These are the LOCAL rules for the MINNEAPOLIS ST. PAUL GOLFWEEK AMATUER GOLF TOUR.

Play Ready Golf/Pace of Play
We want you to enjoy your round but for the sake of everyone’s enjoyment, you need to please stay in position. You are expected to keep pace with the group in front of you. Slow play penalties will be assessed. Our goal is to play our round of golf in 4:30, that means we need to play Ready Golf.

Ready Golf is simply defined as HIT WHEN READY. If you reach your ball and are ready to hit, when other members of your group are not yet prepared, then go ahead and hit. Keep in mind that in stroke play competition there are no penalties under the Rules of Golf for playing out of turn.

Remember your correct position on the course is immediately behind the group in front of you, not immediately in front of the group behind you.

Out of Bounds Rule
  For Tour Events we ONLY play the STROKE and DISTANCE rule for balls that are Out of Bounds. If you think your ball is OB, hit a provisional. Your provisional should be a different number or marked differently than your original ball. You DO NOT get relief from a fence or white stake that marks OB.

LOST BALL OFF THE TEE In the event of a lost ball off of the tee as a group determine where the ball was most likely last in play and drop one club length from agreed upon point of loss for a 1 stroke penalty Example:( Drive 1, drop 2,  Hitting 3)

3 Minute Lost Ball Rule
Players will have 3 minutes to look for a lost ball. If you do not find your ball within 2 minutes, move on under the proper rules. In this case, if you cannot find your ball and you do not have a penalty area option, then you can go back to the original spot that you hit your ball and hit again under penalty of stroke and distance. If you think your ball might be lost, hit a provisional before going to look for it. Your provisional should be a different number or marked differently than your original ball.The 3 minutes time will begin when anyone starts looking for your ball. This means that if anyone assists you with looking for your ball, your time begins when they start looking. If you cannot locate your ball, you must start looking for your own ball before helping anyone else try to locate theirs. By following these rules, this can dramatically help speed up pace of play.

Triple Bogey Max Rule
The maximum score that a player can score on a hole will be Triple Bogey. If you are already at a Double Bogey for the hole, please pick up your ball and give yourself a score of Triple Bogey. The exception to this rule is for the Champ Flight players. They will finish the hole no matter the score.  NO Max score for Champ Flight.

Putt your Ball out (instead of marking)
If you have putted your ball and you are only a couple of feet away from the hole for your next putt, do not mark the ball but continue to putt out unless this will cause you to step in anyone's line. On average, if you mark a short putt, this adds 30 seconds per person and this is done by 2 people on each green, this equates to a total of 18 minutes extra wasted per round. Most of the time, most people will not miss the return putt because they had to putt out. If you watch, the PGA will finish their hole out instead of marking.

Scorecards & Livescoring
Live scoring will be used for all events. There will be only 1 official score card (provided by the Tour) turned into the scoring table per group. All persons in the group must verify the card with LiveScore. Please keep 1 score card per cart to verify scores at the end of the round but only 1 card will be considered the official card. Everyone will take their turn being responsible for the live score scoring.

GPS & Range Finders Permitted
Only USGA Approved GPS and Range Finder devices are permitted for use at all St. Louis Tour Events. Use of illegal devices will result in disqualification from that event. Range finders with slope and other measurements besides distance must have the ability to turn off the measurements besides distance.

Play 2 balls in the event of a Rules Dispute
If there is ever any dispute in your group on the proper ruling during the tournament, the player must play 2 balls from the point of the rule dispute. Take note of both scores for that hole and move on with the round. After the round is done and before anyone signs the official score card, you must seek out the Tour Director for a final ruling. The proper score will be circled on the card and used for the official score.

Conduct Expected of All Players

All players are expected to play in the spirit of the game by: 

• Acting with integrity: For example, by following the Rules, applying all penalties, and being honest in all aspects of play. 
• Showing consideration to others: For example, by playing at a prompt pace, looking out for the safety of others, and not distracting the play of another player. 
• Taking good care of the course: For example, by replacing divots, smoothing bunkers, repairing ball-marks, and not causing unnecessary damage to the course. This includes carts, rakes, flags and any other items deemed part of the course by the Director.