In order to accommodate the high demand for the GAM Senior/Mid-Am Team Championship, the tournament will see multiple changes in 2016.
First of all, the registration process will be altered to prevent technical issues and to not eliminate golfers that cannot be online to sign up the moment registration opens at 8:00 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 8. Under the new system, there will be a one-month window for teams to register. Registering within this window will put a team in the drawing to be assigned a venue. There will be no advantage to signing up right as registration opens; a team simply has to register within the one-month window.
After the registration window closes, each team will be put into one of three categories based on combined team handicap index. From that point, teams will be randomly assigned a venue with an effort made to keep the number of teams from each handicap category equal at each venue so as to create similar strengths of field at all sites. This will also ensure handicap has no bearing on a team’s likelihood of being randomly selected into the field.
Furthermore, the GAM Senior/Mid-Am Team will now take place at three separate 18-hole facilities. Three historic Donald Ross courses, Dearborn CC, Grosse Ile G&CC, and Western G&CC, will each host a portion of the field for the 7th GAM Senior/Mid-Amateur Team Championship. This 36-hole portion of the competition will take place on Monday, May 23rd. The morning round will be four-ball format and the afternoon round will be foursomes format (alternate shot). The champion at each venue will advance to play for the overall championship at Barton Hills Country Club on Friday, Sept. 16.
Should there be more entries within the one-month window than spots available in the field, a waiting list will be created. Should any team that registers within the window not get into the field a full refund will be issued. Team index and time of registration within the window will have no bearing on your likelihood of getting in the field. The only team guaranteed a spot in the field will be the defending champions.
