minimumunstick:
When I flew in the states everyone would just turn to intercept outbound leg no matter where they came from.. is this legal / the proper way to do it?
That is correct with TERPs in the U.S. The only restriction is descent to procedure turn completion altitude where a minimum altitude is shown in the profile view over the procedure turn fix. In that case that altitude is the minimum altitude until established outbound in the procedure turn; i.e., the entry maneuver is completed.
More and more FAA IAPs that have course reversals are using holding patterns instead of conventional procedure turns. In that case, the holding pattern rules apply both as to entry and speed limits.
There are a few(very few actually) FAA IAPs with teardrop procedure turns. Those must be flown exactly as shown.