FAQS

It is up to the club drawn at home to ensure that the course is in the best possible condition to play a fair and proper match. We appreciate that in the early months of the year it is often the case that some winter conditions will be in play; if so the captain of the home club should make the opposition aware of these prior to day of the match. The following winter conditions are unacceptable:

a) Carrying a piece of Astroturf mat around and playing from it.

b) Dropping off the fairway in the semi rough or rough (up to three fairways is acceptable if it is for course maintenance purposes).

c) Teeing up the ball in the fairway (up to three fairways is acceptable if it is for course maintenance purposes).

If the home course has any of the above winter conditions in place on the date set for of the match then the away club would be entitled to claim home advantage as long as there are NONE of them in place at their course. If the away course has ANY of the above winter conditions then the match must remain as drawn.

No. A club does not lose home advantage if there is a trolley ban. The Daily Mail Foursomes permits the use of caddies and it is recommended that one is used if a player is unable to carry his/her own clubs.

No. Even if some temporary greens are in use the hole MUST be regulation size.

No.

No. The match should switch to the away course as long as it has none of the un acceptable conditions listed above.

Yes, but as matches must be played over 18 holes, you will need to choose the requisite number of replacement holes to play twice in the event of the tie going the full distance. You MUST agree all of this with your opponents before the date of the match and you will need to produce a scorecard with stroke indices in the appropriate order. The normal Slope Rating assigned to the full 18 hole course should be used for the purpose of calculating Course Handicaps.

Yes. Players must be 18 or over on 1st January of the year in which the competition takes place in order to participate.

Yes. However bear in mind that many matches, particularly in the early rounds are played at weekends which may be a problem if you are drawn at home and select 5-day members.

There is no entry fee for the Tournament, but courtesy of the course must be extended to visiting competitors when the match is played.

Yes. However players with multiple memberships can only play for one club in the same year.

Where it has not been possible to arrange a qualifying competition, a Club may nominate a pair to represent it in the tournament.

Register your entry on time and we will send the initial draw to the Club. It will then be up to the Secretary to pass on the first round details to the qualifiers as soon as the competition has been played. If it is not possible to play a qualifying event within two weeks of the entry deadline the Club should nominate a pair to represent it in the tournament.

No. It is a condition of entry that clubs must be able to host matches if drawn at home.

Not really. As no extensions to the playing times for rounds can be considered it would be best for the Club to put forward a replacement at the start of the competition. No player substitutions are permitted after the first round match has been played.

No player substitutions are permitted. If a player is unable to play due to injury or illness their club will have to withdraw from the tournament.

In the early rounds, when it is not possible to play evening golf, the vast majority of matches take place at weekends and therefore it is essential that at least one weekend date is offered.

Whilst it is both desirable and advisable to give as many dates as possible, the objective is to find a date that is suitable for both clubs. If a match is not played on or before the last weekend the Tournament Director will decide, on the basis of availability which team will go through to the next round. No match extensions will be allowed.

Whenever possible matches should be played off Medal Tees.

Players must play without undue delay at all times and the recommended time allowed for a player to make his or her shot is within 45 seconds of when it is their turn to play.

In the Daily Mail Foursomes there are maximum Handicap Indexes of 18.0 for men and 25.0 for women. Players with  higher Handicap Indexes may take part but can only use a maximum of 18.0 for men and 25.0 for women as a basis for calculating their Course Handicaps to be used in matches. Each player should then calculate their Course Handicap (CH) by applying any slope rating adjustments based on the course and tees being played. Once the Course Handicaps (CH) have been agreed, it is 50 per cent of the difference between each team's combined CH, rounding up where applicable (i.e. 5 1/2 difference is 6 shots).