Tournament Director’s Guide
This guide is intended to ease the burden and reduce the stress that a Tournament Director (TD) will typically encounter. These guidelines apply to tournaments sanctioned by the BCDSS but they can be adapted to any tournament. If you have any questions or if something is not covered in this guide, please contact the BCDS
Contents
Items Required
Roles and ResponsibilitiesTournament Director Responsibilities*DGB Responsibilities
Sponsors
Tournament Day Activities
Tournament Setup
Registration Procedure
Dealing with Financial Irregularities
Player Overpayments- If an overpayment is discovered onsite you should appeal to the player to return the overpayment. The player should be offered an explanation and given an apology.
If the overpayment is discovered offsite then no attempt to recover the money will be made. The shortage will be covered by any cash surpluses, if available, or by the series fee.
Post Event Cash Surpluses- If all the money was awarded properly, the only money left at the end of the day should be the amount of the float. Due to human error it is common to have a surplus and often the result is that a competitor was short changed. The procedure you must follow to ensure fairness and accountability in the series is as follows:
Title Sponsorship (PDGA)PDGA tournaments are generally more formal than many local tournaments and require a greater inverstment in time and resources to run. To support the added level of competition and professionalization offered by these tournaments, the BCDS may support PDGA tournaments with cash sponsorships as follows.
Buy Back ProgramTD’s take some financial risks in purchasing player pack and payout items for their event (discs, shirts, bags, towels, mini’s etc.). To help mitigate that risk, the BCDS will buy back up to 25% of such purchases from the TD at cost, to a maximum of $250 per event. Items purchased through this program become the property of the BCDS and may be used as prizes in future events, or for sport promotion, fundraising, or for other purposes as deemed appropriate by the BCDS. TD’s wishing to take advantage of this program must apply to the BCDS before their event is held and will be approved on an individual basis. We encourage interested TD’s to apply to the BCDS at least three months before their event.
Event Insurance- Most localities require event insurance in order to obtain a permit to use a course for a tournament. This insurance protects both the city and the TD in the event of a law suit stemming from the tournament. The BCDS will provide $6 million of event insurance at no cost to the TD. To take advantage of this program, the TD must require all players to be current BCDS members and contact the BCDS prior to the event.
PDGA Event Sanctioning TD Guidelines: PDGA Events
Many BCDS events are also run as PDGA-tier events. TD’s interested in making their event PDGA-sanctioned need to submit a PDGA Canada Sanctioning Agreement prior to the event, and submit a TD Report after the event. It is important to download and review these forms in advance. In particular, the TD Report must be used as it calculates the payouts for each PDGA division. You should experiment with the form in advance to make sure you are comfortable with the way it works.
These forms are available for download from the PDGA web site: http://www.pdga.com/pdga-documents/canada. DO NOT use the U.S. Online form. The main information you will need to supply is highlighted below. In most cases, you will be applying for a B or C tier event.
Basic Information: tournament name and dates; courses and number of holes; maximum number of players; tier status you are seeking:
Full details regarding requirements are summarized in the table below. Questions should be sent to Brian Hoeniger at PDGA Canada (E-mail: bhoeniger@pdga.com). You may also wish to contact the BC Provincial Coordinator (http://www.pdga.com/contact-pdga-redirect/70).
You should also review the Tournament Directors resource page at: http://www.pdga.com/tdinfo/resources. Remember however that any of the paper work referenced must be submitted to Brian Hoeniger at PDGA Canada and NOT the U.S. PDGA office.
This guide is intended to ease the burden and reduce the stress that a Tournament Director (TD) will typically encounter. These guidelines apply to tournaments sanctioned by the BCDSS but they can be adapted to any tournament. If you have any questions or if something is not covered in this guide, please contact the BCDS
Contents
- Items required
- Description of roles and responsibilities
- Tournament preparation timetable
- Tournament day activities
- Dealing with financial irregularities
- BCDS Sponsorship
- PDGA Sponsorship
Items Required
- Temporary baskets (optional)
- Tee pad markers
- Out-of-bounds markers (e.g. flagging tape)
- A float of $250 for giving out change
- Envelopes for payouts
- Sign up forms (PDF)
- Payout Tables (PDF)
- BCDSS Report Summary (xls)
- Golf pencils (optional)
- Tent, table, chairs (optional)
- Scorecards
- Prizes
- Light source (in case daylight runs out)
- Pencils/pens, notepad, calculator
Roles and ResponsibilitiesTournament Director Responsibilities*DGB Responsibilities
- Promotion and advertising
- Course design
- Tournament format
- Sponsorship and merchandising
- Temporary baskets
- Tents, tables, chairs, etc
- Park permit
- Washrooms
- Float
- To understand the payout schedules
- Envelopes, pencils, and other misc items.
- Know and Enforce the Code of Conduct
- Ensure that the TD is sufficiently prepared
- Be a resource person for the TD – answer questions, provide guidance.
- Provide on-line access to signup forms, payout table, and scorecard templates (applies to Duck Golf Series only)
- Provide scoreboard if required
- Collect the scorecards and signup sheets after the tournament
Sponsors
- Talk to local businesses in order to get prizes to give out at the tournament.
- It may be necessary to obtain a permit to run the tournament in a public park, they are strongly recommended even if not required. They support the fact that the course is actively being used, and can provide history and help in making cases for course improvements and expansion.
- Bring a copy of the permit to the tournament. You may have to present it to anybody who demands proof of your right-of-way in the park
- Permits are not free, you may be able to secure a cheaper rate if you do not require exclusive use of the facility, or if you clearly associate your event with the BCDS (non-profit society)
- Ensure that there is enough daylight to play all the holes, and to deal with payouts.
- Anticipate holes which will be bottlenecks or where losts discs are likely.
- For particularly long or difficult holes, different sets of tee pads are recommended in order to maintain flow.
- The top Pro Open player and the top Amateur Intermediate players should be shooting the course within 6-9 strokes, create additional pads to support that guideline.
- Avoid unsafe tee pad placements
- For Duck Golf events, advise the Series Committee of the number of holes and hole lengths.
- Determine and advertise the tournament’s start time. 11 AM is the latest recommended start time.
- With a maximum of 5 players per hole the number of participants is limited. Make sure that you either explicitly advertise registration limits or have a contingency plan to add extra holes.
- Decide on how many rounds will be played
- Will there be a break in between rounds?
- Will there be a Final Nine?
- Will players be grouped in their own divisions?
- Is there a way to arrange hole placements to avoid long delays during play?
- Is there enough time to accommodate limited daylight and out of town players with ferries to catch?
- If you need temporary baskets, arrange to have them transported to the course.
- Who will take the temporary baskets home?
- The BCDSS has a tent, table, and chairs. If they are required then arrange for them to be brought to the course.
- You will need volunteers for such activities as course setup, course tear down, registration, payouts, and running the scoreboard.
- Volunteers for registration and payouts are crucial for a tournament to run smoothly and on schedule. Three people are recommended for smooth registration.
- Approach people that are reliable. Get a firm commitment and be explicit about what they are supposed to do and when they are to do it.
- If there aren’t any volunteers to calculate payouts in between rounds it is advisable that the TD not play in the event.
- For Duck Golf events, the Duck Golf Coordinator will provide Sign-up sheets, Payout tables, and a form for event reporting. Scorecards are the responsibility of the TD (Scorecards can be requested from the DG Coordinator with advanced notice). Make sure you know how the payout schedules work before the day of the tournament.
- Get about $250 in 20s, 10’s, and 5’s.
- Nothing smaller than a $5 bill is required for Duck Golf events
Tournament Day Activities
Tournament Setup
- Arrive at the course at least 2 hours before the players’ meeting
- Have the course and “tournament central” up at least an hour before the players’ meeting
- Have a copy of the park permit with you
Registration Procedure
- Have a safe place to put money. Never leave money or merchandise out of your sight.
- Two tables are recommended for registration. They should be located about 20 ft apart to avoid congestion
- The first table is where players pick up tournament programs, course maps, etc and sign their ID card that will be used for the scoreboard
- The player then proceeds to the second table and enters the tournament by submitting the signed ID card and paying the entry fee and non-member fee, if applicable.
- The player receives a scorecard that must be turned in after the round
- One of the registration volunteers enters that player’s name on the appropriate signup sheet and places the cash in the designated safe location.
- Groups can be as small as 3 players and have a maximum of 5 players.
- For the last 5 events of the Duck Golf Series, the top 4 in series points in each division will be grouped together
- Place the ID card in an empty slot on the scoreboard underneath the hole number where that person will start
- Place all of the scorecards for each group in the top slot for that hole. The top person in the group will be responsible for taking the scorecards
- There is no need to announce hole placements. Let the participants look at the scoreboard and figure it out
- Keep the scoreboard away from the registration table to reduce congestion
- A volunteer will collect scorecards after each round and update the ID cards on the scoreboard
- Welcome the players, especially new players
- Explain the schedule and format of the tournament
- Specify out-of-bounds areas and local rules
- For the benefit of new players give a brief overview of tournament protocol and etiquette
- Ideally a volunteer will calculate the payouts while the first round is being played
- No cash or value (from the sum of entry fees) can be bumped out of a division
- When calculating prizes for amateur divisions you must ensure that the value of the prize(s) equals the dollar figure represented in the payout table
- Money for items such as series fees, non-member fees, ace pots, and CTPs will be set aside and put in separate labeled envelopes
- For distributing sponsor prizes: If not specified by the sponsor you may choose how you want to distribute them. Traditionally we work from the bottom division up with the goal of encouraging new and emerging players.
- It is recommended that you create an event (CTP, putting contest, etc) at the end of the tournament that will divert the players away from the tournament central area where final results are being tabulated.
- Ensure that there are no 1st place ties to resolve
- If there are any other ties make sure that the prize money has been adjusted
- It works best to sort the ID cards on the scoreboard so that the TD can easily read the results
- Have a volunteer hand the TD the prize as he/she calls out the names of the player
- Thank all participants, volunteers, and sponsors
- The volunteers should commence course tear down immediately after the awards ceremony
- The park should be left cleaner than before the start of the tournament
- Put the money for Series Fees (if applicable) and non member fees in separate labeled envelopes
- Fill out all of the required summary information on the signup sheets
- Collect all of the scorecards
- A BCDS board member will collect all of the above items
Dealing with Financial Irregularities
Player Overpayments- If an overpayment is discovered onsite you should appeal to the player to return the overpayment. The player should be offered an explanation and given an apology.
If the overpayment is discovered offsite then no attempt to recover the money will be made. The shortage will be covered by any cash surpluses, if available, or by the series fee.
Post Event Cash Surpluses- If all the money was awarded properly, the only money left at the end of the day should be the amount of the float. Due to human error it is common to have a surplus and often the result is that a competitor was short changed. The procedure you must follow to ensure fairness and accountability in the series is as follows:
- Report the surplus to the Series Coordinator by giving him the surplus in a labeled envelope.
- The Series Coordinator will hold the surplus for seven days following the event. In that time he will conduct an audit of the event to find the error. Within that seven days the shortchanged player will usually call or the Series Coordinator will discover the error and will pay the money.
Title Sponsorship (PDGA)PDGA tournaments are generally more formal than many local tournaments and require a greater inverstment in time and resources to run. To support the added level of competition and professionalization offered by these tournaments, the BCDS may support PDGA tournaments with cash sponsorships as follows.
- NT tier — please contact us
- A tier — $500
- B tier — $250
- C tier — $100
- X tier — please contact us
Buy Back ProgramTD’s take some financial risks in purchasing player pack and payout items for their event (discs, shirts, bags, towels, mini’s etc.). To help mitigate that risk, the BCDS will buy back up to 25% of such purchases from the TD at cost, to a maximum of $250 per event. Items purchased through this program become the property of the BCDS and may be used as prizes in future events, or for sport promotion, fundraising, or for other purposes as deemed appropriate by the BCDS. TD’s wishing to take advantage of this program must apply to the BCDS before their event is held and will be approved on an individual basis. We encourage interested TD’s to apply to the BCDS at least three months before their event.
Event Insurance- Most localities require event insurance in order to obtain a permit to use a course for a tournament. This insurance protects both the city and the TD in the event of a law suit stemming from the tournament. The BCDS will provide $6 million of event insurance at no cost to the TD. To take advantage of this program, the TD must require all players to be current BCDS members and contact the BCDS prior to the event.
PDGA Event Sanctioning TD Guidelines: PDGA Events
Many BCDS events are also run as PDGA-tier events. TD’s interested in making their event PDGA-sanctioned need to submit a PDGA Canada Sanctioning Agreement prior to the event, and submit a TD Report after the event. It is important to download and review these forms in advance. In particular, the TD Report must be used as it calculates the payouts for each PDGA division. You should experiment with the form in advance to make sure you are comfortable with the way it works.
These forms are available for download from the PDGA web site: http://www.pdga.com/pdga-documents/canada. DO NOT use the U.S. Online form. The main information you will need to supply is highlighted below. In most cases, you will be applying for a B or C tier event.
Basic Information: tournament name and dates; courses and number of holes; maximum number of players; tier status you are seeking:
- NT: special permission from the PDGA
- A / Super tour: Must be approved by PDGA Canada before December 1 the year before the event.
- B tier: Must be approved 45 days in advance and includes $500 added cash
- C tier: Must be approved 30 days prior to the event (no added cash required)
- X tier: These are for experimental formats (Glow Golf, Doubles, etc.) or for events using tonals or other unsanctioned targets.
Full details regarding requirements are summarized in the table below. Questions should be sent to Brian Hoeniger at PDGA Canada (E-mail: bhoeniger@pdga.com). You may also wish to contact the BC Provincial Coordinator (http://www.pdga.com/contact-pdga-redirect/70).
You should also review the Tournament Directors resource page at: http://www.pdga.com/tdinfo/resources. Remember however that any of the paper work referenced must be submitted to Brian Hoeniger at PDGA Canada and NOT the U.S. PDGA office.