r&a and usga handicap difference

[neeno120891]

are they the same

i play in england and play off 10. i heard however that this works out lower in america due to a difference in the handicap system meaning the usga is more rewarding than the r&a. this may be wrong but if not please advise me about how different the two are.
thanks guys

[Shaitan]

The US seems to have a different h'cap system over the rest of the world. Our system works so that if ur over par, u get .1 back unless ur off 4 or less and u score double ur score, then u get .2 back. For each shot ur under par u lose .1 if your off 4 or less, .2 if your off 12 or less, .3 once your below 18 and .4 when your below 27. In the US, as stated above they work on the best 5 or 10 rounds and average them for your handicap. They also allow u to get cards handicapped even when your not in competition, therefore, unless u play better under pressure, it is easier to get ur handicap lower quicker. That's why they say the handicap system in America is easier then the R&A's.

[aec4]

The US seems to have a different h'cap system over the rest of the world. Our system works so that if ur over par, u get .1 back unless ur off 4 or less and u score double ur score, then u get .2 back. For each shot ur under par u lose .1 if your off 4 or less, .2 if your off 12 or less, .3 once your below 18 and .4 when your below 27. In the US, as stated above they work on the best 5 or 10 rounds and average them for your handicap. They also allow u to get cards handicapped even when your not in competition, therefore, unless u play better under pressure, it is easier to get ur handicap lower quicker. That's why they say the handicap system in America is easier then the R&A's.

How can a system be "easier"? It's not possible. It's a system.. It's all relative, so if you compete against one another, it's all fine and good. The systems really can't be interchanged... in other words, an R&A Handicap wouldn't translate well to a USGA handicap and the reverse is true too. That doesn't make one "easier."

 

The system here takes into account the difficulty of the course. It appears the UK system just takes into account your score... The system here does use the best 10 scores of 20, and takes an average. The system here is more a measure of POTENTIAL instead of average.

 

See here if you play a hard course, that is a par 72, but the rating is 74.1, you could shoot 75 and be considered close to scratch. That's because the course is rated to be more difficult, so the theory is if you play an easier course, you'd shoot lower.

[fronesis]

I played in the states for 20 years, and now I'm in the UK. The two systems are very different, and while it's certainly true that logically a one system cannot be 'easier' than another, I would also argue that under the US system it is much easier to establish a lower handicap than it is here.

 

As already noted, in the US you simply submit your cards when you play. In the UK, once you have established your handicap it then is only effected by competition rounds. As someone who played competitive golf for 10 years, I would contend that this is a huge difference. When I last played regularly in the US, my handicap was 3. I'm now playing off of 9 and hitting the ball very very well. It's just hard to lower your handicap when you are playing in competition. Even Tiger's scoring average is lower in friendly matches than it is on tour.

 

One other quick note: the UK system does not take into account only your score. In the US scores are adjusted by course rating and slope numbers; here the are adjusted by scratch score and competitive scratch score. For example, I played in a competition today. Par is 70, my handicap is 9, and I shot 79 for a net of 70. But we played the back tees, so the CSS is 73 (rather than 70 off the middle tees), so I actually shot 3 strokes under my handicap - so my handicap will come down by .6 for my next competitive round.

 

But again, the THREE 76's I shot during the week will do nothing to my handicap, whereas in the states they would lower it significantly. Note that this means it's almost impossible to 'sandbag' here. A handicap is much more meaningful here. In the states, the guy who says he is a 4 might really be a 4, but he might be submitting his best cards and occasionally giving himself a putt or improving a lie. The guy who says he's a 20 might just be planning to shoot 77 at the next event. I've noticed the low NET score is MUCH higher in the competitions I've played in here. I was a net 70 today, which put me 4th. I would imagine that a net par in most US tournaments won't put you in the top 10.

[Shaitan]

How can a system be "easier"? It's not possible. It's a system.. It's all relative, so if you compete against one another, it's all fine and good. The systems really can't be interchanged... in other words, an R&A Handicap wouldn't translate well to a USGA handicap and the reverse is true too. That doesn't make one "easier."

 

The system here takes into account the difficulty of the course. It appears the UK system just takes into account your score... The system here does use the best 10 scores of 20, and takes an average. The system here is more a measure of POTENTIAL instead of average.

 

See here if you play a hard course, that is a par 72, but the rating is 74.1, you could shoot 75 and be considered close to scratch. That's because the course is rated to be more difficult, so the theory is if you play an easier course, you'd shoot lower.

 

I know it isn't easier, that was probably the wrong word, but if it is a measure of your "potential" score I'd be off scratch. There is a difference between being able to score low scores and scoring low scores consistently, especially in competition. In Australia, I know guys that have turned pro when they're off +1, +2 and are now playing on the Asian Tour, whereas in America, the general consensus is +4 before even thinking of going to a tour. The good thing about the systems is that the lower your h'cap goes the more respective your h'cap is to someone in America's, or vice versa.

 

BTW, every course has a rating that is given by the national golfing body. At my course at its hardest it plays +2 to +3 over its actual par, and at its easiet -1, and that is taken into account for a score, and that is why it is a handicap, so that u have a handicap for ALL courses. At my othert course, it is much shorter and at its hardest it plays even and can play to -4 the course par. Occassionally, I would have to shoot 74 to break even with my h'cap.

[neeno120891]

thanks a lot guys.

the thing about in america being able to submit cards when not in competition is a big contributor to having a lower handicap as you do not have to wait until the weekend for a medal as you can just play when you like and still affect your handicap.

thanks for answering my question all of you.

[SJFP]

So can you just go out with your friends and submit your card after that round? Or do you need an official marker? Doesn't this make cheating extremely easy?

 

If that would be the case in Europe, i would've been a much better player today, handicap-wise that is. Generally speaking i play much better rounds when i'm with friends. I would easily be 3 to 4 "handicap-points" less than i am now.

[TexasAg]

thanks a lot guys.

the thing about in america being able to submit cards when not in competition is a big contributor to having a lower handicap as you do not have to wait until the weekend for a medal as you can just play when you like and still affect your handicap.

thanks for answering my question all of you.

 

In the US, we don't have weekly medals. If you only used tournament rounds, 98% of players wouldn't have a handicap and those that did would only be able to post 5 or 6 scores per year.