By Kelly Neely, Sr. Dir., Handicapping & Course Rating
Click Here for Handicap Hub Archives

The Yin and Yang of Handicapping

Do you find it annoying when someone says “What do you want first: the good news or the bad news?” Not sure about you, but since I already know there’s going to be some bad news delivered, it pretty much sours any pleasant feelings that will occur from the good news. It doesn’t necessarily matter what order it comes in.

But since we’re talking about golf here, how bad can the bad news really be (Barring say, a rotator cuff injury that keeps you off the course for 6 months)? Caveat: note that this is the Handicap Hub column so if you’re a regular reader you already know that after I babble through my intro we’re going to segue into fascinating yet complex subject matter that can baffle and bewilder, and even cause some to shake their fists. But instead of tagging the Handicap System simplistically as “Bad News, Good News” let’s call it something different – the Yin and Yang of Handicapping – the two sides, the push and pull, the give and take.

Your club’s Handicap Chair wears both a White Hat and a Black Hat
The most thankless job at the club, the position of Handicap Chair requires an individual of steadfast character and integrity who is willing to give up any hope of ever winning a popularity contest to instead wear a Sheriff’s badge. If that isn’t difficult enough, they’ve got to take (and pass) a test. With math questions! Like that favorite high-school teacher you remember fondly and were a bit scared of, a great Handicap Chair is knowledgeable on their subject matter, and skilled at diplomacy and communication. And they also possess an uncanny knack for influencing even the most stubborn golfers to adjust correctly and post their scores.

The Chair is also purely a volunteer member who eschews earnings, and – not that you would ever consider it in a million years – you might as well forget offering bribes. According to the USGA “any individual who receives payment or compensation for performing the duties of a member of the Handicap Committee, including the Handicap Chairperson, is deemed to be an employee and as such is not eligible to serve as the Handicap Chairperson.”

Some prefer not to mention the ‘P’ word – Power – when highlighting this crucial role, but I put it right out there! Truthfully, the Handicap Chair wields considerable power as you can see from the ‘Black Hat duties’ listed below. While golf is a game of honor, when it comes to handicapping, we still need some adult supervision.

• White Hat duties include:  Providing handicap education, organizing play, maintaining handicap records, creating an atmosphere at the club where players are comfortable asking questions and can both openly and privately discuss handicapping issues, adjusting the Handicap Indexes upward of players who have suffered injuries.
• Black Hat duties include:  Auditing rounds played vs. scores posted, posting penalty scores for players’ who fail to post scores, modifying Indexes that don’t match performance, withdrawing Indexes of players who repeatedly fail to meet their responsibilities under the Handicap System.
   

You can choose to quit during your lousy round, but you’ve still got to post your score
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not suggesting you abandon your round because your game is tanking. Your friends probably won’t let you get away with it anyway, at least not without a little shaming. But if you find the whole world as well as the little white ball is against you, please post your score as you’re cutting your losses. You can ditch your pride, but not your score! As long as you played seven holes, you have a nine hole score to post, and if you played at least 13, you must post 18. Simply post par plus any handicap strokes you are entitled to on the remaining holes.

You can play it forward but you’re going to give up strokes
As your younger, more athletic sibling annoyingly taunts you from the tips, you can smile like a Cheshire Cat knowing you will enjoy your round from the front tees, thank you very much. Life is good playing it forward – stress- and ego-free, the birds are singing and you’re at one with the golf course.

Not meaning to disturb this peaceful little picture, but you’ll have to have to spot your partner a few strokes to keep it fair and on the up-and-up. Whenever you introduce two or more course ratings in competition (yes, even in a friendly round), an extra adjustment must be made to create equity. Simply take the difference between the ratings, with .5 or greater rounded up, and add this number of strokes to the Course Handicap of the Annoying Sibling. I have complete confidence you’ll find a way to punish him later.

You can anchor your club during a stroke but you’ve got to call yourself on the penalty AND post your score
Many golfers were up in arms when the anchoring rule came into effect because they mistakenly interpreted it as a “ban” on long putters. Nope. Rule of Golf 10.1b has everything to do with the way in which the golfer makes a stroke, and is not an equipment rule. But where does handicapping come in?

If the player anchors the club while making a stroke, a two-stroke penalty must be assessed for the breach of rule and the score must still be posted. What if you’re really going rogue and not only anchored but failed to record a penalty? Only then does the score become unacceptable for handicap purposes.

You can escape Oregon winters for Arizona, but you still have to post your scores
As our weather deteriorates in late fall the lucky Snowbirds fly off to greener (not really greener as Oregon is nothing if not green, so we’ll just say different) pastures and sunnier climates of Arizona and Southern California. Even though the OGA must declare an off-season during December through February, members traveling to sunbelt states still must post scores made in those areas anytime.

Our off-season is set because our course’s ratings do not hold up during inclement conditions, but this has nothing to do with courses down south. An easy interpretation of this scenario is – posting scores has to do with where you are playing, not where you are from.