NIH 9-Hole Golf League
(Sponsored by the NIH Recreation and Welfare Association)
News
WELCOME TO THE 2011 NIH 9-HOLE GOLF LEAGUE (NIHGL)!!!
SCHEDULING YOUR ROUNDS:
You will soon get an email from your team captain. The A flight will have two teams (Gold and Silver,) and the B Flight will have two teams (Green and Blue.) The Non-competitive flight will have a team captain too, although there are no matches. Once you are contacted by your team captains you need to promptly send them your desired tee times for the upcoming month. Please try to be as flexible as possible to make life easier for your team captain (it can be tough trying to accommodate everyone's schedule.) So saying "I want the earliest tee time possible on Thursdays next month" is better than demanding a 4:00 tee time every Thursday.
INSIDE NINE AT NORTHWEST PARK:
At Northwest Park we also have the option of playing the "inside nine", which is shorter but requires more accuracy than the regular nine. You do not have to send money to the league for rounds scheduled on the "inside nine", since we pay as we show up. But please show our golf courses the proper courtesy by showing up for scheduled rounds or calling ahead to cancel if needed. The fee for the inside nine is $20.
PAYING FOR YOUR ROUNDS:
To pay for your rounds you need to write a check payable to "NIHGL" and send it to our league treasurer:
John Brooks
8041 Kidwell Town Ct.
Vienna, VA 22182
Please send enough for 10 rounds with your first check so that we have a healthy treasury for the upcoming year. If you do not schedule yourself for 10 rounds for some outlandish reason (abducted by aliens?) then your money carries over to the next year or can be refunded to you. You will not lose it.
Once you get close to using all of the funds you have sent in, it's time to send another check. Please try not to get behind, since we have hired a really annoying collection agency from the Bronx this year.
IMPORTANT DATES:
April Mixed Scrambles: We are starting this year with mixed-flight scrambles so you can socialize with the rest of the league who you may not play with during the year. This league focuses on the social aspect of golf rather than the angry, club-throwing, bag-kicking, foul-mouthed frustrating aspect of the game.
SPRING MIXED SCRAMBLES: Start Tuesday, April 19 (and run through April 28.)
LEAGUE MATCH PLAY: Starts Tuesday, May 3 and runs through Thursday, September 15.
FALL MIXED SCRAMBLES: Start Tuesday, Sept. 20 (and run through September 29.)
THE
COURSES
TUESDAY: NEEDWOOD
THURSDAY:
Our
tee times are from 4:00 to 5:00 so we should have 8 times at each
course. At
SCHEDULING
Everyone will be divided up into teams (2 teams per flight,) and
your team captain will contact you via email before each month
begins to ask about your availability for the upcoming month.
Your job is to look at your calendar and reply back to your captain
with the Tuesdays and Thursdays you are available for scheduling.
Once the captains hear from everyone they will schedule matches for
the entire month ahead. The completed schedule will be emailed
to all members and posted on the website (www.recgov.org/golf)
If
you cannot attend a match on a day that you indicated you were
available, then you need to find your own replacement. That
means you should email only your team and flight (not the entire
league) to see if someone else can substitute. If you cannot
find one, then you will still be charged for the tee time.
This is because we pay the courses in a lump sum in advance - so the
league will not pay for your tee time. If you get scheduled
for a day that you did not indicate you were available, please
contact your team captain to rectify the error (yes, it has happened
before - but it's rare.)
Please reply to your team captain with your availability as soon as
possible to make our process go as smoothly as possible.
Otherwise, you may not get the times and courses you desire.
PAYMENT FOR ROUNDS
THE
TIME TO PAY FOR MAY ROUNDS IS NOW!!! (Did I emphasize that enough,
or was it too subtle?) Please send a check to John Brooks at
LEAGUE RULES
This
is a fun league where golf is the objective - not winning. We
definitely compete in the A and B flights, but we do not tolerate
poor sportsmanship (or sportswomanship!) I got beat twice last
year on long putts on hole #9, and when I curled up in the fetal
position to cry I did so quietly! So please be respectful of
other members and keep tantrums, outbursts, and other demonstrative
episodes under control. There are no big prizes to win at the
end of the year. Your reward for playing well will be the warm
feeling you have while drinking a beverage after the round.
Cold beer can do wonders for your golf score, or at least the score
that you tell other people!
Pace
of play is also important to keep in mind. While our league
has made great strides in this area, it still comes up occasionally
as a complaint. Since the league plays "match play", each hole
is worth 1 point. Strokes do not matter other than for
handicap purposes. So if you are out of a hole and lying 6 on
a par 4, consider picking up and taking an 8 (double par is the
highest score you should take in the league, so we don't want to see
any 16's on the score card!) Also remember to line up your
putt while others are putting. Don't wait until your turn to
lie down on your belly on the green and figure out the exact angle
to sink your putt. Also remember to hit your ball first,
before helping someone look for theirs. It sounds selfish, but
it's not - it helps keep things moving. Be mindful of where
the next tee is located so you can position your pull cart on the
correct side of the green. All of these things go into making
the round enjoyable for everyone - even the group behind you!
Hopefully this letter has covered most of the procedures and
expectations for 2011. If I have missed something, or if
anyone has further questions, you can contact me or any one of the
league officers listed on the web site. Now let's get out
there and start making some divots!
Brian Spillman
NIHGL President