By Laws

Currie Park Men's Golf Club By-Laws

Article I - Name

The name of this golf club shall be Currie Park Men's Golf Club.

Article II - Purpose

FIRST: To stimulate interest in golf by bringing together a group of golfers desirous of forming a golfing organization.
SECOND: To promote and foster among the members a closer bond and fraternity for their joint and mutual benefit, and to promote sportsmanship, friendship, and conserve the best interests and true spirit of the game of golf as embodied in its ancient and honorable traditions.
THIRD: To encourage conformance to the USGA Rules of Golf by creating a representative authority.
FOURTH: To maintain a uniform system of handicapping as set forth in the WSGA Handicap System and issue WSGA Handicap Indexes to the members.
FIFTH: To provide an authoritative body to govern and conduct club competitions.

Article III – Membership

Section 1. Membership shall be available to all men, 18 years of age or older, residing in the greater Milwaukee metropolitan area. Junior membership will be available at a reduced rate for men aged 18 to 25. There shall be at least (10) members with a maximum membership of (150).

Section 2. Memberships in the club are individual and non-transferable.

Section 3. Only golfers with a reasonable and regular opportunity to play golf with fellow members and who can personally return scores for posting may be members and receive WSGA Handicap Indexes from the club.

Section 4. Memberships in the club are for the current golf season, as defined by the WSGA handicap schedule, with all memberships expiring on October 31.

Section 5. The fiscal year for the club will be November 1 through October 31.

Section 6. The annual "kick-off" meeting of the Currie Park Men's Golf Club shall be held during the month of March, at the start of each golf season. All other affairs of the club will be communicated by and through the club’s website at http://currieparkmensclub.com.

Section 7. A legal quorum at any meeting shall be twenty members present. Each active member shall be entitled to one vote.

Section 8. All membership fees and dues shall be established by the Board of Directors from time to time in such amounts as they deem to be adequate to operate and maintain the club. Members shall be responsible for paying their dues in full prior to being eligible to compete in any club event, first or second team match, MCPLA, WPLA or WSGA event.

Section 9. Membership in Currie Park Men's Golf Club also carries membership in the United States Golf Association (USGA), Wisconsin State Golf Association (WSGA), Wisconsin Public Links Association (WPLA) and the Milwaukee County Public Links Association (MCPLA).

Article IV - Board of Directors

Section 1. The Board of Directors shall consist of the club officers, first team captain, second team captain, tour of the county coordinator, and handicap chairman. The Board of Directors shall exercise all powers of management of the club not specifically excepted by these By-Laws.

Section 2. The Board of Directors shall meet at such times and places as they may select and a majority of the Board shall constitute a quorum at any meeting.

Section 3. In the case of any vacancy through death, resignation, disqualification or other cause, the remaining directors, even though less than a quorum, may elect a successor by majority vote to hold office for the unexpired term of the director whose place shall be vacant, and until the election of his successor.

Article V - Officers

Section 1. The members, based on recommendations by the nominating committee, shall elect a President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer to act as officers of the Currie Park Men's Golf Club.

Section 2. Duties of the Officers:

a. President Shall preside at all meetings of the club and shall have general supervision over the affairs of the club.
b. Vice-President Shall, in the absence of the President, perform his duties. In addition, the Vice-President will act as chair of the golf committee.
c. Secretary/Webmaster Shall maintain the club’s website in a timely fashion, and shall keep records of meetings and perform other duties as may be assigned by the officers.
d. Treasurer Shall collect and discharge the funds as directed by the club. In the absence of the Treasurer, the President shall be empowered to sign checks in the name of the club. The treasurer shall produce: a budget at the beginning of each year; a monthly record of expenditures and income; and a final year accounting. Such reports shall be available for review on the members’ section of the website.

Section 3. Control and Management of the affairs, funds and properties necessary to conduct the business of the club shall be vested in the officers.

Section 4. Officers dues for the season in which office is held, shall be waived as consideration for the time spent in conducting the affairs of the club. First and second team captains and handicap chairman shall have half of their dues waived. Tour of the county coordinator shall have his TOC entry fee waived.

Section 5. Any benefits derived through the normal course of activities or business conducted by the officers shall be distributed at the discretion of the officers.

Article VI - Committees and Team Captains

Section 1. Titles of the standing committees and team captains are: Golf, Handicap, Tour of the County, Rules, Match Play Tourney, 1st Team and 2nd Team. The heads of these committees are appointed by the President, except in the case of the Golf committee, which shall be chaired by the Vice-President.

Section 2. Duties of the committees:

a. Golf:

i. Plan and conduct all competitions.
ii. Prepare schedule of events, and upon approval by the Board, distribute to members.
iii. Publish and post special conditions of play for club events.
iv. Assist in preparation of Local Rules, if any, to be used in club events.
v. Settle any disputes regarding club events.
vi. Announce course rating, handicaps, and tees to be used for club play

b. Handicap:

i. Assume responsibility for scoring, handicap revisions, turning in score cards, assessing penalties, maintaining records and notifying members of changes.
ii. Issue handicap cards to members or a periodic list of players with Handicap Index.

c. Rules:

i. The rules committee will review and make final decision as to any questions or disputes which may arise from the interpretation of and/or the imposing of a penalty associated with a club rule, local rule or USGA rule. All decisions of the rules committee are final.

d. 1st Team Captain:

i. 1st team competition is open to any member of Currie Park Men's Golf Club. Competition is against other MCPLA member clubs on a scratch basis. Official rules can be obtained from the 1st Team Captain.
ii. The method of selection is first come, first serve, on the club members’ section of the website with preference given to the lowest handicap players.

e. 2nd Team Captain:

i. 2nd Team competition is open to any member of Currie Park Men's Golf Club, with an established handicap index of 6.5 or higher. Competition is against other MCPLA member clubs on a handicap basis. Official rules can be obtained from the 2nd Team Captain.

ii. The method of selection from those that sign up for a 2nd Team match will be as follows:

1. Captain’s discretion for golfers who based on recently reported scores are playing well
2. Preferences to ensure that new members are afforded an opportunity to participate in team matches.
3. Members who express a desire to play a team match shall be afforded an opportunity to play at least one team match during the season
4. Members are responsible for informing the captain of their desire to play.

f. Green Jacket Match Play: A tourney director shall organize a season-long flighted tournament concluding by Labor Day to determine match play champions in flights determined by the director. The Director shall provide Rules and match deadlines at the annual “kick-off” meeting, and shall ensure that updated brackets are maintained on the club’s website

g. Tour of the County: (TOC) A coordinator shall schedule a season-long series of handicapped stroke events at Milwaukee County golf courses, with the winner determined by the player with the lowest net score based on a minimum of any four events.

h. Delegates to Affiliate Bodies: The club shall appoint 2 delegates to the Milwaukee County Public Links Association, 2 delegates to the Wisconsin Public Links Association, and one delegate to the Wisconsin State Golf Association.

Article VII - Expulsion

By unanimous vote of the Board of Directors, any member may be expelled from the club for good cause, including, but not limited to, indebtedness, violation of rules, handicap infractions, or any conduct which results in adverse reflection on the club. In the event a member is expelled, that member shall forfeit his right to vote and shall be suspended from the activities of the club for a period of time designated by the Board of Directors according to the merits of each case.

Article VIII - Elections

The Secretary shall be chair of the nominating committee and shall communicate at least six weeks prior to the final club meeting of the year to all members that an election is being scheduled, and shall inquire if any members desire or intend to run for an officer position. At least four weeks prior to the last meeting, this committee shall submit to the officers and shall inform the members of nominees to fill any vacancies for the term of office beginning November 1. This committee shall also accept any members who wish to run against any current officer for that position. Candidates expressing an interest in a position may also communicate with members on the members’ section of the website. Voting shall be conducted by oral vote, at the last meeting of the year. Those names receiving the greatest number of votes shall be declared to be elected. The Board of Directors shall appoint a committee of non-Board members or candidates to supervise the election.

Article IX - Slow Play

In an attempt to combat slow play, the following local rule shall be in place for ALL club events. It is the responsibility of each group (i.e. foursome, threesome or twosome) in a club outing to be in position to tee off on the eighteenth (18) tee prior to the last player in the preceding group holing out on the eighteenth green. Failure to be in position to tee off will result in a two-stroke penalty being assessed against EACH member of the group. The only exception to this rule will be if the group completes the round within the WSGA/USGA pace of play rating for the course being played (for Currie, pace of play rating is adjusted to 4 hours and 15 minutes). In addition, each group is required to write down on the official score card for that group the time that the first person tees off at the start of the round. This will be the time used to measure pace of play.

Article X - Club Events

Section 1. Club events are open to all paid members.

Section 2. Any member who signs up for an event is liable for the green fees for that event. All sign-up sheets for club events will be considered finalized ten (10) days prior to the event, unless otherwise specified for the course being played. After this time, if a member is unable to play, he must find a substitute or pay the associated event fees.

Section 3. USGA rules are to be followed in all club events unless otherwise stated.

Section 4. Handicaps for club events will be adjusted according to the USGA Slope Handicap System. Members that have not yet established a handicap will be handicapped at the discretion of the golf committee.

Section 5. Score cards for events MUST carry the first and last name of each player and be signed by the scorer and attested by a minimum of one additional player. Failure to comply with this rule will result in disqualification.

Section 6 . Any member, regardless of handicap, is eligible to compete for the club’s championship. However, the member MUST sign-up and compete within the championship flight’s tee times.

Section 7 . Club championship (# of flights to be determined by golf committee) is open to all members who have a handicap based on a minimum of ten (10) scores that season and have competed in a minimum of two (2) club events Based upon equitable considerations (e.g., illness), the golf committee may waive this rule. Club Champion must defend his Championship the following year regardless of his handicap.

Section 8 . All events will be conducted, rain or shine, unless the course is closed. Questionable weather will not be accepted as a reason for a "no-show."

Section 9 . During any event, regardless of the weather, play shall continue except for the following reasons: the committee/course has suspended play or the player(s) feel that there is danger from lightening. Heavy rain is not considered an appropriate reason for stoppage of play (ref. USGA rule 6-8).

Section 10 . For any club events conducted at Currie (excluding 1st or 2nd team, MCPLA events, etc.), the following local rules will be in place:
 a.) the left side of hole #3, to the area directly behind the green, will be treated as a lateral hazard
 b.) the right side of #16 fairway will be treated as a lateral hazard (this is only in effect until new tees are in place, adjacent to #15 green)
 c.) lift, rake, and place shall be used for any ball that comes to rest in a bunker

Section 11. Distance measuring devices are permitted as long as they do not measure wind or elevation.

Section 12. Power Carts: Carts cannot be driven ahead of the player’s ball to scout the hole (e.g., checking pin positions) (penalty: 2 strokes).

Article X1 - Amendments

These By-Laws may be repealed or amended, or new By-Laws adopted by a two-thirds (2/3) majority vote of the members present at an annual meeting (usually the last outing of the year) or at any special meeting held for that purpose.

Certification

These By-Laws, read and approved by the members of Currie Park Men's Golf Club, on Wednesday, March 11, 1998, are accepted by its officers.

Article II of these By-Laws read and amended by the members of Currie Park Men’s Golf Club, on September 28, 2008.