1. players hitting a ball into the Indian burial ground on the left side of #10 are under no circumstances allowed to enter this area to retrieve their ball. The ball is considered OB and the player is to proceed according to the BMGL local rule for Ball Out of Bounds (below).

• New Local Rule: Ball Lost or Out of Bounds; Provisional Ball
1. Ball out of bounds off the tee. The player has the option to:
1. Under penalty of stroke and distance, re-play one and only one ball from the teebox {the player would hit the third shot from the teebox}; once the player leaves the tee box this option cannot be exercised. If the second tee shot is also found OB, the player must proceed according to part (2).
2. Under penalty of two strokes, drop a ball in the fairway within two club-lengths of the edge of the fairway not nearer the hole than the point where the original ball last crossed the margin of the out of bounds line. {the player would hit the 4th shot at the point of the drop, or 6th shot if playing a second tee ball that went OB}
2. Ball out of bounds elsewhere. Under penalty of two strokes, the player shall drop a ball in the fairway within two club-lengths of the edge of the fairway not nearer the hole than the point where the original ball last crossed the margin of the out of bounds line.
3. Lost ball. Under penalty of two strokes, the player shall drop a ball in the fairway within two club lengths of the edge of the fairway, not nearer the hole than the point where the ball was deemed to have been lost.
4. Lateral water hazard - holes #12 and #15 only. Under penalty of one stroke, a player whose tee shot lands in the water on hole #12 or hole #15 shall drop a ball on the womens' tee box. The player would then hit his third shot at the point of the drop. The player does not have the option to play a second ball from the tee. In the unlikely event that a subsequent shot again goes in the water, the player shall again drop a ball in the womens' tee box with an additional one-stroke penalty. A player whose ball lies in the marked water hazard but is deemed playable has the option to attempt to advance his ball from its current lie.
• Rule 10a. Order of Play

  The side that wins a hole shall take the honor at the next teeing ground. If a hole has been halved, the side which had the honor at the previous teeing ground shall retain it unless the group cannot maintain a reasonable pace of play. "Reasonable" is defined as completing nine holes of golf in 2 hr 15 minutes or not allowing more than one open hole between your group and the group ahead of you.

• Rule 10b. Other Than on Teeing Ground

  When the balls are in play, the ball farther from the hole shall be played first. If the balls are equidistant from the hole, the ball to be played first should be decided by the players, subject to the exceptions under USGA Rule 22, Ball Interfering with or Assisting Play. However, when a group is waiting to play to the green, players are required to putt continuously until either the ball is holed or the player must pick up in accordance with special rule 9, again subject to exceptions under Rule 22.

• Rule 9. Information as to Strokes Taken

  The number of strokes a player has taken shall include any penalty strokes incurred subject to the following exception: The number of strokes is limited to a maximum of gross triple bogey. The player must pick up after taking this number of strokes, including penalties. The player picking up loses the hole in match play unless his opponent also picks up because of the maximum stroke rule. In this case, the hole is ruled halved.

The BMGL scores matches using a combined match play / team play system. Holes are awarded to the player who beats his opponent by 1 or more net strokes on a hole. If a player wins more holes than his opponent, the player is awarded 2 match points. Ties result in one match point being awarded to each player. Additionally, the player beating his opponent's net score for nine holes is awarded 2 medal points. Ties again results in awarding one medal point to each player. The best three net scores for a 4-man team are also combined for a team score. The team score is ranked against the other team scores for that night and awarded team points according to the ranking (the lowest team net is awarded 12 team points, the second lowest 11, and so forth down to the highest team net which gets only one team point).

On the rare occasions when a team fails to field four players, the opponent who is unopposed is automatically awarded 2 match points. The unopposed player, however, must post a net score of 4 over par or better in order to receive medal points. Any team failing to field at least 3 players, automatically forfeits team points for the week.

A player arriving late for a match is allowed to join play on the tee following the hole currently being played by his group. The late player automatically forfeits the preceding holes that have been completed by his group (FOR MATCH PLAY). Providing time, daylight, and tee scheduling with golf course management permits, the late player may complete the holes he missed for the purposes of medal scoring only. If the player cannot complete the missed holes for whatever reason, medal points are automatically awarded to his opponent, subject to the BMGL's rule requiring a score of 4 over par net or better in order to collect medal points when playing unopposed.

As members of the BMGL, we all love the game of golf and the chance to play with and compete against our fellow co-workers. However, none of us enjoy spending most of a round waiting to play. There is NO reason a 9-hole round of golf should require more than 2 hr and 15 minutes. It is the responsibility of each member of the BMGL to maintain a reasonable pace of play. Here are some guidelines to follow during a round:

• If your team has the first tee time for the evening, it is imperative that your team members arrive at the golf course sufficiently ahead of time to tee off on time. If the first group is late off the first tee, every group is going to get a late start.
• The low handicap player from each team should play with the high handicap player, followed by the two mid-handicap players.
• The low handicap player on each team pair is responsible for keeping his less experienced, high handicap team player moving
• The first group and any group with players waiting are required to use the "putt out rule" (see modification to rule 10b above). This rule requires each player to continue putting until finishing the hole, unless doing so blatantly steps on another player's line
• Never allow more than one open hole between your group and the group ahead of you
• The low handicap player of a foursome is responsible for tracking the pace of the round and implementing the above steps
• New suggestions for 1999:
  • Fairway right-of-way: If a ball is hit into another fairway, please allow those on the fairway further along in play to go first (i.e., players on hole 11 would go before those on hole 10). Obviously, some common sense is needed in application of this guideline, so please use good judgment.
  • Try to arrive at the course at least 15 minutes before your tee time to allow time to check in, etc.
  • Play ready golf: Be ready to strike your ball as soon as it is your turn
  • Play ready putting: Line up your putt and practice your stroke while others are putting (of course, out of line of sight of those putting)

Slow play is almost always a result of 1) failure to notice that your group is behind, and/or 2) failure to take steps to pick the pace up in the group. Please implement the above guidelines and make golf in the BMGL more enjoyable for all.