United States Golf Association Privacy Policy
The United States Golf Association (the “USGA” or “we” or “us” or “our”) recognizes the importance our visitors to our websites and users of our mobile device applications place on the privacy of their information. We created this privacy policy statement (“Privacy Policy”) to demonstrate our firm commitment to protecting the privacy of our users as described below and to ensure that our users understand the privacy policies and procedures of the USGA.
This Privacy Policy governs the privacy practices and procedures of the USGA with respect to the data it collects from visitors via the USGA web sites listed in the USGA’s Terms of Use (the “Web Sites” or the “USGA Web Sites”) and from users of the USGA mobile device applications (the “Apps”) (the Web Sites and the Apps collectively referred to herein as the “Services”). Neither the Privacy Policy nor the Terms of Use apply to data collected by any other means, including any offline means.
By using the Web Sites, or downloading an App, as applicable, you are consenting to the practices and procedures described in this Privacy Policy and in the USGA’s Terms of Use into which this Privacy Policy is incorporated. If you do not agree with the practices and procedures described in this Privacy Policy or in the Terms of Use, please discontinue using all of the Services and follow the applicable procedures described in the Opt Out section of this Privacy Policy.
We and third parties, such as ad networks, web analytics companies and social networking platforms, may collect information (including Personal Information and Non-Personal Information, each as defined below) about you and your online activities over time and across our Services and other web sites. Unless you opt out following the instructions below, these companies may use your Personal Information, information about your visits to and usage of our Services and other web sites, and general geographic information derived from your IP address, in order to provide advertisements about goods and services that are customized to your interests and preferences on our Services and other web sites. Some advertisements may display icons that consumers can click on for more information about their advertising choices.
We work with advertising partners, including DoubleClick, Quantcast and Adobe, to make this happen. These companies may employ cookies, clear GIFs, tracking pixels and/or other tracking technologies to cause relevant ads to be displayed to you. To opt out of this, follow the instructions here or here. You may also individually opt out of DoubleClick here, Quantcast here and Adobe here. For information about applicable Doubleclick privacy practices, visit http://www.google.com/policies/privacy/; for information about Quantcast’s privacy practices, visit https://www.quantcast.com/how-we-do-it/consumer-choice/privacy-policy/; and for information about Adobe’s privacy practices, visit http://www.adobe.com/privacy/policy.html. If you do want to opt out using these tools, you need to opt out separately for each of your devices and for each Web browser you use (like Internet Explorer, Firefox or Safari) on each device. However, if you opt out, we may still suggest offerings to you on our Services based on your history at our Services.
Unless you opt-out, you consent to the use of cookies, pixels and other similar tracking technologies on your computer or device in this way and as described in more detail below. For more information about third-party advertisers and how to prevent them from using your information, visit the NAI’s consumer Web site at http://www.networkadvertising.org/choices/ or the DAA’s consumer Web site at http://www.aboutads.info/choices/. We currently do not change our tracking practices in response to “do not track” signals transmitted by users’ web browsers, so we encourage you to visit these links if you would like to opt out of certain tracking.
You may opt in or opt out of our sharing of your Personal Information with third parties for their marketing use by following the directions in the “Opt Out” section below.
Table of Contents
Please click on a section title below to skip to that section of this Privacy Policy.
What Information Does the USGA Collect?
How Does the USGA Use My Information?
How Does The USGA Try to Protect My Information?
Community Tools and Social Media
Consent to Worldwide Transfer and Processing of Personal Information
Policy Changes
We suggest that you review this Privacy Policy and the Terms of Use periodically as we may modify it from time to time as our Services evolve. Your continued use of the Services after the posting of a revised Privacy Policy signifies your acceptance of the revised terms. Under certain circumstances, we may also elect to notify you of changes or updates to our Privacy Policy by additional means, such as posting a notice on the front page of the affected Web Sites or sending you an email.
What Information Does the USGA Collect?
The USGA collects two types of information from users of the Services: (1) non-personal information collected, for example, as you interact with our Services that cannot, in itself, be used to specifically identify or contact an individual (except as described below) (“Non-Personal Information”); and (2) personal information that can be used to specifically identify or contact an individual (“Personal Information”).
Non-Personal Information
If you are using one of our Services, we will automatically capture certain Non-Personal Information about you and your use of the Service. For example, our web server automatically recognizes and collects certain Non-Personal Information about your visit to our Services, such as your Internet Protocol (IP) Address, Internet service provider and domain name. The USGA also collects usage and “clickstream” data, which includes a trail of electronic information left when you use a Service. The USGA uses cookies on the Services, which are small pieces of data stored by your web browser that contain data regarding your settings and preferences, shopping cart contents, or other data used by and about your visits to our Services. We use this information to, for example, recognize you and your computer when you return to any of the Services, provide you with access to account information you may have entered on any of the Services, compile statistics about traffic to the Services, and for other purposes consistent with this Privacy Policy. Your usage and clickstream data may tell us, for example and as applicable, the type of device and browsing software you are using and their settings (including language settings), your browser ID, general geographic information derived from your IP address, URL information, the address of the web site from which you linked to a Service, the pages, content or ads you see or click on during your visit and when and for how long you do so, items you download, any search terms you have entered on the Services or a referral site, and the time stamps of your visits to the Services. Using analytics, we receive counts of the screens and features of the App that are used, the countries from which the App is used, time stamps of uses, device language settings, and the types of devices, operating systems, carriers, IP addresses and wireless connections our users are using. In addition, the App assigns a unique numerical identifier to your account that is associated with other information about you. We work with analytics companies to help us understand how the Services are being used, by how many users, for how long, and how frequently. We may use this data to determine how much time visitors spend on each page of any of the Services, how visitors navigate throughout the Services, and how we may tailor our Services to better meet the needs of users and visitors. Except as described in this Privacy Policy for cross-site tracking, clickstream data will be anonymous and it is not our intention to use clickstream data to obtain any Personal Information.
You may be able to refuse cookies any time by turning them off in your Web browser. However, if you turn off cookies, certain features and functions of the Services may not be available to you. To learn more about the use of cookies, including how to manage or delete them, click here.
The USGA uses Web beacons or similar technologies to help track usage and viewing of the Services and communications (such as emails). Web beacons, also sometimes called single pixel GIFs or action tags, allow the USGA to track page and message viewing counts and patterns, which we use to focus and tailor future content development and otherwise measure and improve the performance of our Services.
The App collects precise information about the geographic location of your device. If your device is equipped with GPS or can connect with wireless access points or hot spots, or if your device is also a phone that communicates with cell towers or satellites, then your device is able to use these features to determine its precise geographic location. If you have consented using your device’s user interface, the geographic location of your device will be transmitted to our servers in real time any time that the App is running (even if you are not actively using the App or it is minimized on your device). Once you set your device to transmit its location information to us, your device will continue to transmit its location information to us (when it is open) until you set your device to no longer do so. You may at any time opt-out from further allowing us to have access to your device’s location information by accessing the Application’s location settings on your device and setting your device not to share its location with us.
Any or all of the above-described activities may be performed by us and/or on our behalf by our Representatives (defined below). These technologies enable us to assign a unique number to you, and relate your Non-Personal Information to other information about you, including your Personal Information. These technologies also enable us to recognize you when you access our Services using different Web browsers and different computers or devices.
Personal Information
When you use any of the Services, you may be asked to provide or otherwise choose to provide Personal Information, which may include, but is not limited to name, physical address (including zip code), e-mail address, password (selected by you), telephone and fax number, credit card information, golf background (such as whether you are an amateur or a professional, the name and address of your golf club, and your USGA Handicap Index), USGA membership identification number and other information you submit to us.
You may be able to send information about products and services to your friends and family members by clicking on a “Send-to-a-Friend” or similar button on the Services, or in an e-mail that we have sent you. In some of these cases, you may provide the name and e-mail address of your friend or family member to us, and such information will be treated in accordance with this Privacy Policy and applicable law. You may also be able to send a friend or family member an online card, a gift or a gift membership (or even sign them up as part of a dual membership for which you are the primary member). In some of these cases, you may be required to provide us with your friend’s or family member’s Personal Information. Such information will be treated in accordance with this Privacy Policy and applicable law.
The above are only examples of the types of Personal Information we may collect. The actual types of Personal Information collected depend on the specific product or service you request, the types of transactions you conduct on the Services and the various activities in which you participate.
How Does the USGA Use My Information?
The USGA uses the information it collects (including Personal Information and Non-Personal Information) primarily to understand your needs, provide you with better products and services, and deliver the specific product, service, or information you requested. For example, we may use the information you provide for processing and evaluating your entry application, for processing your membership application, for processing transactions on certain of our Services, for processing your registration on certain of our Services, and for contacting you with regard to your membership, registration, transactions and other activities or accounts on our Services.
We may use your information to communicate back to you, to update you on products, services, and benefits of ours and select third parties, to personalize your experience on the Services, to tailor ads displayed to you on our Services and elsewhere to your interests and history with us, to contact you for market research or to provide you with marketing information, newsletters, or other information we think would be of particular interest. We may also use the information we collect to send you occasional e-mails about USGA news, announcements, or changes to the Services. If you do not want to receive promotional e-mails from us, please notify us by following the procedures contained in our promotional e-mails or in the “Opt Out” section of this Privacy Policy. In addition, we may use your location information to send you relevant notifications and other information through our Apps. If you wish to stop receiving notifications through the App, you may change the settings for the App and/or your device.
Information obtained through the Services (including both Personal Information and Non-Personal Information) may be combined and used in conjunction with information obtained through sources other than the Services or at different times, including both offline and online sources. The USGA and our Representatives may use this combined information to enhance and personalize your various experiences with us on and in connection with the Services.
Sharing with Third Parties
The USGA may share your information (including Personal Information and Non-Personal Information) with third parties in certain circumstances, for example, where it believes such sharing is (1) reasonably necessary to providing you with a requested service, (2) legally required, or (3) permitted by this Privacy Policy or otherwise by you.
For example, we may share your information (including Personal Information and Non-Personal Information) with our affiliates, technical consultants, service providers, third party auditors, third party partners or other third parties who use such information on our behalf to help make the Services available, enhance their functionality, provide associated services, process your orders, or deliver content, samples, products, services, advertisements, gifts and prizes (our “Representatives”). Such Representatives include, for example, Web site or database hosting companies, address list hosting companies, e-mail service providers, analytics companies, advertising companies, distribution companies, fulfillment companies, payment processing companies and other similar vendors and services providers. We aim to implement reasonable and appropriate contractual and technical protections for limiting our Representatives’ use of your information to these business activities.
We reserve the right to access and disclose your Personal Information and Non-Personal Information as required by courts or administrative agencies and to the extent required to permit us to investigate suspected fraud, harassment, or other violations of any law, rule, or regulation, the rules or policies of our Web Sites, or the rights of third parties, or to investigate any suspected conduct which the USGA deems improper. We may disclose your Personal Information and Non-Personal Information when we have reason to believe that someone is causing injury to or interference with our rights or property, other users of the Application, or anyone else that could be harmed by such activities. We also reserve the right to transfer your Personal Information and other information in the event we, or a substantial portion of our assets, undergo a business restructuring, transfer of ownership, or similar transaction.
The USGA does not share your Personal Information with third party marketers without your permission, which we will seek to obtain either by an “opt-in” or “opt-out” method at the point of collection, or by other means, such as sending you an e-mail if we seek to share your information at a later point in time. You can also opt out of such sharing by notifying us in accordance with the “Opt Out” section of this Privacy Policy below. However, we reserve the right to freely share your Non-Personal Information for marketing and other purposes, with or without your consent.
Please note that the USGA is not responsible for removing your information from third party lists or databases. You can restrict the use of certain of your Personal Information by certain direct mail companies by contacting: Mail Preference Service c/o Direct Marketing Association, P.O. Box 9008, Farmingdale, New York 11735-9008.
We may disclose non-personally identifying information regarding our users and user behavior as a measure of interest in, and use of, our Services to third parties, including, for example, aggregate data, such as overall patterns or demographic reports that do not describe or identify any individual user.
Third Party Advertisers
Please note that at times, some of the advertisers on the Services and their and our ad service providers (including affiliate network providers and third party ad servers) may set cookies or use related technologies or web beacons when you view and/or click their advertising banners, links or other ads. While we use cookies and web beacons on parts of the Services (as discussed above), information from cookies, tracking pixels, clear GIFs and other tracking technologies received with third party ads and links may be collected directly by those advertisers and ad service providers and used to cause relevant ads to be displayed to you. For example, these companies may collect and use information about you and your visits to the Services and other Web sites (including Personal Information and Non-Personal Information) in order to provide advertisements about goods and services of interest to you. These advertisements may appear on the Services and on other Web sites. The advertiser’s privacy policy and/or that of its service provider will govern the use of this information and we are not responsible for the privacy practices of such companies. We encourage you to read these businesses’ privacy policies to learn about how they treat your information. Additionally, some of these companies (like the ad networks) are members of the industry groups, the Network Advertising Initiative and the Digital Advertising Alliance, each of which offers a single location to opt out of their cookies. For more information about third party advertisers and how to prevent them from using your information, we encourage you to visit the Network Advertising Initiative’s consumer web site, at http://www.networkadvertising.org, and the Digital Advertising Alliance's consumer choice page at http://www.aboutads.info/choices.
How Does the USGA Try to Protect My Information?
The security of your Personal Information is important to us. For example, when you register as a member or order from our on-line catalog on our Services, we endeavor to protect the security and integrity of any sensitive information collected thereon or there through by putting in place reasonable physical, electronic, and managerial procedures. However, while we strive to protect your Personal Information, due to the inherent open nature of the Internet we cannot guarantee that communications between you and any Services, or information stored on any Web Site or servers, will be free from unauthorized access by third parties such as hackers. Your use of the Services demonstrates your assumption of this risk.
You should be aware that any information and content, including Personal Information, and User Content (as hereinafter defined) you post to message boards, community tools, or other publicly accessible forums may be viewed and used by anyone with access to such forums. By using these services, you assume the risk that the Personal Information and User Content provided by you may be viewed and used by third parties.
If you are using a shared or public computer, we recommend that you log off your profile and close your browser window when you have finished using any of our Web Sites. If you notice any inaccuracies in your Personal Information, please contact us immediately. In the event that we believe that the security of your Personal Information in our possession or control may have been compromised, we may seek to notify you of that development. If a notification is appropriate, we would endeavor to do so as promptly as possible under the circumstances, and, to the extent we have your e-mail address, we may notify you by e-mail. Unless you notify us and provide us with alternative contact information (which you are free to do at any time by emailing us at privacy@usga.org), you consent to our use of e-mail as the means of such notification.
Community Tools and Social Media
If you desire to have access to certain restricted sections of our Services, you will be required to become a registered user and submit certain Personal Information, such as your name, password, e-mail address, partial mailing address or full mailing address. In some areas, other Personal Information may be requested, such as your Member ID and other information regarding your golf game. Once registered, you may provide additional information on your profile, including but not limited to your biography, links to other web sites, and any User Content (as defined herein), to better identify yourself and find new friends and opportunities on the Services that may be available. Providing additional information beyond what is required at registration is entirely optional and provided at your own risk. For example, you may be able to provide text, information, designs, graphics, logos, images, pictures, video, applications, software, music and other files (collectively, “User Content”) in connection with creating and personalizing your profile or using various features on our Web Sites. The USGA shall have the right to alter, modify or delete such User Content in its sole and absolute discretion, and to use such User Content in any manner which does not violate the terms of this Privacy Policy. You provide such User Content at your own risk, and such User Content shall be considered “Submitted Materials,” as such term is defined and used in the Terms of Use. Please read the Security section of this Privacy Policy for further information.
Depending on your profile settings (if applicable), the USGA may display your profile to other registered users to enable you to connect with them on the USGA’s network, if such a feature is available. You may be able to access and control the information included in your profile and decide whether you want your profile made visible to other registered users and perhaps the general public. Our default privacy setting with respect to your profile is set to make your profile “publicly” available, unless and until you choose otherwise, which you can do by opting out in the account preferences area of your Web Site account (if applicable), or by contacting us using the information set forth in the Contact Us section of this Privacy Policy below.
To deactivate your user account, you may email membership@usga.org, call us at (908) 234-2300, or write us at the United States Golf Association, P.O. Box 746, Far Hills, New Jersey 07931, or follow the procedures in the Contact Us section of this Privacy Policy. We will remove your profile but may retain any record of your information and User Content that is necessary to comply with applicable federal, state, or local law. The information and User Content retained will generally not be available to other users of the Services. However, if you made use of communication features, e. g. , sending a personal message, or using community tools (such as posting on message boards or other publicly accessible forums, to share information or User Content with other individuals on any of the Services), such communications are generally not removable. By registering for a user account, you acknowledge and consent that, even after removal of your profile and Personal Information from our Web Sites, your information and User Content may remain viewable in cached and archived pages of individuals who have copied or stored such information or content.
Links to Other Web Sites
Any of the Services may contain links, banners, or advertisements to other web sites. When you click on such links, banners, or advertisements, the privacy policies of the web sites to which you are linked and/or their service provider (as applicable) will govern the use of your information collected on such sites. The USGA does not have access to or control over any technologies or practices that may be used by third parties.
This Privacy Policy applies solely to information collected by the USGA via its Services. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of other web sites. We encourage our users to read the privacy statements of each and every web site visited after leaving any of our Web Sites through such a link, banner or advertisement, in order to learn how such third parties may treat your information.
Children
Children under the age of 13 years may not provide any Personal Information, including name, physical and e-mail address, telephone number, or any other information that allows others to contact them physically or electronically, to the USGA via any of the Services without verifiable parental consent. The USGA does not knowingly collect or solicit Personal Information from anyone under the age of 13 or knowingly allow such persons to register for use of any of the Services. In the event the USGA learns that we have collected Personal Information from a child under age 13 without verification of parental consent, we will delete such information as quickly as possible.
Consent to Worldwide Transfer and Processing of Personal Information
When you give your personally identifiable information to the USGA through the Services, it may be collected and used by the USGA and its affiliates for the purposes of, for example, providing you services and sending you correspondence, and additionally may be transferred to entities other than the USGA’s affiliates, which entities may be located in countries outside the European Economic Area (“EEA”), including the United States. Each of these countries has different privacy laws that afford varying levels of protection for your personally identifiable information, and such laws may not be as comprehensive as those that exist in the EEA. By registering on the Services or otherwise using their services, you consent to the USGA’s and its affiliates’ transmission to, and collection and processing of your information in, any jurisdiction, in accordance with its Privacy Policy. You can obtain details of the companies and countries in which your data has been collected and to which your data has been transferred by contacting us at:
United States Golf Association
P.O. Box 708
Far Hills, NJ 07931
908-234-2300
Fax: 908-234-9687
Change Information
You can access, view and change your preferences, profile, and other information by visiting www.usga.org or emailing membership@usga.org, calling us at (908) 234-2300, or writing us at the United States Golf Association, P.O. Box 746, Far Hills, New Jersey 07931. You may also inform us of such changes by following the procedures described in the Contact Us section of this Privacy Policy, and the USGA will take reasonable steps to correct any information about you that is incorrect.
Opt Out
You can opt out of sharing your Personal Information with the USGA, being contacted by the USGA for promotional purposes, or having your Personal Information disclosed to third parties for such third parties’ marketing use. To exercise your choice to opt out, simply check or un-check the appropriate box on the form or web page on which you are providing your Personal Information, or you may always update your opt-out preferences in your Web Site account (if any and if applicable) or by contacting the USGA by following the instructions set forth in the Contact Us section of this Privacy Policy below. From each of its promotional e-mails, the USGA also enables you to opt-out of receiving future promotional emails from the USGA.
Please understand that if you opt out of receiving promotional correspondence from us, we may still contact you in connection with your relationship, activities, transactions and communications with us. Also, a request to have us stop sharing your Personal Information with other entities for marketing purposes will only apply as of the date of your request, and we will not be responsible for any communications that you may receive from entities that received your Personal Information prior to such request. In these cases, please contact that entity directly.
Please note that your choice to change your information or opt out may affect the USGA’s ability to provide you with the requested product or service. If you change your mind at a later time, you can contact the USGA about your preferences by following the procedures in the Contact Us section of this Privacy Policy.
Contact Us
The USGA welcomes your questions and comments about privacy. Please feel free to contact us for any reason, including a request to be added to or taken off a marketing list or to prevent sharing your Personal Information with third parties, by sending an e-mail to membership@usga.org, calling us at (908) 234-2300, or writing us at the United States Golf Association, P.O. Box 746, Far Hills, New Jersey 07931.
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