What types of Memberships are available?

A.   MEMBERSHIP:

1. MEMBERS:  Members shall be classified hereinafter.  Members shall have the privileges and obligations as set forth in these Policies and Procedures and By-Laws.

a.       FULL MEMBERS must meet the specific qualifications of their membership classification and must be permanent residents of the United States.  Exceptions apply only to those Canadian Members grandfathered in prior to 1993 and Support Members.

b.      The acceptance of membership into the USBGA shall bind each Member to uphold all the provisions of the Charter, By-Laws, Policies and Procedures and other rules of the USBGA and to accept the decisions of the Board of Directors (Board) acting within provisions of the By-Laws.

c.       Exception: ASSOCIATE PLAYER MEMBERSHIP  Players from Central America and other Regional North American Countries that do not have sufficient players to form their own Member Association through the IBGA may apply for Associate Player Membership to the USBGA.

a.        Associate Player Members meet the specific qualifications of their membership classification and are responsible for paying yearly USBGA membership dues.  They may play in any tournament offered through the USBGA and are responsible for paying all associated tournament fees. Note: Associate Player Members may not vote in elections or run for office.

d.      Exception: DUAL CITIZENSHIP PLAYERS (DCP)  Players who have Dual Citizenship and wish to apply for membership to more than one IBGA Member Country will have to declare one Country as their “Home” Country.

a.       The DCP will have to declare their “Home” country status by November 15th for the next calendar year.

b.      The “Home” Country is responsible for submitting the DCP scores to the IBGA for establishing and maintaining their handicap.

c.       If a DCP applies for membership to the USBGA and does not declare the United States as their “Home” Country, they may apply for an Associate Player Membership.

1.         Associate Player Members are responsible for paying yearly USBGA membership dues.  They may play in any tournament offered through the USBGA and are responsible for paying all associated tournament fees. Note: Associate Player Members may not vote in elections or run for office.

d.      If a DCP applies for membership to the USBGA and declares the United States as their “Home” Country they may apply for a Full Membership to the USBGA and may vote in elections and run for office.

e.       If a DCP is not selected for the Vision Cup team in their “Home” country, they cannot play for another Vision Cup team.

That is because the IBGA is our parent organization that officially determines potential members’  sight qualification and sight category placement.  Having a single organization makes every country equal in both placement and approval.  Then the individual countries run their organizations separately for events and tournaments, unless the IBGA is involved in sponsorship of a tourney, where they would again oversee the event with standardized international rules.

Any person who has a visual acuity worse than or less than 20/200 in BOTH eyes.  Your vision cannot be correctable to be better than 20/200 with either glasses or contacts. Finally, you must be a U.S. citizen or have dual citizenship.  Associate Player Members from Central America and other Regional North American Countries that don’t have sufficient players to form their own IBGA Member Association are able to apply for an associate membership.

1. Exception: ASSOCIATE PLAYER MEMBERSHIP  Players from Central America and other Regional North American Countries that do not have sufficient players to form their own Member Association through the IBGA may apply for Associate Player Membership to the USBGA.
2.  Associate Player Members meet the specific qualifications of their membership classification and are responsible for paying yearly USBGA membership dues.  They may play in any tournament offered through the USBGA and are responsible for paying all associated tournament fees. Note: Associate Player Members may not vote in elections or run for office.

No.  The USBGA and the International Organization, the IBGA, both recognize 3 sight categories for players:  B1 – Totally Blind, B2 – Vision Impaired, and B3 – Vision Impaired.   Read more about the sight categories, rule modifications and guides here.

(list benefits here)