Code of Conduct

Vancouver Island

Club Pro Series

The Vancouver Island Club Pro Tour strives to create a social, yet competitive tournament atmosphere for Vancouver Island PGA of BC members.

Eligibility:

All competitors must be PGA of BC Members in good standing and priority will be given to PGA of BC Members who are employed full time by a golf facility. Determinations of full-time employment will be at the sole discretion of the VI Club Pro Tour committee. Full-time employment must be confirmed by the event’s registration deadline or when an event reaches capacity, whichever comes first

It’s the member’s responsibility to know if they are a member in good standing (If they are listed on the PGA of BC website under the title – professionals, they are a member in good standing). If the member is not in good standing, they will forfeit the cheque(s) earned at tournament(s) during this time.

A member is not permitted to play the Club Pro Series if they are playing a ‘major’ golf tour during the BC golf season (March to October) in the same season.

Registration:

Registration for events will NOT be accepted verbally, by email or by social media (Facebook, Instagram and/or Twitter). There are NO exceptions to this rule.

Registration must be confirmed via round attendance email. Entry fees are due via electronic payment and must be immediately submitted upon confirming attendance. Failure to pay entry fee may result in player being placed on the waitlist for future events.

Late Withdrawl from Event

Registration for a VI Club Pro Tour event will close the Friday prior to the event date, with the draw being released the Saturday before Tuesday's event. If the event has a waitlist, then the draw maybe released earlier at the discretion of the VI Club Pro Tour Committee. Withdrawals that occur less than 48 hours prior to the start of an event will be subject to a fine and will be placed on the wait list for all remaining events on that season's schedule.

Cancellation Policy

Cancellations must be received at least 48 hours prior to the start of an event by emailing theVI Club Pro Tour Committee at chouriganpga@hotmail.com. Failure to cancel properly will result in the player forfeiting 100% of his/her entry fee for that event, in addition to any fines imposed. The entry fee, and any fines imposed, will have to be paid before entry into further events is permitted. Appeals may be made in writing within 24 hours and will be reviewed by the VI Club Pro Tour’s Committee on a case-by-case basis.

Clubhouse Leader:

Following the round the player(s) who are currently leading must stay out of respect to the tour and participants unless prior arrangements have been made. The eventual winner will be given the opportunity to speak and may be required to participate in a post-win interview.

Female Competitors:

Female competitors participating in Tour events will play from a forward tee in which the yardage is approximately 10% less than the tees used by male competitors.

Order of Merit:

Each competitor receives order of merit points for playing in each event.

Ties:
The process for deciding ties for first place will be decided by the host tournament committee. All other ties split money and or points.

Pace of Play:

The tour will arrange to have groups play in threesomes where possible, to maintain proper pace of play. Also, as a condition of membership, a player in an early group will be expected to return to the golf course and monitor pace of play of the remaining field. If an individual or group is determined to have been slow:

1st offence: Official Warning
2nd offence: Two stroke penalty
3rd offence: Disqualification fromevent.
4th offence: Player will be suspended from competing in Club Pro Series events for the remainder of the year.

In the case where individuals causing a group to be slow cannot easily be identified, the entire group will receive the warning.

Appearance/Conduct:

All professionals are required to present a neat appearance in both clothing and personal grooming. You are required at all times to maintain an acceptable standard of dress both on the golf course and in the clubhouse. Shorts are permitted at any VI Club Pro Tour events but at the discretion of the host club. The VI Club Tour Committee will do its best to inform players of any restrictions. Players must attempt to be competitive and must conduct themselves in a professional manner:

1st offence: Official Warning

2nd offence: Disqualification from event

3rd offence: Player will be suspended from competing in VI Club Pro Tour events for the remainder of the year. *Additional discipline may be administered if a serious violation of professional code of conduct has occurred.

Return of Scorecards:

Upon completion of play, failure to return scorecards in a timely manner may result in disqualification. For the purpose of applying Rule 3.3b, a competitor is considered to have returned his scorecard when he has first left the scoring area.

Any player failing to return a scorecard (DNF):

1st offence: Player will be omitted from the TOUR’s Order of Merit and Scoring Average standings.

2nd offence: Player will be suspended from competing in TOUR events for the remainder of the year.

*Additional discipline may be administered if a serious violation of professional code of conduct has occurred.

Practice:

A player must not play a practice stroke or roll a ball on or near the putting green of the hole last played. The penalty is two strokes to be applied on the last hole played, to a maximum of four strokes. In the case of a multiple round tournament being played at one course, practice on the course between rounds is prohibited. In the case of a multiple round tournament being played at more than one course, practice on the course yet to be played is prohibited. Penalty is disqualification.

Inclement Weather Policy:

The purpose of this policy is to provide an equitable alternative to cancelling a round experiencing inclement weather.

Inclement Weather includes, but is not limited to:

– Heavy Rain, puddles preventing putting on the green

– Thunder and Lightening

– Darkness

– Strong Winds, dangerous conditions

In the event of inclement weather after the start of the event, but before all groups finish, the Tour reserves the right to abbreviate the stipulated round (also the skins game) to the maximum number of holes deemed to be playable by all competitors, but a minimum of 9 holes. If such conditions limit the number of holes deemed playable to less than 9 holes, the entire round will be cancelled.

All decisions not covered in the Inclement Weather Policy shall be made by the committee, in consideration of equity to the field.

“By entering an event on the G&G Tour, I have agreed to adhere to the Tour’s policies and procedures.”

YOUR ACCEPTANCE OF THESE POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

By entering an event on the Vancouver Island Professional Tour, you agreed to adhere to the Rules of Golf, PGA of Canada’s Code of Professional Practice, PGA BC Tournament Manual, and VI Club Pro Tour’s policies and procedures as stated above and throughout this website.

Social Media:

The following Policy is courtesy of the PGA of Canada, and applies to all members of the British Columbia Zone. For more information regarding the PGA of Canada Code of Professional Practice & Social Media Policy, please click here.

Background

Online social networking and media sites are powerful tools that can benefit the PGA of Canada and its Members greatly, and without limiting our Members’ ability to utilize these valuable tools, online activities must be governed with a degree of care. The PGA of Canada encourages the use of social media including Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and other similar outlets as a way to interact and raise your profile.

As part of our Association’s Code of Professional Practice, it is essential to extend rules governing Member behaviour to these online social media networks, as by participating in and contributing to these sites as individuals, Members still bear the responsibility of appropriately representing the PGA of Canada as a membership organization and its values. It is essential that Members understand that utilizing social media to communicate with family, friends, fans and the general public leaves them open to scrutiny by the public and the media and may reflect on the PGA of Canada and the game of golf.

Purpose:

The PGA of Canada has developed this Social Media Policy for the protection of its Members. Where possible the PGA of Canada has condensed this policy to provide a basic outline of guiding principles that you as a PGA of Canada Member should keep in mind and adhere to at all times when participating in social media activities.

Scope:

This Social Media Policy attempts to cover all forms of social media including but not limited to;

Maintaining a profile page on one of the social or business networking sites (like LinkedIn and Facebook, etc.);
actively engaging in live feed social media communication such as Twitter;
producing online video content on YouTube or similar mass media sites;
creating a blog or commenting on other people’s blogs for personal or business reasons;
leaving product or service reviews on retailer sites, or customer review sites;
taking part in online votes and polls; or
Participating in conversations on public and private web forums (message boards).

Most of these activities can be grouped together under the heading social media.

Anything you do online where you share information that might affect fellow PGA of Canada Members, work colleagues, clients, industry partners, sponsors, competitors, golf club members, Pro-Am partners and industry participants will hereafter be referred to as ‘the Scope’.

Guiding Principles:

The web is not anonymous. Assume that everything you write can and will be traced back to the PGA of Canada as an Association, if not you personally.

There is no longer a clear boundary between your personal life and your work life
Do not lie, deliberately deceive or withhold the truth
The web contains a permanent record of our mistakes. We cannot try to change things retrospectively
Be honest, straightforward and respectful, and you will enjoy everything you do on the web

Social Media Policy All Media:

This policy is to be read in conjunction with other clauses in the PGA of Canada Code of Professional Practice. For the sake of clarity, whatever you do as a PGA of Canada Member online must:

Not interfere with your work commitments or the place you work. In the absence of a specific policy within the workplace of a PGA of Canada Member, this policy may apply as a complementary policy;
not mention or link to libelous, defamatory or harassing content, even by way of example or illustration;
not publish information that is confidential or proprietary to the PGA of Canada or your workplace, affiliates, or clients;
refrain from using offensive language; and
Do nothing to bring the PGA of Canada into disrepute. Furthermore, you may not represent that the PGA of Canada brand endorses or promotes any product or service, opinion, cause or position; and it must be abundantly clear to readers that all opinions are yours, and do not represent the views of the PGA of Canada .

PGA of Canada Member Blogs:

Posts must not contain or link to pornographic or indecent content
Posts must not be defamatory in any way to either a fellow PGA of Canada Member (or any other person or company).
The PGA of Canada has the right to request and ask for removal any such content that maybe deemed as contravening this policy
All materials published or used must respect the copyright of third parties Personal Blogs, Social Networks, Forums, Micro blogs, Social Mews, etc.
Anonymous or Pseudonymous—The PGA of Canada takes the position that a Member will write as though everyone knows who they are. The PGA of Canada does not endorse a Member hiding behind anonymous or pseudonymous postings. A PGA of Canada Member shall not maintain anonymous accounts on social media sites for the purpose of accessing or commenting on other people or products relating to the PGA of Canada. Named Your profile when commenting on PGA of Canada related matters (as per the Scope) should include an explicit statement that you are a Member of the PGA of Canada , including the following minimum information: “I am a PGA of Canada Member”
Friends & Connections—Use your own best judgment in deciding whether and how deeply to connect to fellow Members, clients, peers, supervisors, vendors and journalists on social networks. Connections to certain individuals or profiles that are represented may unwittingly cause harm to yourself and the PGA of Canada if not managed wisely.

Comments on Blogs, Forums, etc. by PGA of Canada Members:

Anonymous—You must never post anonymous comments particularly as they relate to matters involving your status as a PGA of Canada Member and The Scope.

Pseudonymous—For various reasons, sometimes you may want to comment using a nickname. It is advised that any PGA of Canada Member should write as though the audience would still know who they were.

Named—Include an explicit statement that you are a PGA of Canada Member, as appropriate and when relevant. Consider carefully when something may be relevant. A comment on a friend’s blog or wall is still a comment in a public space. Be guided by the content of your comment, not the context.

A rule of thumb is “Don’t say something your mother wouldn’t approve of.”

The PGA of Canada Member and Live Feeds of Member Social Media Pages:

The PGA of Canada utilizes a number of online communication tools in order to raise the profile of its Members, promote Members’ vocational and tournament activities, and assist them to engage with a number of stakeholders including the media, potential sponsors and the public.

Disciplinary Procedures:

This Social Media Policy forms part of the PGA of Canada’s Code of Professional Practice.