Policies Info

Printable 2026 WJGA Code of Conduct

Washington Junior Golf Association provides a worthwhile activity, which can be pursued throughout life and which helps develop character and good sportsmanship. All WJGA and Junior World qualifying competitions are conducted under the Rules of Golf. In addition, the following Code of Conduct policy applies, which is a guideline for junior golfers to follow both on and off the course:

1. USE DECENT AND PROPER LANGUAGE AND BEHAVIOR AT ALL TIMES
   1. Unsportsmanlike conduct examples: Deliberately cheating, deliberate unreported Rules of Golf violation, swearing, obscene vulgar language or gestures, throwing clubs, displaying poor attitude.
   2. Prohibited to use: Smoking or use of any tobacco product, alcohol, PED’s or controlled substances (unless medically authorized).
2. RESPECT AND CARE FOR THE PROPERTY OF OTHERS AND OF THE GOLF COURSE
   1. Proper examples: Replace divots, repair ball marks, rake bunkers and use proper containers for garbage, and taking push carts around teeing grounds.
   2. Improper examples: Damaging greens, defacing or destroying club property, littering, leaving divots or ball marks unrepaired, failure to rake bunkers, etc.
3. ALL ELECTRONIC DEVICES ARE PROHIBITED FOR USE ON THE GOLF COURSE BY PLAYERS, with the exception of devices that measure distance only (DMD’s) and medically approved devices. Cell phone use is prohibited thus cell phone distance measuring devices will NOT be allowed.

PENALTIES FOR VIOLATION OF CODE OF CONDUCT

WJGA Dress Code Policy

Golf attire for players (volunteers and walking scorers are encouraged to follow the WJGA dress code and to be a role model with regard to their choice of golf course attire):

1. PROPER ATTIRE FOR BOYS, GIRLS AND VOLUNTEERS Neat and clean clothing, shoes, sleeves and collars on shirts. Collarless shirts designed for golf are acceptable. All hats must be worn bill forward. Boys: Shirts must be tucked in at all times, unless the shirt is designed to be untucked and worn as the manufacturer intended, and pants/shorts must be khaki, cotton or similar traditional golf material. Girls: Shirts and blouses may be either collarless or sleeveless and must be golf-appropriate. No bare midriff showing. Pants, capri pants, shorts, skorts and skirts on girls that are appropriate for golf and worn as the manufacturer intended are acceptable. NOTE: If the host club dress code policy is more restrictive than the WJGA policy, all WJGA contestants and gallery must adhere to the host club dress code policy.
2. IMPROPER ATTIRE Athletic shorts, short shorts, tee shirts, tank tops, jeans (denim of any color), cut-offs, sweats, spandex, yoga attire, jeggings, leggings and halter-tops.

If unable or unwilling to abide by the WJGA Dress Code Policy the player will not be able to play that event.

WJGA Player Procedures

• Caddies or motorized carts are NOT permitted – Penalty: Two strokes for each occurrence. Disqualification may be imposed for repeat offenses. Pull carts are ok.
• WD Policy: A player must notify their Tournament Director or WJGA staff (not the golf course) of a withdrawal.
• No Show Policy: Failure to give notice of withdrawal at least 48 hours in advance (unavoidable emergencies may preclude penalty) may result in the player being Disqualified from the next WJGA event in which the player is entered, including WJGA State, District or Junior World Qualifier. Discontinuance of play “Picking up, quitting” without the permission of the Tournament Director before play is officially ended, the player is Disqualified and automatically ineligible for the next WJGA event in which the player is entered.
• Pace of Play: Players/Groups delaying play (slow play) will be warned by an official to regain position within a fixed amount of time. If the player or group fail to regain position they will be liable to timing. A player may be subject to penalty if when it is their turn to play they are observed to require in excess of 40 seconds for two separate shots. Penalty: 1^st & 2^nd violation: warning. 3^rd violation: 1-stroke penalty. 4^th violation: 2-stroke penalty. 5^th violation: DQ
• Scoring: After the player has signed and attested his/her scorecard and has left the scoring table or the designated scoring area, cards are considered to be officially returned and no changes made unless authorized by Rule 3.3b(3).

Walking Scorer Rules

• Parents of players ages 8-13 MUST BE (or provide) a walking sorer (16 yrs or older) every WJGA tournament round their child plays. Players may be forced to withdraw if no walking scorer is provided.
• Make sure all rulings are done by a WJGA Rules Official. Please call the phone number listed on your walking scorer card.
• Do not interfere with a Rules Official making a ruling unless it is to confirm how many penalty strokes are applied.
• Coaching of any kind is prohibited.
• Please give your child space and limit excessive conversation.
• Keep the players safe and moving.
• Confirm scores after each hole.
• If you observe a spectator or another walking scorer in your group is violating the rules, please contact a rules official as soon as you can.

WJGA Gallery Rules

• Spectators are encouraged to forecaddie (stand in landing area and watch balls) and must stay up with, or ahead of the group they are following. Standing behind your group can delay play behind you.
• Galleries must keep their distance from players on the course and until players leave the scoring area (25 yards, walk in rough or on cart path).
• Coaching of any kind is prohibited. Parents may bring food/drinks, clothing, etc. to players but must do so without excessive conversation.
• Abuse, harassment or interference with volunteers or officials will not be tolerated.
• Talking on mobile devices or use of noise making electronic devices is prohibited. Texting is allowed if the phone is silenced.
• Spectator carts will not be allowed unless a handicap placard or official doctor’s note is provided. Temporary injury may not be a valid reason for a spectator cart. Only carts authorized by the Committee will be allowed on the course.
• No alcoholic beverages allowed outside the restaurant areas. WJGA events are a smoke-free environment. Smoking, vaping or use of any tobacco product is only allowed off course or in the parking lot.
• Dress Code for Gallery: All spectators, family members and others must observe the dress code of the course being played and encouraged to follow the WJGA Dress Code Policy.

PENALTIES FOR VIOLATION OF WALKING SCORER & GALLERY RULES

To earn a State Championship exemption, boys & girls must meet one of the following criteria:

• Top-5 from previous year's points list
• Current year overall champion at the State Match Play, Western, Eastern, Players Open and Joel Dahmen Invitational
• Top-3 finish at the current year Washington State Junior Amateur
• Previous year's overall WJGA State Championship Champions
• Previous year's Washington State Junior Amateur Champions
• Qualify to play in the current year USGA Jr. Amateur
• Members of the current year JAC or GJAC Washington team.

The following players are exempt into THE 2026 WJGA STATE CHAMPIONSHIP if they so choose. All exempt players must play in at least one Sub-District event, or in the event they do not play in a Sub-District they play in at least two WJGA sanctioned spring events (Match Play, Western/Eastern/Players Opens, Dahmen Invitational & Washington State Junior Amateur) to be eligible to use their exemption.

GIRLS:
Cienna Lee,
Ira Upadhyay
Esther Yu
Tatum Otto
Niuniu Zhao
Nicole Tang
Amanda Peng
Ella Follen
Sharon Yoon
Isabella Zhu
Maia Miller
Poppy Leigh

BOYS:
Taighan Chea,
Theodore Snyder
Elliot Ro
Cormac Meinshausen
Ryan Howe
Wyatt Brownell
Ben Barrett
Ethan Schwan
Landon Russell
Carson Church
Quinn Burwell
Joe Anderson

2026
WJGA Scoring Based Entry
For State Match Play, Western Open, Eastern Open, Players Open & State Junior Amateur

2026 Boys Exempt List

2026 Girls Exempt List

Introduction
A player's performance from the previous season will impact acceptance into WJGA’s spring tournament series.

Determining Tournament Fields:
(1) Fully Exempt:

All 13-17 year old boys and girls that qualified for the WJGA State Championship the previous year are exempt into all spring events.

• In addition to the previous year’s State Championship qualifiers, any boy or girl that finished in the top-20 of the previous year’s Player of the Year standings is fully exempt.
• Any boy with a scoring average from the previous season of 75 or less, or girl with a scoring average of 80 or less is fully exempt.

(2) Scoring Average :

• Registered non-exempt players will be selected into the field based on their WJGA scoring average from the 2025 season.
• New members with no WJGA scoring record may submit a tournament score resume to Executive Director, Tyler Johnsen, by email at to earn status. All resumes will be vetted.

Breaking Ties
Any tie for the final spot(s) in a field will be go to the player with the highest number of events played the previous year.

Entry Deadline for State Match Play is March ^4th at 11:59pm

Entry Deadline for Western Open is March 8th at 11:59pm

Entry Deadline for Eastern Open is March 15th at 11:59pm

Entry Deadline for Players Open is March 22nd at 11:59pm

Entry Deadline for Washington State Junior Amateur is April 12th at 11:59pm

The fields will be released the day following the entry deadline.

Players may continue to register for the tournament wait lists after the deadline, but will be behind all players that registered prior to the deadline, regardless of scoring average.

All refund requests are considered on a case-by-case basis and should be submitted by email to the Tournament Director. Refunds because of scheduling conflicts will only be allowed until May 31st, and when granted will be subject to a $10 administration fee for Sub-District events and $20 administration fee for all other events. No refunds will be issued within 1 week of any tournament date.