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CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS JUNE 9, 2006 (Revised from May 9, 2000)
Constitution the Organization
1 This non-profit organization is known as the Tennessee Deaf Golfers Association (TDGA) embracing all counties within the state.
2 Upon paying the membership fee and accepting the association’s constitution and bylaws, any deaf person or hearing person of a deaf relative or friend who can communicate via sign language shall become an active member.
BYLAWS ARTICLE 1 Objectives
1.1 The objectives of the organization are:
1.1.1 To sponsor monthly golf tournaments from March through November annually 1.1.2. To sponsor a Grand Finale tournament in which the jackpot will be distributed. 1.1.3 To promote mutual interest of its members. 1.1.4 To open the association to those who reside outside of Tennessee. 1.1.5 To co-sponsor the annual “Golfing with the Deaf” fund raising tournament with Knoxville Center of the Deaf.
ARTICLE 2 Membership
2.1 The Annual Business meeting shall be held in February each year.
2.2. The Association can hold additional business meetings if called by the majority of the officers. It is preferred that these meetings be held immediately following an association-sponsored golf tournament. If the business meeting is to be held at a different time and/or place, a notice of at least two weeks must be given to the membership.
2.3. A member must be 18 years of age before he/she is eligible to participate in a TDGA tournament.
2.4. Hearing persons of a deaf relative or friend who can communicate via sign language are eligible for membership.
ARTICLE 3 Order of Membership
3.1 The object of the business meetings are: 3.1.1. To select the tournament sites. 3.1.2 To handle any other business deemed necessary by the officers or membership
3.2 The order of the February business meeting shall be as follows : 3.2.1. Call to Order 3.2.2. Reading of the Minutes 3.2.3. Report of the President 3.2.4. Report of the Secretary 3.2.5. Report of the Treasurer 3.2.6. Committee Reports 3.2.7. Unfinished Business 3.2.8. New Business 3.2.9. Election of Officers 3.2.10 Announcement 3.2.11 Adjournment
ARTICLE 4 Membership Fees
4.1. The membership fee is $10.00 per year. 4.2. Annual Membership dues shall be paid before the participant’s first meeting or tournament. 4.3. The members are required to pay the green fees plus prize fees for all rounds. No refunds are made to golfers who withdraw during a round.
ARTICLE 5 Officers
5.1. The officers are the President, Secretary, Treasurer, Golf Director and three (3) Auditors from the membership-at-large. 5.2. The officers shall be elected immediately following the final tournament of the year. 5.3 Only deaf residents of Tennessee and members of the Tennessee Deaf Golfers Association are eligible to become officers.
ARTICLE 6 Duties of Officers 6.1. The officers shall serve a full two-year term. 6.2 The President shall preside at all meetings. The President shall enforce order and adhere to strict observance of the bylaws. 6.3 The Secretary shall perform the duties of the President in case of his/her absence at membership meetings. 6.4 The Secretary shall make a report at the February business meeting and keep the records of the minutes of all business meetings. 6.5 The Treasurer shall keep accounts of the association’s funds in a bank and deposit all the monies to the credit of TDGA in a savings account in the bank of his/her residential city. 6.6 The Golf Director shall figure the golfers’ scores and then calculate the handicaps. The director will collect a prize fee from each player before every game. At the conclusion of the game, the money will be distributed among all the players from first to last place. TDGA flyers will be sent to all the players from March to November via e-mail and will be posted on the Associations’ website: www.tenndga.org 6.7. The Audit Committee shall audit and examine the books of the Treasurer (before all business meetings) at least once per year.
ARTICLE 7 Committees
7.1 Law Committee: The Law Committee of this association shall be chaired by the three (3) members appointed by the President.
7.2 TDGA/USGA Rule Committee: The TDGA/USGA Rule Committee shall be headed by the Golf Director. The Golf Director with the President’s approval, is authorized to name two (2) persons to serve with him on his committee.
ARTICLE 8 Complaints 8.1 All complaints with the signatures of two (2) witnesses as to the conduct of a TDGA member, must be filed with a written report to the Director of the association. The Director shall immediately notify the members of the TDGA Executive Committee who are nearest to the trouble, to proceed with an investigation during or after the tournament as applicable.
ARTICLE 9 Selection of Officers 9.1. Candidates for any office must be present to be nominated. 9.2. Any member who has played five (5) or more tournaments during the year shall be eligible to run for office.
ARTICLE X Golf Treasury 10.1 The Executive Committee must approve the withdrawal of any funds for any purpose. No officer of this association shall have the authority to draw more than $100.00 in advance to defray expenses without approval of the membership. ARTICLE XI Tournament 11.1 Any member, who has played in five (5) tournaments from the approved TDGA tournament list during the year and before the final tournament, shall be eligible to participate in the final tournament. The TDGA approved tournaments include: TDGA monthly tournaments, the TDGA-KCD annual tournament, and the SEDGA annual tournament.
TDGA/USGA Rules June 9, 2006 All USGA winter rules are in effect, except as modified by the following local rules: 1. You may improve your lie only 6 inches, not nearer the hole or the green. This applies only on fairways, not roughs. You may use your club or hand to improve your lie. If you improve your lie in the rough, a penalty of one stroke applies. 2. All hazards are lateral. If you hit your ball in the wooded areas or water hazards, drop your ball laterally within two (2) clubs length from where your ball entered the hazard. One stroke penalty. 3. If you lost your ball, drop your ball in that area under a penalty of one stroke. 4. Ground under repair is defined by white circled lines. Take a free drop behind the repair area. 5. If your ball is on the cart path or dirt road, you may take a free drop at least two (2) club lengths from the cart path or dirt road not closer to the hole, without penalty. If the cart path or dirt road is on the fairway, drop your ball on the fairway. 6. If your ball is under a tree making it difficult to swing, you may elect to move one club length behind the spot under a penalty of one stroke of play it as it lies. 7. If your ball is in a watered sand trap, you may take a free drop without penalty to the right, left or behind the water in the trap. 8. If you hit a wrong ball, you must take a two stroke penalty. Be careful to identify our ball before hitting it. 9. If you hit your tee shot into water inside the 50-yard marker, you may try a second tee shot. If your tee shot goes into the water outside the 50-yard marker, mark your ball laterally where it entered the water and play it from there. 10. Officers’ decisions on all disputes are final. 11. Threesomes or foursomes are determined by drawings. 12. Golfers must wear soft spike shoes or spineless shoes and wear collared shirts at all times. 13. Officers will be assigned to foursomes to discourage slow play and to make rulings. 14. If your ball is in the rough or fairway and cannot be readily found, you have two minutes to locate your ball. Failure to do so leads to the playing of a penalty ball. 15. You may play a provisional ball by declaring to at least one of your fellow golfers that you are playing a provisional ball (PB). 16. The overall TDGA tournament rules must conform to SEDGA tournament guidelines. 17 Any new rule adopted during a golf season does not go into effect until approved for implantationat the annual meeting for the following golf season.
Doug Woods, President July 10, 2006
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