Revised: May 2005  

ARTICLES OF

THE INTERNATIONAL GOLF FEDERATION

ARTICLE I

The name of this federation is the INTERNATIONAL GOLF FEDERATION.

ARTICLE II

Object

Section 1. Friendship and Sportsmanship through Golf

To encourage the international development of golf and to foster friendship and sportsmanship among the peoples of the world through the conduct biennially of Amateur Team Championships for the Eisenhower Trophy and the Espirito Santo Trophy.

Section 2. Olympic Games

To promote golf as an Olympic sport and to act as the Federation for golf in the Olympic Games.

ARTICLE III

Membership

Section 1. Eligibility

Membership in the Federation is open to:

1. The R&A and the United States Golf Association, as the governing bodies of the Rules of Golf and the Rules of Amateur Status; and
2. Any organization which is the National Federation, Association or Union responsible for amateur golf activities in its country; and observes the Rules of Golf and the Rules of Amateur Status of either The R&A or the United States Golf Association.

Section 2. Election

An application for membership shall be supported by copies of the applicant's constitution and by-laws or similar documents and such other data as the Administrative Committee determines. An applicant may be elected to Membership by the Federation after determination by the Administrative Committee that the requirements for membership have been met.

Section 3. Finances

1. Member Organizations shall pay annual dues, as shall be determined by the Federation, payable in January of each year in the currency of the country in which the Federation’s Administrative Office is located - see Article XI - unless prohibited by law or government regulation.
2. Income from dues shall be used to defray all Federation expenses. If expenses in a given year result in a deficit in the Federation’s account, which shall be maintained in the Administrative Office, the deficit shall be shared by those Member Organizations in the same proportion as their annual dues.

   Expenses of the Federation shall be limited to the following:

1. Cost of Administration including staff, office rent, stationery, postage, printing
and other communications incurred by the Administrative Office.
2. Expenses including travel and hotel accommodation authorized by the
Administrative Committee.
3. Insurance and maintenance of the Championship trophies; and
4. Provision of prizes

No Member Organization may incur any expense for the Federation, and no representative of the Federation shall have authority to incur any expense except as expressly stated herein. (c)Any other expense incident to the affairs of the Federation shall be borne by the Member Organization whose representative incurs such expense.

4. The expense of conducting the Championships shall be borne by the Member Organization entertaining it.

Section 4. Obligations and Discipline

The acceptance of membership in the Federation shall bind each Member Organization to uphold all the provisions of these Articles and any rules or actions of the Federation or the Administrative Committee. Any Member Organization failing in these obligations or ceasing to meet the eligibility requirements may be suspended or expelled by the Federation.

Section 5. Correspondence with Member Organizations

A Member Organization shall not circulate a memorandum to all other Member Organizations without approval of the Administrative Committee.

Section 6. Withdrawal

Any Member Organization may withdraw from membership by notifying the Administrative Office to that effect. Any Member Organization so withdrawing shall remain obligated for its annual dues for the year in which withdrawal occurred.  

ARTICLE IV

Championships

Section 1. Time

The Championships shall be held biennially, on such dates as the Federation shall determine. Normally, the Championships shall be held in consecutive weeks in the time period starting with the second half of September through the first half of November, with the two competitions being staged in the same geographical location.

Section 2. Place

(a) The Championships shall be rotated among the three following Zones in the order stated:

1. Asia-Pacific Zone - Countries of Asia, Oceania, and some countries of the Middle East.
2. American Zone - Countries of North America, the Caribbean, Central America, and South America.
3. European-African Zone - Countries of Europe, Africa, and some countries of the Middle East.

All questions as to a country’s zone shall be settled by the International Olympic

Committee’s Continental Divisions.

(b) Invitations to entertain the Championships shall be submitted by Member Organizations to the Administrative Office five years in advance. The Administrative Office shall inform all Member Organizations of such invitations.

(Note: Invitations may be submitted by any Member Organization in any Zone. Although invitations from the appropriate Zone will, of course, be given first consideration, it is important that invitations from other Zones, particularly the Zone next in order, should be available in case no invitation acceptable to the Federation has been received from the appropriate Zone.)

At the time of submitting its invitation the Member Organization shall represent that, subject to any restrictions imposed upon it by the Government of its country, it will allow all other Member Organizations to compete if its invitation is accepted. It shall also present with its invitation a statement from a properly authorized official of the Government of its country that all Member Organizations, other than those (if any) named in the statement, will be allowed to visit the country and to compete in the Championship without any restriction whatsoever.

At a time not more than eight months and not less than seven months from the first of the month in which the Championships are to take place, both the Member Organization and a properly authorized official of the Government of its country shall reiterate the statement made in the paragraph above.

(c) The location of each Championship shall normally be determined by the Federation at its Biennial Meeting four years in advance. In reaching its decision the Federation shall have regard to:

1. The importance of locating the Championships in the appropriate Zone in accordance with Section 2(a) of this Article; and
2. The degree (if any) to which an invitation to entertain the Championships has been restricted by the Government of the country concerned.

If no invitation acceptable to the Federation has been received from within the appropriate Zone, the Federation may consider and accept any invitation which may have been received from within the Zone next in order of rotation.

However, if the Federation at its Biennial Meeting is unable, due to a lack of acceptable invitations or for any other reason, finally to decide the location of the next Championships, the Administrative Committee shall take such steps as are necessary to ensure the continuance of the Championships.

(d) The Federation shall have the power to waive the annual dues of any Member Organization which, owing to a restriction imposed by the Government of the country in which a particular Championship is being held, has not been invited to participate in that Championship.

ARTICLE V

Amateur Team Championships

Section 1. Entry Dates

Each Member Organization shall inform the Administrative Office biennially as to whether or not it will enter the Championships; such notification shall reach the Administrative Office not later than three months before the first Championship.

Each Member Organization which enters the Championships shall inform the Administrative Office of the personnel of its Team not later than one month before the Championships. Substitutions may be made at any subsequent time at the pleasure of the Member Organization, until the time that the Team has registered on-site at the Championships.

The R&A shall not be entitled to enter a team from Great Britain & Ireland in any year in which teams are entered by the Golf Unions of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales.

Section 2. Qualification of Players; Amateur Status

The players comprising each Team shall be:

1. Amateur golfers under the Rules of Amateur Status of either The R&A or the United States Golf Association; and
2. Citizens of the country of the Member Organization represented, except that in cases where a Team of citizens would be impracticable, players normally resident in the country may be included.

A player with dual nationality who has played for one country in a Championship may, in the immediately following Championship, play for the other country of which he or she is a citizen, provided he or she has been a citizen of the other country for at least one year.

Each Team shall have a Captain, who may be either a player or a non-player.

Section 3. Form of Play

1. Prior to the date for closing of entries, the Joint Secretaries shall determine the maximum number of Teams, using two courses, which can be accepted at the selected venue. At the date of closing of entries, if the number of Teams entered does not exceed the maximum acceptable number, the Teams will consist of two or three players. If the number of Teams entered exceeds the maximum acceptable, then the
Administrative Committee shall determine a revised format for the Championships or a method of eliminating entries, as it considers appropriate.
2. The Championships shall be conducted in accordance with the Rules of Golf as approved by The R&A and the United States Golf Association.
3. The Championships shall consist of 72 holes stroke play; l8 holes each on four consecutive days of the Championship period. All the players of each Team shall be eligible for all four rounds; disqualification of a player under the Rules of Golf in any round shall not be effective for any subsequent round unless the Championship Committee determines otherwise.
The Secretariat shall determine the starting times for each country and the course on which each country plays. They shall also determine the method by which the countries are divided between the two courses for the third and fourth rounds. In each l8-hole round, the total of the two lowest scores by players of each Team shall constitute the Team score for that round. The total of the two-player Team scores for the four rounds shall be the Team's score for the Championship. The Champion shall be the Team with the lowest such total score for 72 holes.
4. Prior to the start of every Championship, the Administrative Committee shall decide the procedure to be adopted in the event of a tie.

Section 4. Prizes

1. The Eisenhower Trophy, presented to the Federation by friends of golf in the United States through The R&A and the United States Golf Association, shall be held for the ensuing biennium by the Member Organization whose Team is the winner of the World Amateur Team Championship.
2. The Espirito Santo Trophy, presented to the Federation by the family of Ricardo Espirito Santo through the Portuguese Golf Federation, shall be held for the ensuing biennium by the Member Organization whose Team is the winner of the Women’s World Amateur Team Championship.
3. A uniform type of prize for individuals shall be awarded to the players and the Captains of the winning Teams, the second-place Teams, and the third-place Teams.
4. No other prizes may be accepted from any source, except symbolic gifts by a Member Organization to its Teams.

Section 5. Championship Committee; Course Unplayable

1. The Administrative Committee shall appoint a Championship Committee to conduct the event. The host Member Organization shall be represented on the Championship Committee.
2. The Championship Committee shall be authorized to decide when a Championship course is unplayable.
3. If a Championship course is declared unplayable and as a result it is not possible to complete 72 holes of play in the period in which the Championship is scheduled, the Championship shall not be extended beyond the last scheduled day and the winner shall be the Team which returns the lowest score for the number of stipulated rounds played, except that, if it is not possible to play at least 36 holes in the four scheduled days, the Championship shall be terminated without a Champion being determined.

ARTICLE VI

Arrangements for Championships

The Member Organization entertaining the Championships shall have the honor of and be responsible for planning and arranging for the Championships, subject to the applicable provisions of these Articles and approval by the Administrative Committee, and for all the expenses in connection therewith except the expenses of the Teams. Such Member Organization may charge admission to spectators and otherwise raise income as it may desire. No financial liability shall attach to either the Federation or to any Member Organization other than the Member Organization entertaining the Championships.

ARTICLE VII

Expenses of Teams

Each Member Organization shall be responsible for the expenses of its Teams’ players and Captains.

ARTICLE VIII

Federation Meetings

Section 1. Biennial Meeting

The Federation shall meet biennially before the start of the men’s Championship and at the place of the Championships.

At a Biennial Meeting of the Federation each Member Organization shall be entitled to be represented by two Delegates, who shall have one vote each, who shall be citizens of, or normally resident in, the country of the Member Organization, and who shall be present at the Meeting in person in order to vote. It is requested that one delegate be male and one be female. If only one Delegate is present, the Member Organization may only cast one vote.

If a Member Organization represents only men’s or only women’s golf in their country, such member will be entitled to one Delegate and one vote at a Biennial Meeting.

Appointment of Delegates shall be certified to the Administrative Office in advance.

Section 2. Quorum

Fifty Member Organizations represented by Delegates present in person shall constitute a quorum at a Biennial Meeting of the Federation.

Section 3. Action Without Meeting

Between Biennial Meetings, the Federation may take action by mail vote on resolutions submitted to the Member Organizations by the Administrative Office pursuant to direction of the Administrative Committee.

Section 4. Majority Decision A majority vote of the Delegates at a Biennial Meeting of the Federation at which a quorum is present, or a majority vote of the Member Organizations in cases of action by mail, shall determine any question before the Federation, subject to any additional requirements of other provisions of these Articles.    

ARTICLE IX

Administrative Committee

Section 1. Composition

There shall be an Administrative Committee of eighteen persons, composed of the Joint Chairmen, the Women’s Chairman and fifteen other persons representing thirteen different Member organizations, which may not duplicate the country of the Women’s Chairman; five Member Organizations in each of the three respective Zones shall be represented, with at least one country in each Zone having a female representative, and with exactly one of the Member Organizations in the European-African Zone being from the Continent of Africa.

Each such person shall be a citizen or normally a resident of the country of the Member Organization he/she represents. Any country entertaining a future Championship that is not represented in the Administrative Committee shall be entitled to one representative to serve on the Committee in a non-voting capacity.

Section 2. Nomination; Election

1. The Administrative Committee shall serve as a Nominating Committee and shall propose to the Biennial Meeting thirteen Member Organizations to receive the right to appoint one representative each to the next Administrative Committee.
   
   Member countries from each of the three Zones should determine in advance of the Administrative Committee Meeting how they would nominate the countries to be represented on the next Administrative Committee. However, if for any reason they cannot come to an agreement on the countries, or which countries will provide male or female representatives, the Joint Chairmen and the Women’s Chairman will assume responsibility for nominating the countries/representatives.
   
   Additional nominations may be made by Delegates to the Biennial Meeting.
2. At each Biennial Meeting thirteen Member Organizations shall be chosen, by ballot, to receive the right to appoint one representative (or substitute) each to the Administrative Committee, to serve for the ensuing two years. The R&A and the United States Golf Association shall be permanently entitled to appoint two representatives.
3. Each Member Organization so chosen shall promptly appoint its representative to the Administrative Committee and give the Administrative Office notification of the appointment.
4. A Member Organization shall have the right to change its appointee to the Administrative Committee; any such change shall become effective when the Administrative Office receives notification thereof.

Section 3. Duties

The Administrative Committee shall conduct the affairs of the Federation, subject to the provisions of these Articles and to directions of the Federation.

Section 4. Meetings

The retiring Administrative Committee shall meet immediately prior to the Biennial Meeting of the Federation.

In addition, the Administrative Committee shall meet annually, normally in April at a location to be determined.    

Section 5. Quorum

Ten voting members present in person shall constitute a quorum of the Administrative Committee.

Section 6. Action Between Meetings

Between meetings, the Administrative Committee may take action by mail vote on resolutions submitted to the representatives to the Administrative Committee by the Administrative Office.

Section 7. Majority Decision A majority vote at a meeting at which a quorum is present, or a majority vote of the entire Administrative Committee in case of action by mail, shall determine any question before the Administrative Committee.  

ARTICLE X

Officers

Section 1. Titles; Election

The officers of the Federation shall be two Joint Chairmen, a Women’s Chairman, and two Joint Secretaries.

The Joint Chairmen shall be representatives of and appointed by The R&A and the United States Golf Association.

The Women’s Chairman serves a term of six years, on a rotating basis among the three Zones. A female candidate for this office is nominated by the Administrative Committee and ratified at the Biennial Meeting.

The Joint Secretaries shall be appointed by the Administrative Committee.

Section 2. Chairman

One of the Joint Chairmen shall preside at meetings of the Federation and of the Administrative Committee, and in general shall perform the customary duties of office.  

ARTICLE XI

Administrative Office

The Federation’s Administrative Office is located at Golf House, Far Hills, NJ, USA. The Administrative Office shall keep the records of the Federation and of the Administrative Committee, give notices of all meetings and conduct all votes by mail, carry on the correspondence of the Federation, and perform all other customary duties.  

ARTICLE XII

Language

The official language of the Federation is English.  

ARTICLE XIII

Care of Trophies

Section 1. Protection

The United States Golf Association shall retain title to the Championship Trophies, and shall make arrangements for their insurance and for their safekeeping during any suspension of the Championships.

Section 2. Dissolution of Federation

In the event of dissolution of the Federation, such use or other disposition of the Eisenhower Trophy shall be made as the United States Golf Association may in its discretion determine; such use or other disposition of the Espirito Santo Trophy shall be made as the Portuguese Golf Federation may in its discretion determine.  

ARTICLE XIV

Amendments

These Articles may be amended by action of the Federation, provided, however, that the provisions of these Articles with respect to the Rules of Golf and the Rules of Amateur Status shall not be amended without the unanimous affirmative vote of the Member Organizations; that the provisions of these Articles with respect to permanent representation to the Administrative Committee shall not be amended without the affirmative votes of the respective Member Organizations concerned; and that the provisions of these Articles with respect to the ownership and custody of the Championship Trophies shall not be amended without the affirmative vote of the United States Golf Association for the Eisenhower Trophy and the Portuguese Golf Federation for the Espirito Santo Trophy.