Frequently Asked Questions

 

 

This page is here to help you find answers to members (and potential members) most frequently asked questions. If you can't find the answer you are looking for, email the St. Louis local tour director.

Email Tyler Cardwell


How do I join the tour?

Can I play as a guest without joining the tour?

How do I register for a tournament?

When is the deadline to register and pay for tournaments?

Which flight should I start in?

How do you keep it fair? How do you prevent sandbagging?

Do you play any side games?

What are the flight assignments? 

What distance will I play from?

What prizes can I win?

What is the average cost of tournaments?

What is included in the tournament entry fee?

Do I have to play in every tournament?

What if I register and pay for a tournament and then am unable to attend?

How do I register for tournaments in other cities?

What is the points system and how do I earn points?

Do I get points when I play regional events or tournaments in other cities?

Can I play in the same group as my friend and ride together?

Where can I find more information?


 

How do I join the tour?

To join the Golfweek Amateur Tour, you will need to complete a registration form and pay your annual membership fee. Your registration form will be sent to the national office for processing. Once processed, you will receive an email link to create your login and password.

 

Can I play as a guest without joining the tour?

Yes! We encourage anyone interested in the tour to come to compete in a tournament as a guest. You can play in any non-regional event as a guest player. Guest players still must complete a tour registration form to be entered into our system. You DO NOT need to pay membership fee. Once tour registration form is complete, you need to register and pay for the tournament. 

Guest players are NOT eligible to win prizes, unless they choose to join the tour (and pay membership fee) at the tournament to become eligible to receive trophy and prize purse. Guest ARE eligible to compete in and win side games.

If registering as a guest, you must also email your handicap to stlouis@amateurgolftour.net. If you do not have an established handicap, you will need to send your last 5 scores with course details. 

 

How do I register for a tournment?

To register for a local St. Louis tournament, visit the St. Louis tour homepage. From here you will see the full schedule with links to both register and pay. You must complete both to confirm your spot. Registration for every local tournament closes 8 days prior to the tournament.

 

When is the deadline to register and pay for tournaments?

Registration always closes 8 days prior to the tournament day. We encourage members to register for tournaments in advance. However you do not need to pay the tournament entry fee in advance. Your tournament entry fee must be paid by the close of registration to confirm your spot.

 

Which flight should I start in?

When you are new to the tour, we need to establish a handicap for you in our system. After your first 3 tournaments on the tour you will automatically establish a tour index. The Tour Index Policy is intended to group players into flights of comparable potential ability to promote fair competition within the flight. The AGT index formula will closely mirror the published USGA handicap method.

Until you establish an AGT index and to make sure we are starting you in the correct flight, we ask that you submit your handicap if you have one available. If you do not have one, please submit up to 5 course scores and what tees you played from and the course slope/rating.

It's very important to start in the correct flight because once you establish an AGT index, the system will determine what flight you should be in. If your AGT index indicates that you should be in a higher flight, you will automatically move into that flight. The system does this to make the tour as fair and competitive as possible. If you move flights mid-season you will only be able to carry over 75% of your points.

(For more info about flights and flight movement, please see the tour manual)

 

How do you keep it fair? How do you prevent sandbagging?

We are actively recruiting new members to the St. Louis Golfweek Amateur Tour. As such, many times we have to rely on the information a golfer gives us to place them in the correct flight. We require all new members to either submit an established handicap or their most recent 5 scores. We use this information to place new members in the correct flight to start. We ask all new members to be as truthful as possible when submitting this information for their sake and the sake of all golfers. Being dishonest will only harm the golfer as they will eventually be moved into their correct flight once they establish an AGT index on tour. This AGT index dictates flights for all players. If a player is subsequently moved to a higher flight they will lose points during the flight movement.

 

Do you play any side games?

Yes. We compete for side/cash games at each event. These are optional for every player. 

The following are the side games we play and the cost to play each.

Flight Skins - $10 

Super Skins - $10

Par 3 Challenge - $10

Side games can be paid with Venmo, CashApp or cash at tournament check in.

 

What are the flight assignments? 

Championship Flight: 0-3.9 Handicap

A Flight: 4.0-8.9 Handicap

B Flight: 9.0-13.9 Handicap

C Flight: 14.0-18.9 Handicap

D Flight: 19.0 and higher Handicap

 

What distance will I play from?

The following are the yardage guidelines for each flight.

 

Championship Flight: 6500 yards and up

A Flight: 6500-6800 yards

B Flight: 6400-6600 yards

C Flight: 6200-6400 yards

D Flight: 5900-6200 yards

 

What prizes can I win?

The winner of each flight will win a custom trophy and a visa gift card. Prize amounts are based on the number of players in your flight.

 

In the event there is only 1 person in a flight, you will win a custom trophy and $25.

Prize payouts are as follows (per flight):

2-9 players pays 1st place

10-15 players pays 1st & 2nd places

16+ player pays 1st, 2nd and 3rd places

*If a tournament has a sponsor, prize pools are subject to change.

 

What is the average cost of tournaments?

Our St. Louis local tournaments range from $95-$150 for one day events and $250-$275 for two day events.

 

What is included in the tournament entry fee?

Each tournament entry fee includes greens fees, carts, range balls, custom trophy and prize purse fund.

 

Do I have to play in every tournament?

No. The benefit of becoming a Golfweek Amateur Tour member is that you can play in as many (or few) tournaments as you want. As a member you can compete in any Golfweek event nationwide.

 

What if I register and pay for a tournament and then am unable to attend?

Our cancellation policy is 8 days before the tournament date. If you will be unable to attend, you need to inform the tour director prior to this to receive a full refund. 8 days prior to the tournament (when registration closes), we are required to submit our full head count to the golf course and are expected to pay for all the golfers so last minute cancellations are unable to be refunded. 

 

How do I register for tournaments in other cities?

The tournament registration process will be similar in all cities. Find the cities tour homepage by going to "Find a Tour Near Me" on the top menu and scroll to the city you wish to play in. Once you are on their homepage, you can register and pay for their tournaments. You can also find each cities local tour directors contact information here to reach out if you have any questions/concerns.

 

What is the points system and how do I earn points?

For every local tournament you compete in, you will earn points based on the below formula. Points are accumulated all season and are used to become eligible for the end of season National Championship in Hilton Head, SC. St. Louis points winners in each flight also receive a custom championship ring, cash and the next years Golfweek Amateur Tour membership paid.

 

Do I get points when I play regional events or tournaments in other cities?

For regional events, members are eligible to receive full points for three regional tournaments from across the country regardless of local schedule. Regional events are the tournaments listed on the Golfweek Amateur Tour homepage. For other out of town tournaments (non-regional events), you can make up 4 missed local tournament points. One day events will replace local one day events, two day events will replace local two day events. If you miss a local tournament your points will be transferred back following the below guidelines. If you play in an out of town tournament and have not yet missed a local tournament, your points will be banked in the event you miss a tournament later on the points will then carry over.

The following guidelines will apply to transfer of points for non-regional events outside of a player’s home tour:

80% of away points to their local tour points total if the flight contains 8 or more players

60% of away points to their local tour points total if the flight contains 5 to 7 players

40% of away points to their local tour points total if the flight contains 2 to 4 players

If a player is the sole competitor in the tournament event, no points can be transferred.

 

Can I play in the same group as my friend and ride together?

We will always try to keep groups together based on flight. Occasionally a group will have mixed flight players to accommodate the number of players and time requirements of the golf course. For the most part, groups will always remain flighted, meaning if you and your friend are in the same flight we can usually place you within the same group. However, we do encourage mixing up groups each tournament which allows members to play with different golfers and meet new people.

 

Where can I find more information?

The Golfweek Amateur Tour Manual is an excellent resource to read through all tour guidelines, rules and expectations. It is highly encouraged that every member read through the Tour Manual

 

 

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Posted: 11/25/2022 9:17:06 PM