What Is The Ping Welsh Junior Tour?
The Ping Welsh Junior Tour is intended to give young golfers an opportunity to play in some national events, giving them their first taste of a competitive environment whilst having fun at an early stage in their golfing development. In 2024 there will be six regional events in Wales from which players can qualify for the Ping Welsh Junior Tour Final in the autumn.
There will be four separate mixed gender age categories; Under 8, Under 10, Under 12 and Under 14.
Under 8, 10 and 12 will compete on a shortened course suitable for each age group playing between 9 and 12 holes (dependent on the course set-up of the host venue). These players will compete using modified stableford which means that the fewer shots the players take to complete a hole the more points they earn. A hole in one will earn the player 10 points, holing out in two shots will score 9 points and so on until a score of 10 or more on a hole will get the player 1 point. Everyone scores at least 1 point on every hole. The winner will be the player who gets the most points over the allotted number of holes for each event.
The under 14 age group will be played over 18 holes with a playing handicap of 95% of the course handicap under WHS in a normal stableford format. The winner will be the player who scores the most points over the 18 holes.
The top three players in each category will receive a prize at each event. There will also be a prize for the highest placed girl & boy player in each of the categories.
Who Can Play?
The Junior Tour is open to any junior player within the age categories who was either:
- Born in Wales
- Has a parent or grandparent that was born in Wales
- Resides in Wales
- Is a member of a golf club affiliated to Wales Golf.
The U8, U10 and U12 categories are open to players with or without a Handicap Index as defined by WHS
Players in the U14 category must have a World Handicap System Handicap Index of 36.0 or less upon the date of entries closing.
Any player in any age category with a WHS Handicap Index of 9.0 or less on 1st January 2024 are not eligible to compete.
Those playing in the Under 14 Category must be born in or after 2010
Those playing in the Under 12 Category must be born in or after 2012
Those playing in the Under 10 Category must be born in or after 2014
Those playing in the Under 8 Category must be born in or after 2016
What Are The Rules?
The U14 category will be played according to the Rules of Golf as usual. These competitions will count for handicap purposes.
The U8, U10 and U12 categories will also be played according to the Rules of Golf but with a few additional rules to help the players;
- If a player has taken ten shots on a hole they must pick their ball up and move to the next hole (they will still score a point in the scoring system).
- The adult accompanying the player (see the next section) will be responsible for the player’s score card.
- It is also worth noting that ‘air shots’ will as usual count to the player’s score.
Under the 2023 R&A Rules of Golf update, golfers with disabilities are now fully included within the Rules of Golf under Rule 25 and will be used as such during events.
Parents And Guardians
As there will be a lot of very young players at these events it is a condition of entry that each player must be accompanied by a parent/carer whilst they are at a Ping Welsh Junior Tour event to be responsible for their well-being.
The role of the parent/carer at the event will vary depending upon the category their player is playing in;
- In the U14 categories parents/carers are welcome to watch but must keep a reasonable distance away from play. They may ball spot or help in searching for a ball but must not caddy for their player
- In the U8, U10 & U12 categories as well as keeping score the parent/carer may assist their player by pulling a trolley or carrying a bag.
Parents/Carers must not give golf specific advice or coaching regardless of age category, such as telling their child what club to hit
For more information about how you can help your children in their chosen sport please follow this link ‘supporting children in sport’.
