Annual members referring new members are eligible for special cash bonus awards from two different sources: through an immediate referral cash bonus from membership dues paid and an ongoing matching cash bonus linked to the referred members play.

·         $50 Immediate Cash Bonus
Annual members referring new members will receive a bonus of $50, either in the form of cash or applied to a future entry fee.

·         $100 Immediate Cash Bonus
Members referring Senior Tour members will receive a bonus of $100, either in the form of cash or applied to a future entry fee.

·         Continuous Matching Place Money Bonus
In single round events, members will be awarded a cash bonus matching up to 10% of the place money position winnings secured by the referred member. Maximum award is paid if the referring member is competing in an event somewhere in the system at the same time. Members not competing will be awarded a cash bonus equal to 5% of the place money position winnings secured by the referred member.

·         Multi Round & Senior Tour Event Place Money Bonuses
In multi-round or Senior Tour events, the member will receive a bonus matching 5% of player's place money awarded. Member must be competing in same event to be eligible for bonus.

Each player must currently hold an annual membership and be in good standing with the tour to be eligible for any Referral Bonus Pool awards.

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II - Registration & Payment Policy

Payment must be made in full prior to the start of each event. In order to receive an early entry discount, payment must be received prior to the early entry deadline.

International Players Tour currently accepts the following forms of payment:

·         Checks
Valid Drivers License and a major credit card must accompany all personal and business checks.
A $50.00 fee will be assessed against players who submit checks
that are not honored and check-writing privileges may be revoked.
Players submitting check or credit card information that is not
honored may also forfeit any winnings associated with the event entered.
Checks from non-member guests and players competing in the “New Player” category WILL NOT be accepted on the day of an event!
All other checks must be pre-approved prior to event day.

·         Cash or Money Order

·         Credit Card - Visa / Master Card / Discover / Amex
(There is a 3% admin fee added to any credit card transaction)

Players disqualified from any event for any reason will forfeit ALL monies paid including optional games.

Players withdrawing from the 2nd or subsequent round of a multi-round event will only have optional game monies refunded providing they have not executed the first stroke of the round.

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III - Player Divisions

• Handicap Division

  • Open to all male and female players.

  • Senior Net Division for players age 47+ Will compete from designated "Standard" # 2 tee box.

  • Super Senior Net Division for players age 55+ Will compete from one tee box forward of standard tee providing they are not competitors on an IPT recognized developmental tour, mini-tour or other senior tour.

  • Women Division will compete from course designated women tee box.

  • All Handicap Division players regardless of age or sex compete for same prize money.

  • Division specific (i.e. Senior Net, Scratch Division) will compete for separate prize money with the payouts based on number of players entered.

  • Playing rights included in standard membership.
     

• Scratch Division

  • Open to all players with the following restrictions:
    Players awarded prize winnings from any IPT recognized professional or developmental mini-tour between Jan 1, 2007 to date are ineligible to compete in any Scratch competition. Exemptions to this policy may be granted on a case by case basis.

  • Will compete from the back tee box providing a minimum of 12 players are entered. Otherwise, Scratch  competition will be held from the designated "Standard" tee box of the day.

  • Scratch division players also participating in Handicap division competitions will have their handicap calculated from their respective tee & adjusted based on the increase in the course rating of their tee.

  • Playing rights included in standard membership.
     

• Senior Tour Division

  • Open to players age 47+ with players having reached their 55^th birthday eligible for added “Super Senior” optional cash awards.

  • Eligibility restriction: Players who have successfully won cash awards on the PGA or Champions Tour Jan. 1, 2007-current are NOT eligible to compete in Senior Tour competitions. Exemptions to this policy may be granted on a case by case basis.

  • Players will compete from the designated "Standard" tee box of the day.

  • Senior Tour player membership fee is structured separately from the standard membership but includes all standard membership benefits.

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IV - Event Eligibility & Formats

Event Eligibility

• Single Round Events
  Open to all players; male or female, amateur or professional. Non-members must pay an additional non-member fee.

• Multiple round events
  Some events may be designated as "Members Only"

• Net Division Tour Championship
  Players must be a member in good standing
  Must have competed in six single round events AS A MEMBER
  Must have competed in one multi round event
  Exception: Players who do not have an existing IPT district established within their geographic area, or Senior tour members are eligible providing they have posted a minimum of eight tournament round scores prior to Nov. 21, 2008

• Eligibility criteria may vary from event to event and can be found on the appropriate "Event Details" page in the eligibility information section.

Event Formats

Events will be scheduled for a minimum of 18 holes with the exception of inclement weather. Events are governed by both USGA and existing local rules. Other formats may be utilized from time to time at the discretion of International Players Tour. Typical formats and optional games include but are not limited to the following:

• Individual stroke play either net or gross.

• Net (Handicap) Division fields of forty or more players will be separated into equal flights based on the average handicap of the field.

• Senior net game for players age 47+.

• Scratch Pot - All players eligible.

• Senior Scratch Pot for players age 47+.

• Gross Skin Pot - Low score on any given hole. (No carryovers)

• Net Skin Pot - Low net score on any given hole. Players will be allowed 100% of their handicap in Net Skin games up to a maximum of 18 strokes. (No carryovers)

• Net Nassau Pot - Low net score for each nine holes.

• Net Day Game Pot - A net score optional game with payout based on order of finish.

• Closest-to-Pin Cash Pot - Pot split equally among designated par 3's.

• Deuces Pot - Any 2 on any hole wins cash.

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V - Tee Setup and Yardages

The following yardages are general guidelines for single round events. Multiple round events will utilize an additional 300-500 additional yards. Actual yardages may vary depending on specific golf course design.

• Standard tee for Handicap & Senior Tour Division players is generally the number two tee box

  • Yardage target

    • 6500-6700 Single Day Events
    • 6600-6900 Majors

• Super Seniors: one tee spot forward from standard tee box

  • Yardage target

    • 6100-6400 Single Day Events
    • 6200-6500 Majors

• Women: Normal women tee box

  • Yardage target

    • 5100-5500 Single Day Events
    • 5300-5800 Majors

• Scratch Division events are generally played from the number one tee box

  • Yardage target

    • 6800-7100 yards for all events - Events w/12 or more players
    • Standard tee box in events with less than 12 players

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VI - Tournament Check-In

All players must check-in at the tournament site. Check-in will be set up in the clubhouse or registration area prior to each event. Check-in will start one hour before the 1st scheduled tee time. It is the players’ responsibility to be at the teeing ground at their designated time. Players reporting to the teeing ground up to five minutes past the designated start time will be assessed a penalty of 2 strokes. After five minutes players will be disqualified.

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VII - Membership Dues & Benefits

IPT membership is a privilege granted by and subject to approval of tour officials. IPT reserves the right to modify membership benefits at its discretion. IPT may withhold up to 50% of the place money award from any non-member as partial payment of membership dues. As of date of this publication membership dues and benefits are as follows:

Standard Membership – Annual Dues - $150.00

• Renewable after twelve consecutive months

• Referral Bonus Pool Cash Awards
  $50 Cash bonus for each new standard member referred
  Level 1 - Cash bonus equal to 10% of referred members place money winnings
  when competing on the same day
  Level 2 - Cash bonus equal to 5% of referred members place money winnings
  when not competing on the same day
  Cash bonus of 5% paid for place finish in multi-round events. Referring member must be participating in same event to be eligible

• Eligible for multiple round event competitions

• Handicap (Net Score) and Scratch (Gross Score) Division Competitions

• Senior Scratch Competitions for Players Age 47 +

• Women & Amateur Competitors

• Hcp Div. Senior (age 47+) & Super Senior (age 55+) Categories

• Special Member Entry Fee Discounts

• Special Entry Fee Exemptions

• Fast Payout and Results Announcements

• Professionally Managed Tournament Events Paying Up to 30% of Field

• Annual National Tour Championships

• Special Year-End Statistical Cash Awards

• IPT Customized Handicap Maintenance Service

• Tour & Player Publicity

• Planned Group Trips

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VIII - Prize Money Distribution

Checks will be issued on the 7th business day following the conclusion of a single-day event. However, if paying by business or personal check, awards may be held for up to fifteen working days to ensure payment of entry is honored by your financial institution. If paying by credit card less than seven (7) days prior to the start of an event, tournament winnings may not be released until your credit card company has funded International Players Tour.

Checks issued for events with total purse payouts exceeding $5,000 will be issued within fifteen (15) business days to ensure payment of entries is honored by financial institutions.

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IX - New Player (NP) Handicaps

1 – New players, and any member or non-member guest yet to post four complete tournament scores between the first event of the prior season and the current date shall be classified as a “New Player”. Non-member guests are considered a “New Player” without regard to the number of tournament scores posted in their history.

2 – New Players must submit a USGA Index score history, association score history or a minimum of four (4) eighteen hole scores established within the previous 90 days prior to competing in their first IPT event.

3 - Each score submitted should be attested by a verifiable source such as the Club Professional / Asst. Professional at the facility the score was acquired or by a current IPT member in good standing. Telephone numbers of attesting individuals must be provided to IPT management for audit verification purposes.

4 - Score histories established in IPT recognized organizations are accepted. However, scores established in these organizations in excess of six months prior to the IPT event being entered WILL NOT be included in the New Player’s handicap calculation.

5– Submitted scores must be received by IPT management no later than 6:00 PM three days before the event being entered. For example, a new player desiring to compete in a Saturday event must have their score history submitted prior to 6 PM on the preceding Thursday. It is the player's responsibility to verify via telephone their scores have been received by IPT management and are acceptable. E-mail or voice mail verification requests are not acceptable.

6 – New Players will be assigned a handicap prior to each of their first four events based on the information furnished or in their current score history. The handicap will be designated on the pairing sheet of the day. The handicap is provided by IPT as a courtesy to New Players for informational purposes only.

7 - In the event a New Player posts a score lower than net two-under-par, the following provisions apply:

·         Posted score net three- or four-under-par
The posted score will be entered into the player's score history once at the conclusion of the round. The New Player’s handicap will then be recalculated and applied to the score being posted.

·         Posted score net five-under-par or lower
Exceptional Tournament Score policy is in effect. See Article VII.

8 - IPT officials reserve the right to disqualify any participant on grounds of misrepresentation or cheating.

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X– Exceptional Tournament Score Adjustment Policy

I - Definitions

A - Exceptional Tournament Score (ETS)
An Exceptional Tournament Score is a score posted of net five-under-par or lower.

B - Complete Score History
A complete score history is a player’s current score history consisting of his ten most recent tournament rounds posted within the last 12 months. A player is considered to have a complete score history with 10 scores in the last 12 months.

C - Exempt Member
Any member who has 20 or more scores in his score history, 10 of which must be within the last 12 months. Eagle Club members are considered Exempt Members when they have 10 scores in their score history within the last 12 months. Exempt Members are not subject to a same-day handicap recalculation for an ETS.

D - Qualified Member
Any member who has accumulated a complete score history.

E - Qualifying Member
Any member who does not have a complete score history.

F - New Player
Any member or non-member guest who has yet to post a total of four regular tournament scores within the last 12 months is considered a New Player. Non-member guests are considered a New Players without regard to the number of tournament scores posted in their respective history.

II - ETS Adjustment Application

All players are subject to an ETS handicap adjustment based on the following.

A. 1st Occurrence of an Exceptional Tournament Score within last 10 rounds

(1) - Exempt Members - The posted ETS will be entered into the player's score history once at the conclusion of the round. The member's handicap will then be recalculated and applied at the next handicap update.

(2) - Qualified Members - The posted ETS will be entered into the Qualified Member’s score history once at the conclusion of the round. The member’s handicap will then be recalculated and applied to the current round.

(3) - Qualifying Members - The posted ETS will be entered into the Qualifying Member’s score history twice at the conclusion of the round. The member’s handicap will then be recalculated and applied to the current round.

(4) – New Player – The posted ETS will be entered into the player's score history once at the conclusion of the round. The player’s handicap will then be recalculated and applied to the current round. For scores of net six-under-par or lower, the ETS will be entered into the player's score history twice at the conclusion of the round. The player’s handicap will then be recalculated and applied to the current round.

B. 2nd Occurrence of an Exceptional Tournament Score within last 10 rounds.

(1) - Exempt Members - The posted ETS will be entered into the player's score history twice at the conclusion of the round. The player's handicap will then be recalculated and applied at the next handicap update.

(2) - Qualified Members –The posted ETS will be entered into the Qualifying Member’s score history twice at the conclusion of the round. The member’s handicap will then be recalculated and applied to the current round.

(3) - Qualifying Members - Same as 1st occurrence.

(4) – New Player – The posted ETS will be entered into the player's score history once at the conclusion of the round. The player’s handicap will then be recalculated and applied to the current round. For scores of net six-under-par or lower, the ETS will be entered into the player's score history twice at the conclusion of the round. The player’s handicap will then be recalculated and applied to the current round.

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XI - Tee Times & Pairings

Tee Times will be available the day before the event at the host course or on the tour website. The tour is not responsible for inaccurate information given by pro shop staff. Groups will be randomly paired generally as threesomes or foursomes. In the case of multi-day competitions, prior round scores will determine subsequent pairings with the leaders teeing off last.

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XII - Playoffs and Ties

In the event of ties, all prize monies will be split equally among the winners based upon the total number of players tied; e.g. three players tied will equally split 1st-3rd-place money. Awarding of trophy and overall event champion will be decided via USGA tiebreaker.

Ties in multiple round championships will be decided by sudden-death playoff providing the host facility can accommodate a playoff competition.

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XIII - Suspension of play

A round shall be deemed complete only when the entire field has completed a minimum of thirteen holes. Nine-hole rounds are complete with the field having completed a minimum of seven holes.

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XIV - Event Withdrawals

The player’s commitment to the tour is essential. Players withdrawing from events for other than injury or hardship reasons may be suspended from future events. The rules committee defines hardship as bona fide family ordeals that require the player to abandon the tour to tend to those family needs. The event rules committee will review withdrawals on a case-by-case basis.

Withdrawals based on reasons other than previously mentioned are not excusable. Players withdrawing after the late entry deadline has expired will be assessed a $75 withdrawal fee. No-shows and players withdrawing within 48 hours of the event first tee time will forfeit their entry fee. Withdrawal & no-show fees must be paid before any subsequent entries will be accepted.

Players withdrawing from a multi-round event will have subsequent round optional game monies previously paid refunded ONLY if they have not executed the first stroke of the round.

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XV - Rules of Play and Conduct

USGA rules govern play. If in the instance of a dispute or question, an alternate ball may be played until the question at hand can be resolved by a tour official. The players must remember that their actions reflect on the tour and the host facility as well.

At the discretion of the Rules Committee, the following actions are grounds for disqualification from an event and/or suspension from the tour:

• Alcohol abuse

• Club throwing and club breaking

• Excessive profanity

• Littering and damage to host course equipment and property

• Abuse of tour hospitality locations

• Non-adherence to dress code policy

• Violation of host course and cart regulations

• Public attacks against International Players Tour officials, host facilities, players, sponsors, and hospitality locations

• Other conduct deemed by the Rules Committee to be unbecoming of a golf professional

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XVI– Dress Code

International Players Tour is a professional organization and desires to continually display that image to the public. Proper attire in accordance with host facility policy must be adhered to at all time. Please be aware of this when selecting your tournament attire.

International Players Tour players are allowed to wear Bermuda style shorts, if desired, for all practice and tournament rounds. Players may be required to wear long pants for specific events. Jeans or other denim, flip-flops or shirts without collars are not permitted. It is to be further noted that International Players Tour is designated a spike-less tour. You must wear soft spikes during all practice and tournament rounds.

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XVII - Pace of Play

The International Players Tour utilizes the 'ready golf' format to expedite the pace of play. If a player may execute a stroke without interference of another players opportunity to play they should do so. Players are also encouraged to exercise the 'continuous putting' practice until holing out whenever possible.

Stipulated time for a round will be set at 4 1/2 hours (2 hours 15 minutes per nine). This allows for an average of 15 minutes per hole. If in the instance of slow play by a group being reported to tournament officials, a monitor may arrive to observe and access the situation and may begin timing of a player’s stroke that he can play without interference or distraction.

In addition, the following International Players Tour Pace of Play Policy is adopted from the PGA Tour Pace of Play Policy and is in effect in all International Players Tour events.

USGA Rule 6-7 states, in part that: "The player shall play without undue delay and in accordance with any pace of play guidelines which may be laid down by the Committee. The following pace of play guidelines and penalties for stroke play competitions have been adopted."

1 – Stipulated Time for a Tournament Round

• Allocated average time per hole - 15 minutes.
• Tim allocated each nine - 2hr15min.
• Allocated time for a stipulated round is 4 hours 30 minutes (4hr30min)

2 – Order of Finish: Groups Must Meet One of the Following Criteria

• Groups must finish within the time allocated for a stipulated round – 4hr30min.
• Groups must finish within 15 minutes behind the group ahead.
• Consideration will be given concerning the 15-minute provision to a foursome following a threesome.
• Consideration will be given in the event inclement weather requires groups to operate on a "Cart Path Only" basis.

3 – Turning in of Scorecards

• One competitor from the group must report to the scoring committee within the stipulated time when the group is finished with their round.

• Cards must be signed by the player's marker and attested by the player.

• Cards must be submitted in a timely manner upon completion of the round.

4 – Penalty for Breach

• Groups finishing at greater than 4hr45min or more than 15 min. behind the group ahead will be considered “Out of Position” and finishing in excess of one hole behind.
  Penalty: One Stroke - Added to final hole score of each player in the group.

• Groups finishing at greater than 5hr or more than 30 minutes behind the group ahead will be considered “Out of Position” and finishing in excess of two holes behind.
  Penalty: Two Strokes - Added to final hole score of each player in the group.
• Groups finishing at greater than 5hr15min or more than 45 minutes behind the group ahead will be considered “Out of Position” and finishing in excess of three holes behind. Penalty for a breach of this magnitude will result in the disqualification of all players within the group. Scores posted will not be counted in the player’s scoring history and entry fees will be forfeited.
• All groups finishing within 15 minutes of the group ahead will be considered to have fulfilled tour pace of play policy and will not be penalized.

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XVIII - Schedule, Times, and Inclement Weather

Upon announcement of the tour schedule listing the host facilities and dates, the players will be responsible for arriving at their appointed playing times or face disqualification from that weeks event. In the case of inclement weather, the Tournament Director in conjunction with the Host Professional may cancel the event and refund or credit entry fees to player accounts.

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XIX– Equipment, Balls and Footwear

Only equipment and brands of golf balls on the most current USGA conforming list may be used. The one ball rule is in effect. International Players Tour is a soft spike tour.

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XX - Caddies, Spectator Guests and Transportation

Caddies and spectators are permitted but players are responsible for any infractions committed by the caddies just as the players. Spectator guests in separate carts must remain on the cart path at all times. Any additional cart rentals needed for spectators and caddies are the responsibility of the player.

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XXI - Publicity and Promotions

International Players Tour has the right to any personal-historical information herein for all media and public relations use. The player consents to the use of his name, likeness, voice, and references to him and photographs and other images of him and his play connected with his appearance in the tour. The cooperation of players with authorized representatives of the media is required, provided that no pre-tournament activities outside of those activities, which are part of the tour, shall be required and provided that the player’s event play is not unreasonably interfered with.

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