Rules & Regulations

1. MercedesTrophy 2019 – Malaysian Selection will be managed by a Tournament Committee appointed by Mercedes-Benz Malaysia Sdn Bhd (MBMSB), whose decision on all matters shall be final. The competition shall be played in accordance to the Rules of Golf approved by the R&A Rules Ltd and USGA and with the Local Rules (and supplementary) approved by the Tournament Committee.
2. Minimum age for participation - 18 years old, as of 13 March 2019.
3. The tournament is open exclusively to all Mercedes-Benz passenger car owners of Mercedes-Benz Malaysia’s authorised dealers.
4. No employees / associates of Mercedes-Benz Malaysia or sales partners are allowed to compete in the MercedesTrophy.
5. Participants must be amateur golfers with a maximum handicap of 24 for men and 36 for women. Failure to declare the lowest handicap at any time will result in disqualification. The Committee reserves the right to assign handicaps as they deem fit within reasons.
6. In accordance with MGA’s National Handicapping System policy, participants will be assigned a course handicap for a venue based on their USGA Indexes. Participants are not allowed to declare lower handicaps for purposes of entering another category.
7. Golfers who have handicaps which are not obtained within the jurisdiction of the National Handicapping System may take part in the MercedesTrophy only upon approval by the Organisers and there will be a mandatory 20% reduction on their home club handicap. Thereafter, the golfer will be provided with a temporary index for the remainder of the MercedesTrophy.
8. The mode of play is based on Stableford points over one round of 18 holes. In the interest of fair play, maximum scores will be capped at 39 Stableford Points (3-under handicap). However, course handicap revisions will be calculated based on the actual score on the day, and not subject to capping.
   
   National Final – Course handicaps of qualifiers shall be revised according to the scores returned at qualifying rounds. For example, if a golfer with a handicap of 20 scored 44 points (8-under his handicap) then his course handicap for the National Final shall be adjusted to 12.
   
   Participant who qualified for the 2018 Malaysian Final will play the 2019 events off their adjusted course handicap as they did in the 2018 Malaysian Final or their current USGA index, whichever is lower.
   
   Participant who qualified for the past Regional Final will play the 2019 events off their adjusted course handicap as they did in the Regional Final or their current USGA index, whichever is lower.
9. In the event of ties, placings shall be determined on count back starting with (a) stableford points of the last nine holes (holes nos. 10 – 18), (b) last six holes (holes nos. 13 – 18), (c) last three holes (holes nos. 16 – 18), (d) last hole (hole no. 18). If still tied then a toss of coin shall decide.
10. The attention of all competitors is drawn to Rule 5.6 of Golf regarding undue delay. In the interest of fair play, the Tournament Committee will not hesitate to impose the penalties as provided by the Rules of Golf.
11. If a player arrives within 5 minutes after the starting time, the Committee will deduct 2 points from the total points scored for the round. If he / she arrives more than 5 minutes late from the starting time, he / she will be disqualified from winning any prizes.
12. All participants must submit their respective scorecard duly signed and counter signed by his / her marker as soon as possible and in any case no later than 10 minutes after the completion of play.
13. All participants shall indemnify the organisers, sponsors, management of the clubs and its staff from any legal proceedings, losses, damage, injury or loss of life suffered during or after the said tournament. Participants are reminded to insure themselves with appropriate insurance coverage.
14. Any disputes or doubtful point on the Rules shall be referred to the Tournament Committee as soon as practicable during the competition and before scorecard submission. Any dispute brought to the Tournament Committee after the prize giving ceremony will not be entertained unless it is specially related to Rule 20.2e of the Rules of Golf.
15. All participants are deemed to have read, understood and agreed to abide by the rules and conditions of the tournament, upon submission of their entries.
16. Participants are reminded of the ruling pertaining to Amateur Status (Rule 3-2 – Rules of Amateur Status). An amateur golfer must not accept a prize (other than a symbolic prize) or prize voucher of retail value in excess of the prescribed limits. The onus of accepting a prize or prizes that exceed the prescribed limits lies with the participant. The Committee is duty-bound to inform the MGA the names of participants who receive prizes that exceed the prescribed limits. The Committee and Organisers shall not be liable for any action taken on participants for any breach of Rules pertaining to Amateur Status.
17. In the event when more than one (1) player scores a Hole-In-One on the same hole in the same tournament, the prize will be awarded to the first to achieve the Hole-In-One.
18. Each player shall be eligible to win only one (1) novelty prize. The prize will be awarded to the first to strike.
19. In the event of inclement weather, the distribution of prizes and announcement of qualifiers shall be decided by the Organisers and Tournament Committee.
20. Winners may be required by MBMSB to participate in a photo, video and /or film session and hereby agree that MBMSB reserves the right to use such publicity photos, videos and / or films in any medium and in any reasonable manner it sees fit without additional compensation.


Amended on 5 March 2019