4BBB 50pts obscene?

[Twire]

I played in a 4BBB open at Dartmouth golf club yesterday. It's a very hilly and tight course.

3/4 Handicap, I play off 17 so had 13 shots, my mate plays off 7 so had 5 shots. We both played very solid golf, and we reckon there was about a 2 club wind and very slick greens. Analysing our game afterwards we thought we left about 3-4 points out there. We came in with a respectable 38 pts but thought we could have got around 42ish. We looked at the score board and there were some 42's 43's and a 45 and we thought fair play 45 will win in and that would be cracking golf, until someone came in with 50pts. Now 50 pts is 14 under, and considering it was 3/4 h'cap these chaps gave 4 shots, which in real terms meant they played 18 under h'cap between them. My question is, is 50pts the norm for these kind of events, or did they just get lucky?

On the way home my mate and I just kept looking at each other and saying 50pts and laughing.



Edit...Just like to add. This cost us £22 each, which included coffee on arrival, a game on a terific course, a carvery and a pint when we got in. Fantastic value and a great day..............see who said I'm bitter.

 

[USER1999]

I have played in this sort of thing before, and never again. If it is your home course, and all have h/cap certs, fair enough, but an open, no way. Last one I was in was won by two taxi drivers, who scored 53. Their playing partners, also taxi drivers scored 51. So 4 guys all played massively below their h/caps on the same day. Yeah, right.

45 ish is an awesome score, and should win every time. We are playing 4BBB tomorrow, and if there is anything over a 43 I will be surprised.

 

[EchtLoon]

That is a huge score, and off 3/4 h'cap, seemingly too big imo.

Thing is you can just never tell, I played a Greensomes one year (Kintore for those from north-east) with my mate, he was off 6, and I was 9 at the time. We had one of those days, included a holed 7 iron for an eagle 2, and I think 4 birdies.

We grossed 69, 1 under par, and walked the handicap by 5 shots, thing is we won the scratch prize, for probably the first and last time in my life. Yet despite winning the scratch prize, my speech was met with a lot of angry/suspicious glares, which I would understand if we won the handiocap, but come on guys, we won the scracth here.

I still think 50 is huge though, almost too huge.

 

[bobmac]

I know of a similar incident several years ago where the team was made up of father, mother and 2 sons. The following year, family teams were not allowed.
Twire, what was first net prize? Not a sleeve of balls each I'd wager
I wonder what the bandits who scored 45 pts will be thinking

 

[Smiffy]

I recently played in a BB Stableford Charity day at Bearwood Lakes...3/4 handicap.
Winning score was 41 points, 2nd was 40 and 3rd 39.
We had 39 but missed out on countback.
50 points does seem a bit excessive.
I have attended the Highwoods Mens Invitation day (as a guest) for the past 5 years or more.
Same format.
Highest score I've ever witnessed there was 44 points which won it about 3 years ago. That score was considered "Bandit" country off of 3/4's handicap

 

[Adrena1in]

I don't think that sounds too unreasonable to be honest. One of the first inter-club comps I played in was a 3BBB, me on 16, one of my partners on 16, the other on 21 or something...I think we were playing off a combined 10.6, but went round in something like only 2 or 3 over, (gross). The winners got 47.6 points, (.6?!), and the next two places were tied on 47 points I believe, (but one group beat the other on countback.)

 

[3offTheTee]

When the new CONGU system comes in next year people with Inactive handicaps should not be allowed to play in Open Comps.

This should prevent these scores. However sure some clubs will turn a blind eye as they need the money.

 

[freddielong]

I can remember when I was 15 shooting -5 playing of 4 for 45 points, and loosing to a junior who had 49 points so althrough a very good score 50 is doable

 

[mikeyh]

Dartmouth is such a nice course, some amazing holes along the cliffside and over water. Good scores for such a tough course!

 

[RGDave]

I used to play in 4bbb opens and always enjoyed them. Nice courses, good games for about 1/2 normal green fee.
50 is a bit unusual i.m.o. but on the occasions we made 44 or so, we were never in the running.
It's just one of those things, there will often be 2 x 18 (or so) h'caps who each score heavily (maybe not at the same time on the same hole) but manage to sneak in net birdies all over the place. It's easier to make a 10 foot birdie when your partner has holed out for a par/net birdie.

 

[freddielong]

I can remember when I was 15 shooting -5 playing of 4 for 45 points, and loosing to a junior who had 49 points so althrough a very good score 50 is doable

Sorry just read the OP again, 50 off 3/4 is a ridculous score, are they honourable gentlemen, as there score is almost to good.

 

[USER1999]

I don't see how you can have a 0.6 in a stableford. In stroke play 4BBB (or greensomes/foursomes) then you can go decimal to sort out placings, but not in Stableford.

 

[Herbie]

These opens show just how dodgy it can be in golf sometimes.
Logic would dictate that players playing to h/c would produce no more than 36 points, a couple of players comming in a handful of shots under would make the 40s, but to make scores in the 50s off reduced h/c is beyond belief sometimes.

What makes things worse is when you know some of those involved, and know their h/c is incorrect or their play not up to the score posted. I avoid such comps like the plague, though I did get my arm twisted to play in one as a favour about 6 yrs ago, and 41 points I thought was a very good score and might get into the winners enclosure, but my dreams were dashed on the jagged rocks of despair once again when 10th place had 46 and winners had 54! This too was 3/4 h/c.

I am sad to say that this format in open comp is more a measure of the level of cheating than good golf,either by having the wrong h/c or by actions on the course, simply because of the number of high scores not just the odd one.

 

[Adrena1in]

I guess I still don't understand how it all works then. I wasn't at all surprised in the 3BBB I played in that some groups were going round well under gross par. My group's combined h/c was 10.6, but we were only 1 or 2 over at the end, so that in itself was a combined score of around 45 stableford.

Best score I've seen in a standard stableford rollup match was the other day, when 47 was the winning score!

 

[Imurg]

Its difficult to score that well but not impossible. Just say I get 9 shots and I par all 9 of my shot holes. That's 27 points already with no help from my playing partner.

I've played in a 4BBB matchplay at Magnolia Park in Bucks with a mate who was off 23. He parred the front 9! We were 5 up and he'd scored 27 points. I was a bystander. On the back 9 he reverted to standard and I took over. We won convincingly and I came in with 21 on the back. So it can happen. A couple more pars and we'd have made 50.

Our handicaps were completely genuine.

 

[Twire]

I guess I still don't understand how it all works then. I wasn't at all surprised in the 3BBB I played in that some groups were going round well under gross par. My group's combined h/c was 10.6, but we were only 1 or 2 over at the end, so that in itself was a combined score of around 45 stableford.

Best score I've seen in a standard stableford rollup match was the other day, when 47 was the winning score!

To be honest Tim, I've never played a 3BBB before, but I assume it's the best score from the 3 that goes down on the card. With a 4BBB it's the best score from 2 that goes down, so straight away I'd say your 3BBB has a 33% better chance of a good score.

But I still believe 2 players between them playing 18 under handicap on a tricky course with the wind blowing, is a hell of a score.

 

[Adrena1in]

To be honest Tim, I've never played a 3BBB before, but I assume it's the best score from the 3 that goes down on the card.

In the one I played in we all drove off, then picked up the two worse shots and all played one each from where the best ball lay. And so on. I thought this was what was meant as a Better Ball competition. (Can't believe that on one hole we bogied it after hitting the green in regulation - none of us got the first putt, none of us got the second putt either!!)

 

[Imurg]

That's a Texas Scramble Tim - not quite the same. Ought to score better in that format than 4BBB

 

[EchtLoon]

That's a Texas Scramble Tim - not quite the same. Ought to score better in that format than 4BBB

Was just going to say that must be a scramble if they had a speciifc handicap to play to, and yes a 3 man scramble should score much much lower than 4BBB

 

[Twire]

To be honest Tim, I've never played a 3BBB before, but I assume it's the best score from the 3 that goes down on the card.

In the one I played in we all drove off, then picked up the two worse shots and all played one each from where the best ball lay. And so on. I thought this was what was meant as a Better Ball competition. (Can't believe that on one hole we bogied it after hitting the green in regulation - none of us got the first putt, none of us got the second putt either!!)

As Imurg said, that's a Texas scramble, and also explaines where the .6 comes from. Handicap is normaly a percentage of the combined. With this format, most teams will be shooting under gross, and I have seen winning scores in the mid 50's