Minutes of the MSIS Team Reps Meeting January 2007

 

Minutes of the 2007
Annual Meeting of Team Representatives
Deercreek Country Club
January 15, 2007

The Annual Meeting of Team Representatives began promptly at 10 a.m. Roy Gulick welcomed everyone, thanked Judd Schwartz for arranging the meeting at Deercreek, and gave the ground rules for the meeting. He asked that the participants give a round of applause for the Osprey Cove team for winning the John Brady Cup. He then introduced the meeting attendees:

Attendees

• Chairmen

1. Tournament and Handicap Chairman - Barney Poston
2. Scheduling Chairman - Roy Gulick

• Team Representatives

1. Deercreek - Judd Schwartz
2. Eagle Harbor - Gary Owensby
3. Hidden Hills - Ed Welsh
4. Jacksonville G&CC - Ray Fox
5. Magnolia Point - John Harmeling, proxy for Roy Gulick (meeting facilitator)
6. Marsh Creek - Sonny Hubbs, proxy for Dave Spring
7. Marsh Landing - John Arnold
8. Ponte Vedra - Jim Bryce
9. Orange Park - Gary Hill
10. Osprey Cove - Tony De Marco
11. Palencia - John Lopiano
12. Queen's Harbour - Jim Brady
13. St. Johns - Jack Parrish
14. Sawgrass - Glenn Dobrick
15. World Golf Village - Don Poppleton, proxy for Jock Ochiltree

• Absent Team Rep

1. San Jose - Larry Von Dolteren, proxy for Evans Sumner

• Observers

1. Orange Park - Earl Strickland
2. Queen's Harbour - Jerry Domask
3. St. Johns - Bob White

Proceedings

Report from the Tournament and Handicap Chairman.
Barney Poston presented a brief history of the formation of the Men's Senior Interclub and John Brady's role in its creation. Barney then recapped the 2006 season and some of its highlights and problems.

The highlights of the season included:

• 12 successful matches and 1,435 rounds of golf.
• The introduction of our new computer-based scoring program,
• The fact that there were no disqualifications in 2006 (17 were disqualified in 2005), and
• The donation of $1,555 to Arnie's Army and the fight to cure prostate cancer.

The 2006 problem areas were minor and included:

• Slow play (a perennial problem, but one that's hard to correct),
• Requests for no-show fees for the first time, and the
• Decreased number of door prize donations for the John Brady Cup match.

Barney then discussed the Web Site. He requested and was granted permission to include Google Ads on our web site to add revenue. He also asked for and was granted that the fee for the first 2007 match be increased one dollar to pay for the web site. The per player fee for the February match will be $46.

Report from the Scheduling Chairman.

Roy Gulick presented and discussed the:

• 2007 Schedule, which is now fixed, and the
• 2008/2009 Advance Planning Schedule.

He expressed appreciation to the Team Representatives for their help in making the scheduling go smoothly. When asked if we would add any new teams to the Interclub, Roy said, "No, there are no plans to do so, but there are numerous teams who have asked to be on our waiting list for membership."

Discussion Topics.
Roy Gulick led the participants in a discussion and resolution of the following issues.

1. Should We Change To A Calendar Year Season?
Barney Poston explained that the matches in December and January followed by a meeting in January made for very hectic times. He proposed that, beginning with the 2008 Season, the season run from February through December, with January reserved for the Annual Team Representatives meeting

• Following a lengthy discussion, the participants agreed that we should change to a calendar year season in 2008, but that January would continue to feature both the Annual Team Representatives Meeting and a match. The season would end in December with the John Brady Cup Match.

2. Format For Next Team Representatives Meeting.
Roy Gulick suggested that the next Team Representatives Meeting increase the level of camaraderie among the team Representatives by including golf and lunch.

• The participants agreed.

3. Should We Reduce The Number Of Players For Each Event From 8 To 6 Or 7. John Arnold explained the potential benefits of reducing the number of players, the principal one being a faster pace of play. Many others said they did not feel the urgency to play speedier matches, adding that their players dedicate the day to the MSIS match.

• Despite Marsh Landing's strong objections, this motion failed to pass. Teams will continue to field 8 players.

4. What Should We Do About No-Show Fees?
Barney Poston stated his concern that some clubs are charging no-show fees. There was much discussion about this item but in the end the participants agreed that it was not a major problem. During the discussion, all of the Team Representatives indicated that they are aware of the problems caused by no-shows, and said that they will stress to their players the importance of honoring commitments to play and the consequences of being a no-show.

• The issue was tabled.

5. Should We Start Some Matches After Lunch?
There was no support at all for starting matches after lunch.

• The issue was tabled.

6. Fees For The 2008 Season.
Our fees are unchanged for the 2007 Season, but the Scheduling Chairman said he is encountering requests from clubs for an increase in 2008. Barney Poston cited other local golf organizations who pay more right now than we do for our matches.

• The participants agreed that starting in February 2008 our players would pay $50 per match. That's a $5 increase. Of that increase, $4 will go to the host clubs, and $1 will go into a new general fund to pay for web site expenses and prizes for the John Brady Cup match. The net result is that the clubs will receive $48 per golfer, the Handicap Chairman will receive $1, and $1 will go to the general fund.

7. Should Our Handicap System Be Changed?
Ed Welsh proposed that (1) our handicaps be based on the best 5 of the last 10 rounds, that an MSIS handicap not be issued until a player has 6 MSIS matches played, and the we use the best 3 of those six scores at that point. Earl Strickland observed that 2) handicaps be limited to 32 max. The 32 was modified to 36 by Ed Welsh. After much discussion a third proposal was made to (3) leave our current handicap system in place. Proposal (1) received 2 votes. Proposal (2) received 5 votes. Proposal (3) received 8 votes, a bare majority of the 15 Team Representatives present.

• The result is that we will continue to use the current handicap system.

8. Roster Submittals.
Judd Schwartz explained that limiting roster submittals to a day and a half could be very inconvenient for him. Judd wanted the right to submit a roster early and the capability to change it later by putting in a second corrected roster. There was no discussion, and no vote was required.

• The request was granted.

9. Should We Change Our 'Tie Breaker Rule' To 'Best 8' Before Best 6?
John Lopiano made a motion to change the tie breaker rule so that the eighth player on a team would become more significant in breaking ties.

• After discussion, the participants agreed to keep the current tie-breaker rule.

10. Points For Partial Rounds.
Barney Poston withdrew this topic from discussion. He decided that existing Rule 6.2 covers the situation adequately.

11. Why Don't We Use Net Scores Instead Of Stableford Points?
There was no support at all for changing the scoring format.

• The issue was dropped.

12. Succession Planning For Chairmen.
Discussion only.

• The issue was tabled.

Adjournment

The meeting adjourned at noon sharp.

 

 

Respectfully submitted, Barney Poston, Acting Recording Secretary