I hope this newsletter finds everyone well! As 2024 quickly gets into the fall season this newsletter will help update all clubs on any new changes or resources that can benefit/impact your club and your fellow members.
New information for Club Reps this month includes:
"The Invitational" at Pebble Beach®
Rule of the Month
Getting Clubs Ready for 2025
New Handicap Review Tool in the USGA Admin Portal
Premier Golf Travel
The NCGA is Hiring
Have a great start to the fall season!
- Bryan Rodriguez
"The Invitational" at Pebble Beach (Reminder)
The NCGA and Pebble Beach Resorts® have created a unique package for a once-in-a-lifetime experience: playing Pebble Beach Golf Links®, Spyglass Hill® Golf Course, and The Links at Spanish Bay™. All this on Feb 2-6, 2025, right after the completion of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am!
We appreciate your role as an NCGA Club Representative and wanted to give you the first opportunity to secure a spot in this exclusive event for yourself, or your club members. There are limited spots available, so if interested, you’ll want to reserve your spot and give your club members the heads-up ASAP. If there is still availability, we will make it broadly available to all NCGA members on September 9th.
Click this link here to learn more about this amazing opportunity and to register!
Even if a golf course doesn't have the most manicured tee boxes and the fairways are a little overgrown, if the putting greens are true and roll well, the course will make my shortlist to come back and play again. Now if we can just have all golfers fix their pitch mark, like the USGA recommends here, we would have true greens everywhere!
I did notice one interesting line on the NCGA Blog that stated "... there is no such thing as an illegal hole location." This reminded me of playing with clubs that had an "Impossible Open" event. They would set the pins in crazy locations on every hole, (on a crown or right next to a huge slope), which made for such a fun event because you knew what you were getting into and you didn't mind that scores were extremely high!
Have you ever played in a similar event before or does your club run an event like this? If you would like to share, send me an email here.
Getting Ready for 2025
As 2025 approaches we wanted to highlight some reminders regarding club management for the new year.
There will be no new changes to the membership dues in 2025. It will remain the same at $46 per member as it was for 2024.
If your club is a Calendar Year Club from Jan. - Dec. please be sure that any new members are not added to your roster until after January 1, 2025. If new members are added before the 1/1/25 date, the club will be charged for both 2024 and 2025 (no refunds available).
If you're a Calendar Year Club and are interested in moving to a rolling 12-month membership please feel free to reach out. The clubs who have done it have found it easier to recruit members all year long.
If you anticipate any changes to your club's roles please be sure to bring up to speed any new club officers regarding the different club platforms. If you need any refreshers please visit our Member Club Resources page linked here.
USGA Admin Portal's New Handicap Review Feature
For all club handicap chairs and committees! You might have noticed a new tab when you looked at your club members' profiles in the USGA Admin Portal.
- This new handicap review feature is an added safeguard. – The Handicap Review process gives a club's Handicap Committee the ability to ensure the Handicap Index of a player reflects their demonstrated ability.
- The analysis is data-driven – The USGA Handicap Review tool uses the player’s handicap data to compare posted scores to expected performance.
- There continues to be a human element – A Handicap Index adjustment will be applied only at the discretion of the Handicap Committee, based on any other knowledge or evidence they have about the player and their ability.
If you would like to learn more about this new handicap review feature please click here.
Premiere Golf Club Travel Program
The NCGA has a Member Trips program of organized trips with one of our staff members. But we recognize not everyone wants all of that – so we’ve partnered with Premiere Golf to provide golf travel packages to our clubs!
They make it super easy to organize a golf trip for your club by taking care of all the leg work. They work with resorts and courses to secure golf tee times, caddies, rooms, logistics, and even assistance with flights if needed. They will tailor trips to align perfectly with your club's goals and budget, crafting experiences that fulfill your members' wish list and beyond. The cherry on top is a free spot for the club when getting seven other paid members on the trip (so you can reduce the cost of the trip for all eight people if preferred over giving the free spot to the organizer).
The NCGA will also include NCGA swag for your travelers, so pull together your members for a great trip!
Do you know of someone interested in a career in golf? Maybe one of your members does, too! Please let them know to check the Careers Link below or on NCGA.org to find out more open positions including:
Coordinator, Operations
Boatwright Internship
Plus more! Click NCGA Careers to view all open positions and to apply.
Got Questions?
I'm always available via phone at 831.625.4653 ext. 208 or via email. Also, our Member Club Resources page might have the answer to your question as well.
If you need a link to this newsletter, it's posted on Member Club Resources.
Get Social with Us!
NCGA, 3200 Lopez Road, Pebble Beach, CA 93953, United States, 831-625-4653
