New World Handicap System

[Augster]

If his lowest differential is 8.6, there’s no way his cap can be 7.6. Something hasn’t been figured correctly.

[DaveLeeNC]

Could be a PCC adjustment.

FWIW, that is a huge swing from best to worst over just 4 rounds.

dave

[rogolf]

The facts are what the facts are. If those are the scores he achieved and correctly reported, the result is correct.

[tungstenplug]

 

If he had 4 scores posted and lowest differential was 8.6...his handicap index = 7.6

This is the chart that breaks down the handicap calculations if you have under 20 rounds posted

You need to have 3 scores posted to have an official handicap

You need 7 scores posted to avoid any automatic adjustments

[Halebopp]

That would be another one of the regional and national differences within the WHS. For us it's otherwise the same but one round is enough for a handicap and one or two scores are handled the same way as three scores - the best differential is used and further two strokes are subtracted from it.

[DaveLeeNC]

FWIW if this golfer were to continue this highly unusual scoring pattern of diff's of 8.6, 15.4, 28.0, 38.7 and repeat ad infinitum, he would end up with about an 11.5 index.

dave

[nsxguy]

I get 11.2. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

[DaveLeeNC]

You are correct. Mis-typed in my calculator on one entry.

And I did not consider the soft cap implications here. While I don't see any unfairness in the 7.6 based on four scores, there would seem to me to be a fairness issue WRT soft cap limitations which would apply in this case if he starts out with a 7.6.

dave

[DFinch]

It's correct due to the low number of submitted scores. For 4 scores entered, the index is the lowest differential -1 (see page 49 below). OP: Your option for your friendly money rounds is to either negotiate an adjustment upward or stick to the calculation as he adds more rounds. He's shown his potential with that 8.6 differential. If you, say, agreed on his average at 22 and he shot another 8.6 you're looking at a net 59 or 60 depending on course rating. Nobody wants that.

 

[nsxguy]

Not being an expert of any kind regarding either the Rules or Handicapping and reading your post about the soft cap got me thinking applying either soft or hard cap mightn't be very fair to someone just beginning to establish a handicap. So I went looking.

Couldn't find anything in the USGA but in 2 "STATE" publications found the following.

Florida - "The soft cap and hard cap procedures only start to take effect once a player has at least 20 acceptable scores in their scoring record.

Southern California - "A Low Handicap Index will be established once a player has at least 20 acceptable scores in their scoring record. At this point, the soft cap and hard cap procedures will begin taking effect."

I'm guessing it IS somewhere in the USGA Handicapping Rules but I couldn't find it there............

[DaveLeeNC]

Thanks - had not seen that. dave

[Philomathesq]

For our game yesterday, we agreed on 18, as that is what we believe his true average to be. It didn’t matter, though, as he shot a 101. It was a very weird round. He was even after four (two pars, one birdie, one bogey) and then had back to back quadruple bogeys on 5 and 6, and ended up 14 over after 9 and was 14 over on the back 9 with no pars.

[Newby]

See Clauses 5.2c and 5.8(i)

[DFinch]

Page 55 mirrors your state examples for determine “low handicap index” (20 rounds). Page 57 sets the movement cap rules which rely on having established a 20 round low handicap index.

in other words, the chart is used without caps until 20 rounds are played.

 

[Mudguard]

So if you know each other's games, how do you factor in seasonal variability or if one chap doesn't play for a few weeks etc?

[BlackDiamondPar5]

You're going to have to make adjustments till he has enough rounds for a true handicap, which keeps getting more accurate as he moves toward 20 posted scores.

I run an annual multi-day tournament with friends. Last year we had one guy with a new HC in the Ghin and of course it was based on his two awesome rounds and everyone agreed that wouldn't be a fair number. So we used league scores, did the math to adjust it to a comparable Ghin with 20 rounds. It all worked out just fine.

[SNIPERBBB]

If you know the players game you know then what to do...

[Mudguard]

Surely if you know the player's game then you know if their handicap is accurate?

[GolfCsty]

I think my handicap calculation is wrong. I’m waiting on a reply from my state golf association but figured I’d put it out here for feedback too.

I was a 0.8 before Jan 1, 2020. There has been a glitch in the handicap system since Jan 1 which has resulted in my handicap displaying as NH despite a full scoring history. This has recently been resolved but new index is 4.8 with avg strokes over par at 5.9. The over par calculation is correct but has been heavily influenced by terrible play since posting season began in March this year. Five rounds posted in 2020 and I haven’t broken 80. I’m probably not even playing to a 4.8 at the moment but that’s beside the point.

My full scoring history still exists and my lowest 8 scores in relation to par have an avg of 1.13 over par and they’re not on courses with low ratings. Avg diff on those scores is 0.56. Anybody have a good explanation for why my handicap index could be 4.8? Is it possible 2020 scores are weighed heavier? Or does this seem off? With recent scores I expected index to go up a bit because it kicked out 2 sub par rounds but this jump seems extreme.

 

[DaveLeeNC]

There are (at last count) 24,759,811 sandbaggers anxiously awaiting the answer to this question

Based on what you have stated it would appear that something is amiss here - but I have no idea.

dave

[GolfCsty]

Hahaha! I will gladly take this 4.8 to any net competition right now but still don’t think 4 strokes is enough to overcome some sandbaggers.

[HatsForBats]

Do you have the GHIN App? Go to the Stats page and change the Dropdown box to 'Revision Scores'. What are the differentials of the scores with Asterisks next to them?

[GolfCsty]

Thanks for the info. I believe I do have a GHIN but don’t know how to find it. Anyway, I did look at the revisions on my profile. Revision this year are 3/28 = NH, 3/31 = NH, 5/16 = NH, and 5/19 = 4.8. I clicked on the 5/19 revision and only my three most recent scores are listed and the one with the lowest diff (6.8) is the only one with an asterisk next to it. I couldn’t even click into the other three NH revisions

This explains what’s going on. It takes a minimum of three scores to get a handicap and that’s what it’s done. Somehow only my last three scores are seen by the calculation.

State association hasn’t gotten back to me yet (probably because I’ve been bugging them since March because of the NH) so I’ll follow up with this information and see if this helps them. They should probably backup my scores, delete my profile, and start fresh.

[davep043]

If you have a record of your last 20 (or more) scores, including slope and CR, you should probably preserve it, in case its truly lost. Those scores really should be used in calculating your current handicap. I know that in GHIN they've retained all scores back to around 2008, but handicap history before Jan 1 has been erased.

[GolfCsty]

Yep, I’ve got scores back to 2011 in there. I was planning on recording them all in case this thing goes sideways. Unfortunately there’s not an easy export option so gonna have to find time to sit down, click into each one, and record the info. If I have to go that route I’m only going to capture last 25 rounds. No way am I recording all scores back to 2011 by hand.

[davep043]

The handicap chair or pro should be able to access it all through the admin portal in ghin. They may be able to export it as a spreadsheet, I'll try to remember to check tomorrow.

[GolfCsty]

State association confirmed my handicap is not correct but they have to forward the issue on to GolfNet to get it fixed.

[GolfCsty]

Thanks everyone for input. Everything seems to be all set now. GolfNet had to manually sync score history from prior to 2020. Sitting at a 1.2 now which is much more what I expected. I’ve been playing horrible (for me at least) but the handicap jump I saw was too drastic.

[trilerian]

Do you still have to belong to club to get a number? Looks like The Grint Isn’t giving away free handicaps anymore. Since I only play one tournament a year that needs a legit index, I just used the The Grint and posted scores. I guess the question is, can I buy a number somewhere? Just FYI, my home course does not offer this either. I guess if it is too much trouble though, I’ll just skip that metro, usually nothing but frustration anyway.

[davep043]

The Grint offers a paid service for a USGA Handicap. Another option is to find the website for your State or Regional Association, see if there is a local course that offers handicap services, or if the Association offers them directly. You have to belong to a "club", but that club can be of the online variety.