Volunteer with the Connecticut State Golf Association

The Connecticut State Golf Association is actively seeking volunteers for the 2016 season! Since the founding of the organization in 1899, CSGA volunteers, from Executive Committee members to club representatives to rules officials, have been the backbone of the association. Although managed by a full-time, professional staff, the CSGA operates most efficiently with the services of hundreds of volunteers who loyally assist the organization each year.

The roles that volunteers play range from Member Club Representatives, course raters, scorers and assistant scorers, receptionists, starters, rules officials, spotters, and others. A volunteer is any person who is willing to help perform any one of a host of vital functions. There are many opportunities to get involved and to help in almost any capacity. The rewards are meeting new people, making new friends, seeing new venues, having a great feeling of contributing to the traditions of golf, and knowing that you have made an important contribution to the game we all love.

Volunteer Opportunities

(1) Tournament Operations

The CSGA tournament schedule consists of approximately 75 days of competition, including Championships, One-Day Tournaments, and CSGA and USGA Qualifying Rounds. CSGA tournament volunteers help with the various tasks required in administering these events, and are designated roles based on their experience. Areas of volunteer opportunities include:

Spotters/Fore-Caddies – Volunteers who assist players in locating their golf ball and who call officials when a group is in need of a ruling.
Starters – Volunteers who are responsible for starting players on the course and providing player information at the beginning of play.
Rules Officials – Individuals who have demonstrated a working knowledge of the Rules of Golf and who can share that special expertise in officiating at CSGA and USGA events.
Live Scoring – Volunteers who assist on-course with the posting of scoring updates to the tournament website

(2) Club Representatives

The CSGA Club Representative Program is a well-respected long-standing tradition within the Connecticut State Golf Association. A CSGA Club Representative’s principal reason for serving is to be able to do something good for the game of golf – to give back to the game which we all enjoy.

Club Representatives serve as a liaison between their club and the Connecticut State Golf Association. A Club Representative serves as a spokesperson who shares information pertaining to the services and benefits of the CSGA at his or her club, as well as communicating directly with the Association on their club’s behalf. A Club Representative must be an active and respected member of their club, and be willing to actively participate in committee and Association activities.

(3) Course Rating and Measuring

The CSGA is licensed by the United States Golf Association as the governing body for amateur golf in the state of Connecticut. Among <<much else,>> its duties, the association is responsible for the rating and measuring of all golf courses in the state as well as administering and overseeing the USGA Handicap System. The CSGA course rating teams are vitally important to the integrity of the handicap system, as the entire system revolves around accurate USGA Course and Slope ratings. Individuals who would like to serve as a course rater receive training before becoming part of a rating team.

Volunteer raters may work one to four days monthly, usually mid-week to avoid crowded courses, in groups of four or more. Course rating consists of quantifying the difficulty of each hole on fourteen different factors for both Scratch (0 handicap) and Bogey (18 handicap for men) players. The team is attempting to predict the scoring of a scratch player and a bogey player. The difference between the two creates the Slope rating, the larger that difference, the higher the Slope.

Rating requires the ability to recognize how various golf course design features affect the play of both low and high handicap players, all the while following the directives of the system without allowing personal inclinations to interfere with judgments. The successful course raters are analytical by nature and enjoy working with numbers.

Additionally, they measure golf courses from teeing grounds to green surfaces in preparation for the course rating team to accurately determine the USGA Course and Slope Ratings. Upon the request of members clubs, the CSGA will also measure for yardage markers, such as sprinkler heads, 100, 150 and 200 yardage markers, and from other prominent course features.

What does a volunteer receive from the CSGA?

The CSGA provides volunteers with an official CSGA golf shirt, hat, name tag, Rules of Golf book and our Tournament handbook, which reviews assignments, procedures, and a ‘how-to’ guide in making rulings and dealing with on-course situations. Course raters and club representatives also receive specific materials pertaining to their individual roles and responsibilities. During tournament days, volunteers are provided with a light breakfast and lunch on days when they are present. CSGA Volunteers will also find that the most rewarding aspect of serving is the sense of camaraderie among its members. Every CSGA volunteer shares an interest in the game of golf and a great desire to serve the game.