The purpose of the Association is to promote high handicap golf throughout the North East:- NERGA – 15.0 - 28.0 handicap index. INTER – 7.0 -14.9 handicap index.
The aims are to provide competitive and enjoyable golf for all high handicap golfers, and to generate good income for participating member clubs.
The Association shall be administered by five Officers - Chairman , Secretary , Treasurer , Competition Secretary and Handicap Secretary; and a Management Committee being one elected person from each Zone. Officers serve two years but to provide continuity, the Chairman and Competition Secretary to be elected on odd number years and the Secretary and Treasurer on even number years. Elected Committee person shall serve till the next AGM.
The AGM to be held November each year.
The Management Committee shall be empowered to run the Association with responsibilities for its finances and disciplinary matters and introduction / amendment to the constitution and/or rules.
All Officers and Committee members have a vote:- in the event of deadlock the Chairman will have the casting vote.
A vote on the continued participation of each Member Club will be taken at the AGM. Each Member Club is required to obtain a majority of approval from the other Clubs.
Match Rules
1. All players must be at least 18 years of age on the day they play the NERGA / INTER fixture
2. Each Club shall host one weekend fixture per season requiring the 1st Tee to be reserved for up to three hours. The only exception to this will be for new Member Clubs who may be allowed to use a Bank Holiday Monday date in their first season only.
3. Match Postponements. If any Club is forced to postpone a scheduled fixture, they are required to give at least 14 days' notice to the Secretary and agree a rearrangement date that does not clash with existing fixtures. The penalty for failing to comply shall be loss of fixture and a deduction of 3 league points.
4. Match Abandonment. Once play has commenced the Host Club Official shall have the absolute right to suspend play and / or abandon the match. In such an event the result will be calculated upon the number of holes completed by the final playing match group in the fixture. NERGA / INTER points will be awarded as normal 8pts for 1st place down to 1pt for 8th place. If any game has not completed 6 holes, then the entire fixture shall be declared void.
5. In all cases of abandonment attempts to rearrange the fixture shall be made to fulfil the fixture and create revenue for the Host club. A rearranged date must be offered within one month of abandonment. However, the rearranged fixture date must be acceptable to all Clubs in that League. If one or more Clubs cannot support the rearranged date the fixture will be deemed void.
6. All matches will be played in Stableford format off the WHS handicap allowance. The handicap index range for eligibility for NERGA is 15.0 to 28.0 and INTER 7.0 to 14.9. All players must be in this range when they are first registered as a team player in a match in the current NERGA / INTER season. Once the player has played one NERGA / INTER match in the season they will be eligible to play for the remainder of that season even if their handicap index falls below 15 or 7, they will play off their new adjusted handicap index. Players with a handicap index greater than 14.9 can play in an Inter event but will be limited to a handicap index of 14.9. In line with England Golf recommendation, each players handicap will be adjusted to 95% of the Course Handicap when playing in a NERGA competition.
7. NERGA / INTER match starting times to be between 9.30am - 12.30pm. Starting times to be determined by the Host Club.
8. NERGA matches will be played off Yellow Tees at 8 / 9 minute intervals in 3 balls. Some 2 balls maybe necessary at the front to balance total playing numbers.
9. INTER matches will be played off White Tees at 8 / 9 minute intervals in 3 balls. Some 2 balls maybe necessary at the front to balance total playing numbers.
10. Each team will consist of 8 players the best 7 scores counting for the team total, the 8th score may be zero if the 8th player did not attend the event. If two or more teams are tied after taking the 8th player score into consideration, the best individual score will be used to determine the finishing position. If the best individual score is the same for the tied teams, then the 2nd best individual score will be considered. Comparing individual scores will continue from 3rd through to 7th player to determine the winner. If all scores are exactly the same, then the teams will be classed as being in a tie and will be awarded the same number of League points.
11. Any Club fielding a team short of one or more players will be deducted 1 NERGA / INTER point. A visiting club shall compensate the host club if they do not supply a full 8-man team. The visiting club shall offer a 4-ball voucher if they are 4 players short and two x 4-ball vouchers if they do not have any players in attendance.
12. Match fee is £15.00 per player - which includes £1.50 per player fundraising levy.
13. Individual Trophy - A player must play in a minimum of 3 NERGA / INTER fixtures within the season. The calculation will be the best 3 Stableford scores total in the season. In the event of a tie the 4th score to count will determine the highest placed player. The highest place player from each club will be invited to the Finals day to contest the NERGA / INTER Individual Trophy. In the event that the player is not available to attend then the club will nominate a replacement ensuring all Clubs have a representative in the NERGA / INTER Individual Trophy Final.
14. NERGA / INTER Club Championship. At the end of the season the Club with the highest NERGA / INTER points total will be the Zone League Champion and all Zone League Champions as well as the 2nd placed team in each Zone will be invited to contest the NERGA / INTER Club Championship at the Finals Day.
15. The Host Club will donate a 4 ball voucher, or a similar, equivalent prize to the top scoring visiting player at an event.
16. Any player who fails to submit a correct scorecard properly signed by himself and his marker will be disqualified.
17. Handicaps - All Clubs must accept 'Away Score' from NERGA / INTER fixtures and process them to maintain the integrity of all player handicaps. In the event that a Club does not process 'Away Score' of a high scoring player then the NERGA Secretary will apply a handicap reduction to that player prior to the next fixture in keeping with our HandicapMaster system. This to be communicated to the Host Club and Team Captain.
18. All proposed Constitution and Rule changes are to be submitted to the Secretary 7 days prior to the AGM.
19. RULES OF GOLF APPLY TO ALL DISPUTES AND THE HOST CLUB ORGANISER WILL ADJUDICATE ALL DISPUTES ON THE DAY.
