COMMUNITY

"I have been checking out the website and looks really interesting, but its a little pricey to join".

Exactly. Me too. I like the idea of all skill levels competing against each other, but as you mentioned, it is pricey. I am very interested in this tour though. Thanks for asking the question that was on my mind.

SL

Friend of mine here in Texas was in it last year.. lot of sandbagging.. he enjoyed it..but had no chance to win anything..

By "sandbagging" do you mean padded or "artificial" handicaps?

Just curious. Thanks

padded.. like a mattress... on a sandy beach...

I received an email from the local director last year and considered joining until I made a few calls. I talked to 3 mid hdcp players and all of them said that there is a lot of sandbagging.

What glory is there in victory if one takes shortcuts?

I used to play in HAGA tournaments here in Houston and they were always very well managed. You couldn't sandbag. The only score that counted for your handicap was a tournament score with them. They enforced prompt play. If a group came in more than 20 minutes later than the group in front of them, everyone in the group got hit with a 2-stroke penalty. Every player was responsible to ensure that every player played by the rules and did it correctly. After 8 or 10 rounds, each player ends up with a handicap that was reflective of your ability under tournament pressure and the rules. They also had a rule something like this: if your score in the last few holes of a tournament jumped suddenly (implying that you became aware that you couldn't win and wanted to pad your handicap) you were assigned a score of par for the last few holes.

If you really wanted to sandbag, you could. Say you wanted to post high scores to inflate your handicap. Because the high scores are thrown out in handicap calculation, you would have to post high scores for more than ten rounds all the while paying tournament entries and green fees. If a green fee was $40 and a tournament entry was $25, you would have to be willing to donate more than $600 dollars to affect your handicap. You would probably have to post 15 or more poor rounds to decently affect your handicap. The first time you won a tournament, you immediately eliminate one of the high scores and your handicap starts coming down. The guys that run the tournaments are not stupid. If you suddenly started shooting good scores and winning; they would either adjust your handicap or simply deny you playing privileges. They will not tolerate cheating in any form.

I loved playing with the HAGA but had to quit because I needed to be in church on Sunday. They couldn't hold Saturday tournaments; few would play. I did win the Match Play Championship one year. One of my matches was a memorable one but that's another story.

You made the right call. I quit bass fishing tournaments for the same reason.

Good handicap management, but sad that it is necessary.

I haven't played the tour here but I see people play it.....I also thought it was pricey.......I played with PGT around here that had similar criteria to Mr. Sollars tour was very nice to play by the rules with everyone that knows them too. But it is also pricey....Love playing Pete Dye tracks........he a tricky fellow

I've been at Innisbrook and Pinehurst when AM Tour events were there. The overwhelming complaint from the caddies and staff at those resorts was the ridiculously slow play by the competitors. I talked to a bunch of the players, and the sentiment seemed to be 70/30 that it was generally fair. They only use tournament scores for your tour handicap and flighiting, so it minimizes (but doesn't eliminate) sandbagging.

Overall, it seems like it'd be worth doing for a year, and if you really enjoy it then keep going.

I didn't cover all the details of how the HAGA dealt with slow play. The first group out was on the clock. If they did not get around within a specific time, they were penalized 2-strokes apiece. After that group everyone else was required to finish within 20 minutes of the group ahead of you or everyone in a group was given a 2-stroke penalty. I don't recall slow play being much of an issue. There were a few groups that were penalized. Each group knew who the slow player was and they would "encourage" him to play faster by leaving him behind, ostracizing him (not talking to him) and just making it clear that they were not happy with his pace of play. That usually took care of the slow play. You at least learned very quickly to hit a provisional if there was any thought that you might not find your ball after hitting.

Thanks for all the info guys!!!

I've always liked the concept, but have been turned off with the combination of the price and how poorly run it is (sandbaggers).