2013 Tournament Policies and Procedures of the Pepsi Tour -- Professional/Open Division

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Tournament Format: The format of each tournament on the Pepsi Tour is individual stroke play, low gross competition. Tournament play is governed by the 2012-2013 Rules of Golf as approved by the United States Golf Association® (the "USGA_®") and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, as modified by the these 2013 Tournament Policies and Procedures, by the Pepsi Tour's 2013 Standard Rules of Tournament Play, by the Local Rules Sheet prepared by the Pepsi Tour Tournament Committee for each tournament, and by supplemental instructions from the starter.

Tournament Administration. All decisions made by the Pepsi Tour Tournament Committee are final. Tournament Officials are on site at every tournament to provide assistance, monitor the pace of play, and make rulings. Any Tournament Official may assess penalty strokes for rules infractions or slow play subject to review by the Pepsi Tour Tournament Committee.

Tournament Registration. To apply for entry in an Open Division competition a player may: (i) mail a completed Application for Entry to the Pepsi Tour; (ii) fax a completed Application for Entry to the Pepsi Tour; (iii) register on-line through the Pepsi Tour website; (iv) E-mail an entry request to the Pepsi Tour; or (v) phone the Pepsi Tour with entry information. All players must be at least 18 years old on the day of the tournament. The entry deadline date for registration and payment in full is the date designated on this website and in bi-monthly newsletters. Late entries and walk-ons are welcome if there is space available, but the tournament entry fee is $20 higher. The Pepsi Tour will do its best to accommodate all tee time requests made prior to the entry deadline date.

Cancellations. There is no penalty for canceling an entry at least 72 hours prior to the start of a tournament. Thereafter, unless a canceling player has a verified medical condition or other acceptable reason, the Pepsi Tour will charge a penalty between $25 and $75 depending on the Pepsi Tour's obligations to the course. A "no show" on the day(s) of the tournament will be charged a fixed penalty of $75. All cancellation refunds will be in the form of a credit for use within 12 months at a future Pepsi Tour event.

Check-In and Starting. All players must personally check-in at the tournament registration desk at least 20 minutes prior to their assigned tee times and must be at their starting point at least 5 minutes prior to their assigned tee time. Failure to do so may result in a player forfeiting his tee time. If a player is not at the starting point, ready to play, at the assigned starting time, he is in a breach of Rule 6-3 and normally disqualified from the tournament. However, the Pepsi Tour at its sole discretion may attempt to accommodate such player with a later starting time and with an assessment of a two-stroke penalty.

Seniors' and Women's Professional Flights. The Pepsi Tour holds separate flight competitions for senior men (must be at least 47 years old on the day of the tournament) and/or women who are professionals in the Open Division if 8 or more such players are registered by the early entry deadline date. If there are less than 8 entries, the players will be part of the regular professional/open competition and will generally play from more forward tee positions set on a course-by-course basis.

Amateur Flight. The Pepsi Tour holds a separate amateur flight competition if there are four or more amateur flight players registered for the tournament by the early entry deadline date. If there are less than four entries, amateur players will indirectly compete against professional/open players in a combined field. Senior men and women who are amateur flight players will generally play from more forward tee positions set on a course-by-course basis.

Golf Carts and Driving Range. The tournament entry fee normally includes the shared-use of a golf cart and a small bucket of range balls. Players must follow cart rules established by the golf course and must make arrangements directly with the course prior to their assigned tee time if they desire an additional cart for spectators or caddies or require a medical waiver from standard cart restrictions.

Caddies and Spectators. The Pepsi Tour permits caddies and spectators at all tournaments subject to course restrictions.

Golf Balls. All players must use a brand and type of golf balls on the current USGA List of Conforming Balls and must mark their balls for identification.

One-Ball Rule. The one-ball condition set forth in Appendix I to the Rules of Golf is in effect in all tournaments.

Clubs. Except for compliance with the groove and punch mark specifications effective January 1, 2010, a player¡¦s clubs must conform to USGA_® provisions, specifications and interpretations set forth in Appendix II to the Rules of Golf.

Artificial Measuring Devices. The Pepsi Tour allows the use of devices to measure distance only. Use of devices that gauge or measure other conditions that might affect play (e.g. wind or gradient) is not permitted.

Slow Play. The Pepsi Tour has established pace of play rules that may be modified from time to time to prevent slow play in its tournaments. Penalty strokes and eventual disqualification may be assessed to a player after the player's group has been advised by a Tournament Official that it is out of position and the player takes longer than the prescribed time to play a stroke. The pace of play rules are fully described in the 2013 Standard Rules of Tournament Play.

Prize Money for Professionals. The guaranteed first place prize money at each tournament is established prior to the event with amount dependent on the size of the field. Tournament purses vary based on sponsors and the number of participants, but at all tournaments one-third of the field wins prize money. First place ties are decided by a sudden-death playoff immediately after competition and continuing until the tie is broken. Prize moneys for other ties are split as necessary. Except in the case of a tie, the last payout at each tournament will equal or exceed the member entry fee.

Prize Money Pay Out.. At most tournaments prize money is paid out only to members of the Pepsi Tour who have a Form W-9 (for U.S. residents) or Form W-8 (for non-resident aliens) on file with the Tour. By law, the Pepsi Tour must generally withhold 30% of the winnings of players who are non-resident aliens. If a non-member wins prize money, he can use a portion of the winnings to pay the annual membership fee of the Pepsi Tour and receive a check for the balance or he can leave the entire prize money on the books and use it within the next three years for tournament entry fees.

Membership for Professional/Open Players.. The cost of annual membership for professional/open players in the Open Division of the Pepsi Tour is $195. The membership year is a twelve-month period beginning on the first day of the month in which a member plays in a tournament and ending on the last day of the twelfth month thereafter. The benefits of membership are as follows: (i) members pay a lower entry fee at most tournaments; (ii) members receive a check for all prize money earned; (iii) members can present a personal check or credit card (visa/mastercard only) for the entry fee on the day of a tournament; and (iv) only members are eligible to participate in designated members-only tournaments. The membership status of a player is determined when a player tees off at the beginning of a tournament. If a non-member joins the Pepsi Tour to collect prize money from a tournament, he does not receive a rebate or credit for the non-member premium he paid to enter that tournament.

Non-Cash Prize Vouchers for Amateurs. . All amateur players receive their winnings in the form of non-cash prize vouchers in compliance with USGA_® guidelines and Pepsi Tour policy. Membership is not required. The amount of the first place prize voucher at each tournament is established prior to the event with amount dependent on the size of the field. First place ties are decided by a sudden-death playoff immediately after competition and continuing until the tie is broken. Prize vouchers for other ties are split as necessary.

Membership for Amateur Flight Players.. The cost of annual membership for amateur flight players in the Open Division of the Pepsi Tour is $95. The membership year is a twelve-month period beginning on the first day of the month in which a member plays in a tournament and ending on the last day of the twelfth month thereafter. The benefits of membership are as follows: (i) members pay a lower entry fee at most tournaments; (ii) members can present a personal check or credit card (visa/mastercard only) for the entry fee on the day of a tournament; and (iii) only members are eligible to participate in designated members-only tournaments. The membership status of a player is determined when a player tees off at the beginning of a tournament.

Scorecards.. Each golfer is responsible for the correctness of his official tournament scorecard even though a designated fellow-competitor will be recording the score of each hole on the tournament scorecard. Each scorecard must be signed by the marker and attested by the player. If a player wishes to withdraw from the tournament, he must notify a Tournament Official before leaving the course. In an effort to equitably resolve scoring disputes all players in a foursome must submit their scorecards at the same time to the Pepsi Tour at the scorer's table and each player must be available for a reasonable time after submission to answer questions by the Tournament Committee. The Pepsi Tour requests that any protest be made to a Tournament Official as soon as possible after an incident occurs so that a proper ruling can be made in a timely fashion. In the event no protests are made after all scores are posted on the tournament scoreboard, the scoreboard shall be considered final and prize money awarded to the winners. In multi-day events no protests will be considered for an incident occurring during a previous day's play. The Pepsi Tour, however, reserves the right to correct a ruling or scoring mistake that it may have made at any time during a multi-day tournament.

Optional Daily Wagers.. At most Pepsi Tour tournaments there will be an optional daily players' pool competition and an daily optional skins game that are conducted simultaneously with the tournament competition.
     Each players' pool competition has a $50 buy-in. The purse will be $50 times the number of players in the competition. If there are nine or more entries, three places will be paid. If there are 5 to 8 entries, two places will be played. If there are 4 or fewer entries, one place will be paid.
     Each skins contest has a $40 buy-in. The Pepsi Tour may retain up to 10% of the collected funds in the skins game. A skin will be awarded to the player who has the lowest score below par on a hole when compared to scores from all others players that entered the skins contest. Any ties will result in no skin being awarded on that hole. The total number of skins awarded for all 18 holes will then be divided into the net collected funds to determine the dollar prize of each skin.

Dress Code: The Pepsi Tour strictly enforces a tournament dress code with no exceptions. Collared shirts are required, and no jeans, denims, jogging outfits, or sweat pants are permitted. Shorts may be worn, but must be within five inches of the knee.

Player Conduct: The Pepsi Tour does not tolerate excessive swearing or vulgar language, club throwing, alcohol or drug abuse, lack of golfing etiquette, verbal abuse of its Tournament Officials, or other such behavior. Such conduct may result in tournament disqualification and suspension or expulsion from the Tour. Cell phones, beepers, radios and other such devices are prohibited during play if in the opinion of a Tournament Official they are disturbing to fellow-competitors.

Returned Checks: The Pepsi Tour charges a $25 fee for any returned checks or other items.

Miscellaneous: The tournament policies and procedures of the Pepsi Tour are subject to revision at any time without notice.