Changing lives... one trip at a time.
The Rule 12 Golf Tour
26th Annual Rule 12 Golf Championship
2026 “Rules” & Irregulations
1.We now follow the rule of carrying a maximum of 14 clubs.
2.A responsible individual within your daily foursome will be given TWO scorecards prior to each round. Don’t be offended if I hand somebody else the scorecards. Be thankful. Your foursome will get 2 cards: One scorecard is for the gross scores and the other is for the skill games. If you are going to have a side-match, please use a separate card. Give scorecards to the cypherin' team immediately following the round!!! (Alan, Russ, or Tom)
DON’T LEAVE YOUR SCORECARDS ON THE CART!!!!! FAILING TO TURN IN YOUR SCORECARD WILL RESULT IN A SCORE OF 180 FOR EACH GOLFER IN YOUR FOURSOME and you will be disqualified from having a chance to be Trip Champion or Match Play Champion. If it is a “skill-games” card you lost, no one in your foursome will receive skill-points for that round and all four of you will be eliminated from the Best Closer competition. Treat the scorecards like gold.
3.The Highest Score you can take on a hole is a 9. PLEASE pick up after your 8th stroke for pace of play purposes. Also, and this is important for the new guys: Play the hole through to a 9 regardless of the hole you are on. We have low net money at stake and sweeping your ball away and taking a 6 on a par 3 because you were disgusted with yourself, obviously reduces your gross score by 3 strokes. You can be like Todd King and sweep it away after your 6th stroke and yell, “Just give me a nine!” That’s okay. Taking the 6 is not okay. The official scorer in each group should police this.
4.Greenies. Par or better. Par 3’s only. Known as the “Dan Luton” Rule.
5.Sandies. Par or better from any bunker. Yes, with fairway and greenside bunkers throughout, it is possible to have Multiple Sandies on a single hole.
6.Fairways. Par 4’s and 5’s only. If it’s “iffy” it ain’t a Fairway!
7.Chip-Ins. Any Score. A CHIP-IN is a shot from ANYWHERE OFF THE GREEN, including the fringe, regardless of which club you use. If it goes in the hole from off the green, it’s a Chip-in.
8.Best Closer. Best TOTAL NET SCORE on the final two holes played each day.
9.Most Net Birdies & Eagles is self-explanatory.
10.Any tie in the Chicago Scoring System results in a Co-Championship and the money is split, combining 1st & 2nd place money (or 3rd place, etc depending).
11.Closest-To-Pin must be on the green. If no winner … the money moves to next closest-to-the-pin contest. If still no winner, we’ll use whatever money remains at Saturday’s awards dinner.
12.When in doubt, do whatever you think is fair or whatever you can get away with. Rule 12.
13.Winter Rules Apply in Your Own Fairway ONLY.
14.No Mulligans.
15.GIMMIES are “inside the leather.” Please measure. You’d be surprised how many are NOT in the leather, but sure as shit looks like it. Continuous putting on these short putts is encouraged for pace of play.
16.To break ties in MATCH-PLAY, the Daily Low Net, the Daily Low Net Runner Up and the Daily Low Net Third Place, we will begin on Hole #12 with the best net score and continue to Hole #13, etc., until the tie is broken.
17.TEES: Please let us know which tee you want prior to the tournament. Scorecards can be found online. Whatever tees you choose for Rounds 1 and 3, you must play the rest of the way.
18.A Hole-In-One is on the first shot only.
19.LOST BALL and/or OUT-OF-BOUNDS. When your ball cannot be found or is thought to be out of bounds, you may proceed as follows: For a lost ball, drop where everyone agrees the ball is lost and take a stroke. Do not go back. For OB, treat it as lateral and drop a ball within 2 club lengths of the point of entry and take a 1 stroke penalty. Do not go back. However, if you and your playing partners are sure your TEE BALL is OB … while you are STILL ON THE TEE … you can re-tee, hitting your third stroke, but you must use the 2nd ball even if you find the first one to be in bounds. There is no situation where you will go BACK to the tee, NONE, or the spot where you last hit the ball. Some foursomes get bogged down for various reasons and we must keep up our pace of play.
20.The Martino Rule: No, not Andy Martino. The other Martino. Don’t miss your tee time! This is your only warning. Missing your tee-time for anything other than illness (hangovers don’t count), or an emergency, earns you a not-so-flattering lifetime ban from Rule 12. We are on this trip to golf, first and foremost! Therefore, any extracurricular activity is done at your own risk.
21.All disputes will be settled by Mr. Al Gorithm Tom & Russ.
22.Any questions regarding the accuracy of Alan’s results are done at your own risk. Trust me on this one!
23.You don’t have to attend the Annual Awards Dinner, but it would be nice.
24.You must pay Craig Coon your entry fee before you tee off on Day 1. Plan accordingly and have the cash ready for Craig.
CLOSEST-TO-THE-PIN CONTESTS
Round 1 Watson Course #3 and #15
Round 2 Watson Course #3 and #15
Round 3 Palmer Course #2 and #14
Round 4 Palmer Course #2 and #14
Reunion Resort & Golf Club
I7593 Gathering Dr, Kissimmee, FL 34747
Tournament is Wed, 3/11/26 - Sat, 3/14/26
Entry Fee is $200 for those in the Match Play Tournament and $185 if not.
Payable to the Minister of Finance, Craig "A mix of smaller bills is always appreciated" Coon.
Click Here for the payout sheet
Reunion Resort, 7593 Gathering Drive, Kissimmee, FL 34747
Check-in time is 4:00 pm and Check-out time is 10:00 am.
** Five breakfasts … including the Sunday morning of departure. Many of you skipped this, or simply didn’t know Sunday was included. Now, you know. Breakfast begins at 7:00 am.
Our Modified Chicago Scoring System now awards points in the following manner:
1 point for a bogie
3 points for a par
4 points for a birdie
5 points for an eagle
7 points for a double-eagle
A big factor is consistency. Better golfers are much more consistent than the average hacker. To win this tournament, you must try your hardest to avoid the "blowup" round. You can have a "bad" round. You can't have a "nasty" round. The newbies will find that your name can move up and/or down the leaderboard quickly.
Another factor is that this tournament is not about your score but how you scored. Each day, we award money to the golfer with the best low net. Second and third place earn money, too. It's fully handicapped based on the tees you are using that day. It sometimes comes down to one-hundredth of a percentage point. You might find yourself in a situation where you are scoring well with Chicago points during a particular round. Therefore, your overall score is competitive for that day's low net. Then .... here comes that 8 that had been lurking around the corner. Even worse .... the dreaded 9. And there goes one hundred and twenty-five beaners. For those who don't know Coonie, the Minister of Finance ... beaners are dollars in his world. By the way, we've had 40+ "9's" in recent tournaments so don't be embarrassed if you score a 9. You'll have plenty of company.
Banquet is 6:30pm Saturday evening at
Palma Italian Kitchen (Oseria) in Champions Gate:
8266 Champions Gate Blvd, Championsgate, FL 33896