WINCHBURGH NIDDRY CASTLE GOLF CLUB
MEMBERS GUIDE

Club Information

Clubhouse Opening Hours

The clubhouse is generally open during daylight hours. Please note that during inclement weather the clubhouse may be closed or close earlier than normal.

Wi-Fi

Free Wi-Fi is available in the clubhouse – please ask the steward for the password.

Club Council

Club Council
Captain	Mike McAnulty	Vice Captain
Secretary	Eugene Connolly	Treasurer	Alastair Hainey
Membership Secretary	Mike McAnulty	Ladies Captain
Match Secretary	John McCabe	Greens Convenor	Hugh Fraser
Club Convenor		Seniors	Malcolm Binnie
Junior Convenor	John Pritchard	General
General		General
General		Head Greenkeeper
Hon. President	John Wardrop

Enquiries, Complaints and Disputes

All complaints and disputes must be directed to the Club Council in writing or by email to:
enquiry@niddrycastlegolfclub.co.uk

General Information

What’s included in your membership.

Clubhouse Access	All Members.
Members Benefit Events	All Members.
Full Course Access	All Members, except Weekday Members (Mon-Fri only). No access for Introduction and Social Members.
Short Course Access	All Members except Social Members.
Reciprocal Golf Scheme	All Members, except Country, Winter, Introduction and Social Members.
Linlithgowshire Golf	All Members, except Junior, Winter, Introduction and Social Members.
Guest Signing On Rate/Fee	All Members, except Junior, Winter, Introduction and Social Members.
Voting Rights	Full, Life, Senior, Weekday and Intermediate.
Handicap Management	All Members, except Winter, Introduction and Social Members.
Weekday Competition1	All Members, except Juniors (5-13 years), Introduction and Social Members.
Weekend Competition1	All Members, except Weekday, Juniors (5-13 years), Introduction and Social Members.
Notes	1 Juniors (14+ years) must have a handicap of 28 or below.

Handicaps

Handicaps are divided into the following categories

Your handicap will be maintained using the Handicap Master software. You can view your current handicap at http://www.masterscoreboard.co.uk and on the notice board in the appropriate changing room.

All handicap related queries, including requests for a handicap certificate should be submitted to the appropriate Match Committee in writing or by email.

Category	Handicap
Category 1	5.4 or less
Category 2	5.5 – 12.4
Category 3	12.5 – 20.4
Category 4	20.5 – 28.4
Category 5	28.5 – 36.4
Category 6	36.5 – 54.0

Obtaining a handicap

• You are required to be a member of a golf club affiliated to Scottish Golf (or other Home Union/Association).
• You are required to submit scorecards for 54 holes. This can be any permutation of 9 and 18-hole cards which must total a minimum of 54 holes. 9 hole scores must be played over the designated 9 hole course (holes 1 – 7, 17 and 18 or holes 1-9).
• Each card must be marked and signed by a responsible person acceptable to the Handicap Committee.

You will then be awarded an initial Handicap Index and you will use this to work out your Course Handicap wherever you play. Before you play any course you will need to check the Course Handicap Lookup Chart to see what your handicap will be for that particular course. When you play in Competitions or enter General Play Scores, these will be added to your Handicap record, and you may notice your Handicap Index moving up and down depending on how you play. As you build up more scores your Handicap Index will then always be worked out on the best 8 out of 20 scores in your record.

Remember

• You are responsible AT ALL TIMES for playing off your correct Handicap and you should be able to produce an up to date Handicap Certificate when required.
• You must register your intention to play either in the Competition Book or the General Play Book, both of which are available in the Ladies Changing room. Failure to do so may result in disqualification. You also need to alert the Handicap Committee if entering a General Play score.
• You must return all cards including “No Returns” from Qualifying Competitions and General Play Scores.
• New Handicap Certificates will be issued at the start of January each year and up-to-date ones are available from the Handicap Secretary if required. If you have access to the SG App you can print this yourself.
• If you have the Scottish Golf App on your phone you can register your intent to play a General Play score through the App, but you still require to alert the Handicap Committee that you have done this.

Booking the tee

Online booking is in operation and members who have registered for this service can reserve tee times by accessing the system via the website by clicking on the link below:

https://members.brsgolf.com/winchburghniddrycastle/login

If you have not yet registered please email the Club (membership@winchburghniddrycastlegolfclub.co.uk) to confirm that you give permission to use your email address and to receive your 4 digit PIN. You can still call the Club or book the tee in person by speaking with the Starter.

Report to Reception on Arrival

All members and their guests must report to reception before commencing their round of golf and sign the guest book. This is for safety and data reasons and must be adhered to.

Format of Competitions

The format for all medal/club competitions is either stroke play or Stableford played over 9 or 18 holes.

Suspension of Play, Cancellation or Postponement of a competition

• If the course becomes unplayable or circumstances arise that make the proper playing of the game impossible and the competition is declared null and void, where possible the competition will be replayed on another day.
• If this is not possible the competition will be abandoned.
• If any player has completed at least 10 holes her card will still count for Handicap purposes.
• Players may discontinue play if they believe that they are in danger from lightning.
  

Members Guest Rate and Conditions

Members may invite guests to play the course at a reduced round rate of £12.00 per person.

Guest sign-ons are limited to a maximum of 12 times throughout the calendar year.

Teeing Ground

We operate an open tee policy where members can play from any colour of teeing area they may wish to do so. Consideration must be given to competition play and club competitions take priority over normal play.

Practicing on the Course

Members or their guests must not in any circumstances use the course to practice any aspect of their game, and a maximum of 2 balls (single golfers only) should be in play during a round.

Reciprocal Golf Scheme

Members (but not Country Members) can play for free at the course listed. You must book a tee time in advance by calling the club and you can find the contact details below:

Duns Golf Club: Tel: 01361 882194 or www.dunsgolfclub.com

Linlithgowshire Green Fee Scheme (“County Card”)

Member guest rates are available for members of Clubs affiliated to the Linlithgowshire Golf Association to play other courses in the Association. Generally, members can make a booking at another club by phoning the pro-shop or starter and stating they wish to book under the “County Card” scheme. The cost and any restrictions on playing times will be advised by the host club.

Please note that Kingsfield are a non-course-owning Golf Society and do not participate in the Reciprocal green fee scheme.

Gents Section

Match Committee

The Match Committee’s remit and responsibilities include:

• Running all aspects of Club competition play, selection of Summer League and Courier teams.
• Review of handicaps, issuing certificates, distribution of prizes & vouchers, organising trophy engraving and the presentation evening.
  

Club Competitions

All competitions and their dates are detailed in the fixture list on the Club’s website. Competition dates can be subject to change and members will be notified when this happens.

Competitions are entered using the online booking system. No entry sheets will be posted on the noticeboard in the gents changing room but information about the competition will be available on the Timesheet online.

A ballot will be held for all weekend competitions and this will normally be on the Thursday or Friday before the competition date. Draws will be published online at http://www.masterscoreboard.co.uk.

Please note that you must not tee-off outside the allotted times without prior permission from the Match Committee. Additionally, you should not ‘turn up’ on the day and enter a competition without first notifying the Match Committee. Any player not adhering to these rules will be disqualified from that competition.
N.B. This will not have any bearing on handicaps.

When a competition falls during the week or over the winter season there will be no ballot and members should book their own tee-time online, by phone or at the Club.

9 Hole Qualifying Competitions

9-hole competitions for handicap purposes take place on occasional Wednesday’s during the season. These are in addition to midweek medals and the dates can be found in the fixture list. The course is holes 1 to 9.

Ready Golf

Club competitions will run as Ready Golf rules which is an R&A initiative to help speed up competition rounds and make the game more appealing. If you would like to read up a little more on this we suggest you read our Ready Golf document here.

Please note this is only for Strokeplay and Stableford competitions.

Club Championships

As in previous years, the following will apply

• 1st, 2nd & 3rd Class will be scratch Championships
• There will be 3 qualifying rounds with the best two scratch scores counting.
  

Club Championship Key Information & Dates

Class	Course Handicap	Qualifying Rounds (Strokeplay)	Quarter-finals (Matchplay)	Semi-finals (Matchplay)	Final (Matchplay)	No. of Holes	Tee Times
1st	0 – 8.4	Sat June 1st	Mon June 17th	Wed June 19th	Sun June 23rd	36	08.30 & 13.00
2nd	8.5 – 15.5	Sun June 9th	Mon June 17th	Wed June 19th	Sun June 23rd	18	13.10
3rd	15.6 – 28.4	Sat June 15th	Mon June 17th	Wed June 19th	Sun June 23rd	18	13.20

Members are invited to attend and support the finalists.

Scott Trophy

This is the premier singles Matchplay competition with Course handicap allowance.

Cannon Cup

This is the premier doubles Matchplay competition with 90% Course handicap allowance.

The closing date for both competitions is Tuesday, 30th April and the entry sheets will be posted on the Matchplay noticeboard located in the gents changing room in March along with the competition rules. The fees will be shown on the entry sheets and they should be placed in an envelope and clearly marked with your name along with which competition it relates to before depositing in the scorecard box in the gents changing room.

Please note that unless the entry fee is paid by the closing date, members will not be entered into the draw.

Competition Entry Fees

The fee for most club competitions will be £3.00 unless stated otherwise. The fee should be paid online or by Card prior to the commencement of play. The Club will receive £1.00 which covers Match Committee running costs (i.e. vouchers, trophy engraving, handicap software, printing etc.) with £1.00 going towards the sweep and £1.00 going towards to 2’s sweep.

There will normally be sweep money for the first three competitors unless there is more than one division/class in the competition or the turnout is low. The Match Committee reserve the right to alter as required.

Sweep money will ordinarily be divided as follows:
1^st – 50% of the total sweep pot
2^nd – 67% of the balance
3^rd – the remainder of the pot

The 2’s sweep will be divided equally by the number players who score a 2 during the competition. If no-one scores a 2, the sweep money will carry forward to the next competition. Where a competition is over 36 holes, the 2’s sweep will apply to the competition and not each round.

Please note that the sweeps are optional.

Results

All competition results will be published online at www.masterscoreboard.co.uk, on the Club’s Facebook page and posted in the clubhouse. Results will be published as soon as practically possible after each competition and this is typically on the day following the closure of the competition. There will be times when this will not be possible but results will always be published prior to the next competition.

National Handicap – Allocation

If you do not have a handicap you will need to submit three scorecards which must be marked and signed by a current Club member as well as yourself. At least one of the rounds must be played from the competition’s white tees. Please post all three cards at the same time in the scorecard box in the gents changing room and
write “PFH” (Playing for Handicap) across the top of the cards. A handicap will be allocated and issued as soon as possible thereafter.

Linlithgowshire Golf Association (LGA) 2024 Fixtures

Competition	Venue	Date
Spring Handicap: 1st (limit 9.4)	West Lothian GC	Sat 11th May
Spring Handicap: 2nd (9.5-15.4)	Uphall GC	Sat 11th May
Spring Handicap: 3rd (15.5-24.4)	Harburn GC	Sat 11th May
County Championship (limit 6.4)	Greenburn GC	Sat 24th August
County Championship (6.5-12.4)	Bathgate GC	Sat 24th August
County Championship (12.5-24.4)	Shotts GC	Sat 24th August
Autumn Handicap: 1st (limit 12.4)	Pumpherston GC	Sat 14th September
Autumn Handicap: 1st (12.5-24.4)	Deer Park GC	Sat 14th September

Ladies Section

Ladies Committee

Captain:	Vacant	Vice Captain:	Vacant
Secretary:	Mhairi Chambers	Treasurer:	Irene Watson
Handicap Committee:	Pat Gentleman	Anne Leslie	Plus Volunteers
Committee:	Edith Butler	Angela Donnelly	June Duffy
	Janet McAnulty	Helen Robertson

Some of the duties carried out by the Ladies Committee include:

• Conducting the draws for competitions.
• Arranging and managing our Ladies open competitions (if we decide to run any).
• Booking competition tee times.
• Managing the handicaps for the lady members.
• Arranging outings.
• Attending the Ladies committee meetings – usually once a month.
• Attending the Club Council meetings – usually once amonth
  

Contact information for all our lady members is available on the notice board as well as from the Secretary. Please ensure that you notify the Ladies Secretary or committee if your phone number or email address changes so that we have the most up to date contact data.

Competitions

Qualifications

• Medal/Shield Competitions are played mainly at weekends. All Handicap Categories can play in these, but only one prize will be awarded to the person with the lowest net score.
• Depending on the entry rules in operation by Scottish Golf there is usually an opportunity for the best players over the course of a whole year to be entered into the Regional Finals.

Method of Entry

To enter a competition you must book in on-line on the booking sheet by the time stated on the web-site (usually Thursday evening before Saturday competition and Friday evening for Sunday competition.) If you have a problem with the system contact Pat or Diana directly. You must also sign the register before you play which is the folder on the desk in the ladies locker room.

• The entry fee for these competitions is £3 – £2.50 going towards vouchers and engraving and 50p for 2’s.
• For all other competitions run by the Club in conjunction with the Men’s section you must indicate your intention to play by booking in on-line (or possibly by placing your name on the noticeboard in the main foyer). Entry fees for these will vary.

Unable to play

If you have entered your name for a Competition and are unable to play you must remove your name from the on-line booking or – if it is a late decision – also notify the Clubhouse as soon as possible. If you fail to do this a committee member will contact you. Please remember that another member may be relying on your presence in a small field of players.

No Return (NR)

Once you have commenced your round, don’t worry about having to pick up and entering a NR. Sometimes, if you are having a bad hole, it is better to pick up and move on. The computer will award you a net double bogey, eg, if you get 2 strokes at the par 5 6th hole, the computer will award you with a 9. You can do this as many times as you need to. Remember, it is still possible to post a good score for handicap even with a few bad holes on your card. The mantra is “Never Give Up”.

Teeing Grounds

For all club/medal competitions LGU Tees must be used. For ladies, these are shown by the red markers and you must be behind the markers up to a maximum of 2 club lengths to tee off.

Time of Starting

• Tee-off times are blocked off for all Competitions. After entry closes, a draw will be done and an email sent with your tee off time.
• For Medals/Shields there are generally two options for tee off times – either morning or mid-day for weekend Competitions, and morning or evening for the mid-week ones.
• All other Competitions will only have one set of tee off times in the morning.

Unable to play

If you have entered your name for a Competition and are unable to play you must remove your name from the on-line booking or – if it is a late decision – also notify the Clubhouse as soon as possible. If you fail to do this a committee member will contact you. Please remember that another member may be relying on your presence in a small field of players.

No Return (NR)

Once you have commenced your round, don’t worry about having to pick up and entering a NR. Sometimes, if you are having a bad hole, it is better to pick up and move on. The computer will award you a net double bogey, eg, if you get 2 strokes at the par 5 6th hole, the computer will award you with a 9. You can do this as many times as you need to. Remember, it is still possible to post a good score for handicap even with a few bad holes on your card. The mantra is “Never Give Up”.

Teeing Grounds

For all club/medal competitions LGU Tees must be used. For ladies, these are shown by the red markers and you must be behind the markers up to a maximum of 2 club lengths to tee off.

Trophies & Prizes

• Vouchers will be presented for all SG Medal and Shield competitions, the value of which will be determined each year.There will only be one voucher for each Competition.
• Anyone obtaining a 2 in any of the competitions will receive a share of the “2’s” budget at the end of the season. On completing your round please remember to write your name against the “2’s” entry in the registration folder.
• Where both a scratch and a handicap prize is being offered a single competitor will only be allowed to accept one. The scratch prize will take precedence over the handicap.

Ties & Halved Matches

• A tie in a matchplay competition will be decided by a sudden death play-off i.e. starting at where the match began and playing hole by hole until someone wins. Please note that these extra holes would be played under the same rules with strokes being allowed at the appropriate holes
• A tie in a strokeplay competition will be settled by a card countback.
• Over 18 holes this will be decided on the last 9 with handicaps deducted in proportion i.e. 1/2.
• If not settled then countbackwill be on the last 6, 3, then 1 hole(s) with handicaps deducted in proportion1/3, 1/6 or 1/18 respectively. If there is still a tie, trophies will be shared 6 months each and vouchers will be shared.

Championships

Scratch

To qualify for the Scratch Championship you must compete in the April, May, or June Medals (this gives you 3 opportunities to qualify). The best 4 gross scores overall from the three competitions will automatically qualify. All the Club Championships will be played towards the end of June with the Ladies playing semi-finals on Wednesday and the Final on Sunday. The dates are in the Fixture List. The Championship is seeded in order of scores and you must be available to compete in all rounds or forfeit your place to the next person.

Handicap

The Handicap Championship is run as a separate competition from the Scratch Championship with two separate trophies to be played for. These are:

Category 1 Players with handicaps from 1 – 24.4
Category 2 Players with handicaps from 24.5 – 54

There is a small fee to enter. Anyone wishing to enter should complete an entry form available from the Clubhouse. You will then be entered in to the appropriate division according to your Handicap on the day of the draw. This is a knockout competition and once the draw is made, it is up to individuals to play their game within a certain timescale. Those that win go forward to the next round.

Handicap Championship & Championship Format of Play

The format for all Handicap Championship & Championship ties will be Match play. Match Play is played by holes as opposed to calculating the total number of shots taken for the round. For the Handicap Championship CONGU recommends that in Singles Match Play the full difference between handicaps is allowed. These shots are taken at holes indicated by the stroke index. There is a stroke allowance table on the notice board.

A hole is won (+) by the player who holes their ball in the least number of net shots. If both players complete the hole in the same score then the hole is halved (0). If the hole is lost the card is marked with a minus (-). The match is won by the player who is leading by a greater number of holes than the number left to play e.g. if A is winning by 3 holes with 3 holes to play, then goes on to win the next hole, A will have won 4 & 2 (i.e. 4 holes up with only 2 holes left to play B could not therefore win).

In a sudden death play-off when extra holes are played in handicap competitions, strokes should be taken in accordance with the Handicap Stroke Index.

Ladies Pre-Season Competition

Every year, prior to the season starting, the Ladies have a pre-season game. The 2 main functions of the event are to socialise together and to welcome any newcomers. The format is usually a shotgun start at 9.30am, over 9 holes. The competition is free but but is sometimes played as a nominated Charity event, for which donations are welcome. For those members who have hibernated over the winter it provides a great opportunity to get back into the swing of things and for newcomers it is one way to meet the other ladies in a relaxed environment.

Summer Pairs Competition

This is a pairs Greensomes competition which will take place on a specified date.Players should enter their names on BRS as normal,fuller details will follow before the event.

Ladies Open Competitions

If we choose to have Open competitions,this is likely to be decided by the Committee prior to the upcoming season. Check the fixture list for these,formats will be indicated in advance where possible.
You can enter on-line by going to “open competitions” on the club website or get in touch directly by email or phone with the organiser from the committee.

Winter Competitions

If you are keen enough you can continue to play during the winter.The competitions are listed on BRS system,every weekend on alternate Saturdays and Sundays.Currently there are three different formats,also rotating,played over 9 holes

Winter Sweep

This is for handicap players but those without a handicap can put their names in the later slots if they wish to play a few holes.No draw done,just arrive prior to first tee slot and balls will be drawn out of the hat.

Winter Stableford

This is for handicap players and anyone who wants to get a card marked for handicap purposes.A draw will be done,usually the day before.Anyone not wanting a card marked can book a later slot and go out behind the rest.

Texas Scramble

This is for everyone and we will give non handicappers a 9 hole handicap of 27.This format is very popular.If weather is bad on scheduled day/date,it may be moved to the following week.The draw will be sent out the day before.Please book before the deadline to make it easier for the person doing the draw.

Mid West Tournament

This is a club team competition played against other Clubs in West Lothian. Local clubs take turns to host this annual event. A team of four players take part and the format is that the aggregate of the best three net stroke-play scores from a team of four will be used as the team’s score. There may be a maximum handicap allowance. We will usually only enter if we have enough players to make up a team.

Friendly Matches

A few “friendlies” are arranged each year, some at home and some away. At present we play against some or all of Gogarburn, Linlithgow, Uphall, Kingsfield and Swanston Golf Clubs . This varies from year to year.

Anyone with a handicap can take part, but there may be a handicap limit imposed. This will be discussed and agreed with the opposing club. A list is put up in the Ladies Changing Room at the start of the season as well as emails, asking anyone who is interested in playing to enter their name on the list or contact the organiser. The format will be Greensomes strokeplay, probably over 9 or 12 holes.

If it is possible everyone will be given the chance to play in at least one of the games, weather permitting. If there are more names listed than players required, those who do not play in the current season’s matches will be the first choice to play in the next seasons. Those participating find the events fun and again another way of playing a different course. A small fee,normally £5/£4 is requested from players to cover the catering costs at home matches.

Outings

For the past few years the ladies section has enjoyed several outings to other golf courses during the golfing season. This is not only good fun, but allows you to play at other courses, as well as being a good way to get to know some of the ladies you maybe wouldn’t normally meet on the golf course. So, don’t miss out on the opportunity if you fancy a good day out in good company. You’ll be made very welcome. We try to arrange 2-3 outings a year. Some of the courses we have played so far are Gullane, Newbattle, Thornton, Broomieknowe, Tulliallan, Carnwath, Glencorse, West Linton and Dunkeld, Kingsfield and Burntisland. If you are interested in joining us on any of the outings, keep your eyes open for emails and the notice board. We usually ask for a non-returnable deposit since this is a requirement of most Clubs.

Social Events

Weekends Away – For a few years now some of the Ladies have enjoyed a weekend trip away golfing. Some of the venues we have visited are: Alyth, Crieff, Murrayshall, Cally Palace, Balumbie Castle/Broughty Ferry, Leven and Coupar Angus. The weekends are about having fun and playing golf at other courses. There is usually entertainment after dinner in a hosting room including games, and maybe a quiz!

Christmas Dinner – We have enjoyed our annual Christmas Dinner at either a local venue or in the clubhouse. To add to the fun we usually bring along a small gift for a secret Santa – there have been some interesting presents!! Watch out for emails/notice for the venue, menu etc.

February Social Event – This has taken the form of a Beetle drive, Games Night or Burns Supper in previous years. In 2019 we held a Treasure Hunt and lunch in Edinburgh . We undertook our first successful Ladies Burns supper in 2012 which not only included the usual Burns repertoire but Scottish entertainment by some of our talented ladies. It’s great fun and it is the members who make it the success it is. It is an opportunity to meet up in the winter months.

Ladies Invitational – The Ladies “Invitational” is a late afternoon/evening event in mid-summer. Please refer to the fixture card for the date. Members each invite a friend from another club and play with them in Greensomes format. The winners receive a trophy.

Fun Events – In the winter we run events as a way of having some fun and socialising. These can range from events with 3 clubs, Texas Scrambles, flag competitions etc. Please look out for emails or the notice board. If you have any ideas for fun/social events that you would like to see happening or better still you would like to organise, then please let the Committee members know. The Club also runs a number of fun mixed events e.g. “cross country competitions”, Texas Scrambles over the winter months. Watch for emails and notices on the main foyer notice board.

Seniors Section

The senior section meets informally each Thursday (the tee is booked from 8.50 – 9.50) and all are made welcome. Play is generally Stableford Format.
An annual outing is organised for the first Tuesday in May, at the end of the session before the Seniors League commences.

Other Senior Events

Senior Championship

Entrants must be aged 60 and over on 1st January 2024 and full handicap allowance would be in use for the entire competition. Qualifying will be from any 2 of the following 3 competitions (there would be no additional fee):

Wednesday April 10^th Taggart Shield
Sunday 28^th April Mairs Trophy
Wednesday May 8^th Midweek Medal

The players with the lowest 8 nett scores will qualify for the Quarter Finals and will be seeded 1 to 8.

Quarter Final ties (1 v 8, 4 v 5, 3 v 6, 2 v 7) are to be arranged by the players but completed before Sunday 2^nd June.
Semi Final ties (Winner 1 v Winner 2, Winner 3 v Winner 4) to be played by Sunday 9^th June
The Final will be played on Sunday 23^rd June on Club Championship Finals day. The date will, however, be rescheduled in the event of one or both players reaching one of the Club Championship Finals.

Winchburgh Niddry Castle Gents Senior Stableford Open LGA County Championship Niddry Castle Seniors Open LGA Seniors Fourball Strokeplay

Tuesday 7th May Thursday 23rd May Thursday 8th August Thursday 5th September

LGA Seniors League

Matches are played on a Thursday commencing at 1.00pm and each team consists of 10 players. The format is Fourball Matchplay and Fourball handicap rules apply. A point is awarded for winning an each game with ½ point for a draw and no points for a loss. The team with most points after the 5 games wins the match.

The 2023 fixture list can be found here and if you are interested in representing the Club, please send an email to membership@winchburghniddrycastlegolfclub.co.uk)