Disparity between USGA Course/Slope DB and Printed Card. Who wins?

[Imp]

Have a question come up on strokes available. Course Handicap is different between the USGA Course/Slope DB (also, the "App" because it uses what's in the DB) vs what's printed on the course card. Who wins? USGA or the card? For this example, a certain tee (blues) has the following... 

 

USGA: 68.4/120

Card:  68.8/119

 

Index is 2.9

 

USGA using what's in the DB, the player would have a CH of 1. 

Card, the player would have a CH of 2. 

 

Does the player get a stroke on the 2 hole or not?

Edited November 8, 2020 by Imp

[Sawgrass]

39 minutes ago, Imp said:

Have a question come up on strokes available. Course Handicap is different between the USGA Course/Slope DB (also, the "App" because it uses what's in the DB) vs what's printed on the course card. Who wins? USGA or the card? For this example, a certain tee (blues) has the following... 

 

USGA: 68.4/120

Card:  68.8/119

 

Index is 2.9

 

USGA using what's in the DB, the player would have a CH of 1. 

Card, the player would have a CH of 2. 

 

Does the player get a stroke on the 2 hole or not?

I’d ask the course about the discrepancy.  Often they do not throw away pre-printed cards when a new evaluation is completed. Absent any further information, I’d go with the slope/rating that you find on a posting app, such as GHIN.

[DaveLeeNC]

I'm with Sawgrass on this. The database is easily the most reliable source of information. I have watched many transitions in printed scorecards, and the old cards generally don't go away until they are used up. The club does its best to time such things with USGA actions, but that is impossible to do accurately. 

 

And then there are the cases where a stack of old cards are found somewhere and they just show up on the course. 

 

An inquiry to the club is worth doing (assuming that you can find a person who actually has knowledge here), but absent other information the USGA database is 'the boss'. 

 

And note that it is the database #'s that will be used for determining differentials when you post scores. And the same thing is true if if you follow the preferred USGA posting practice of posting hole by hole scores (re: NDB max scores).

 

dave

[Imp]

Exactly how I understanding it too. Thanks.

 

--kC

[Augster]

USGA database. It will have the most recent information. Sometimes a day after the course is re-rated. 
 

Scorecards aren’t going to change until they are all gone.