of Director in person or send an email to hpmcgolf@gmail.com
Adopted by the HPMC BOD on December 12, 2023