Competitions

[AndyS86]

Good afternoon everyone,

So I have recently become the Competitions Secretary for a very small club (180-odd members) which is quite varied in terms of age across both Men and Women and generally play is during the week rather than weekends strangely.

I have never held a position like this, but I'd like to try and do my best to make it quite interesting for everyone in terms of competitions to play in and not just have a standard stableford/medal every week or every other week which is how the club has set things up over the past year.

So my question is, if you were to be a competitions member for your golf club what would you add to make it more interesting and varied for the members? A betterball every now and then? Texas scramble etc? Or are you generally happy with a classic stableford and medal competition at your club?

No judgment either way, just trying to get a general consensus. Being quite a small club it's hard to ascertain if everyone is happy with how things are because generally speaking the entry numbers can be quite low for any given competition as a by product of so few members. Didn't want to set up a poll because I wasn't sure what options I'd include!

Thanks everyone!

 

[rulefan]

It's probably worth throwing in a few 4BBBs and maybe a match KO.

 

[2blue]

Good afternoon everyone,

So I have recently become the Competitions Secretary for a very small club (180-odd members) which is quite varied in terms of age across both Men and Women and generally play is during the week rather than weekends strangely.

I have never held a position like this, but I'd like to try and do my best to make it quite interesting for everyone in terms of competitions to play in and not just have a standard stableford/medal every week or every other week which is how the club has set things up over the past year.

So my question is, if you were to be a competitions member for your golf club what would you add to make it more interesting and varied for the members? A betterball every now and then? Texas scramble etc? Or are you generally happy with a classic stableford and medal competition at your club?

No judgment either way, just trying to get a general consensus. Being quite a small club it's hard to ascertain if everyone is happy with how things are because generally speaking the entry numbers can be quite low for any given competition as a by product of so few members. Didn't want to set up a poll because I wasn't sure what options I'd include!

Thanks everyone!

Welcome to the Forum, Andy. You should get lots of helpful suggestions here.
My 6p would be a format that I'd never played before last year & had never been played at the Club.
It's Greensomes & was extremely well-received to the point where we're having several during this next winter period. As both tee off on each tee & no limit to the number of tee shots chosen, there's little pressure there, though alternate shots follow. 3 or 4-man Texas is also well received.

 

[jim8flog]

Where I play (membership of over 800) singles play, either stableford or handicap stroke play are well supported at weekends and by the senior section for their regular Monday comps.
4BBB less so with many gaps on the booking sheet at weekends.
Weekday comps get relatively little support maybe up to 20 players.
Special events tend to get well supported e.g Captains Day and the format is varied.
Bowmakers (best 2 or 3 from 4 or progressive) get well supported
Texas or other scramble the same. Yellow ball similar
We get exceedingly little support for greensomes and I do not think we have had a foursomes this century.
Drawn partners in any format does not go down well, usually only about half the normal field with many usuals choosing to play the 9 hole course instead

There is definitely more support for stableford comps than handicap stroke play.

 

[Neilds]

Try and get partners involved by having a competition where the golfer plays all shots to the green and the non-golfer does the putting. This and other fun competitions now and again will keep people interested

 

[rulefan]

There is definitely more support for stableford comps than handicap stroke play.

Does that imply you don't play stableford as handicap competitions?

 

[rulefan]

Good afternoon everyone,

So I have recently become the Competitions Secretary for a very small club (180-odd members) which is quite varied in terms of age across both Men and Women and generally play is during the week rather than weekends strangely.

I have never held a position like this, but I'd like to try and do my best to make it quite interesting for everyone in terms of competitions to play in and not just have a standard stableford/medal every week or every other week which is how the club has set things up over the past year.

So my question is, if you were to be a competitions member for your golf club what would you add to make it more interesting and varied for the members? A betterball every now and then? Texas scramble etc? Or are you generally happy with a classic stableford and medal competition at your club?

No judgment either way, just trying to get a general consensus. Being quite a small club it's hard to ascertain if everyone is happy with how things are because generally speaking the entry numbers can be quite low for any given competition as a by product of so few members. Didn't want to set up a poll because I wasn't sure what options I'd include!

Thanks everyone!

As jim8flog says, bowmaker type (2 or 3 best stableford scores out of a group of 3 or 4 is a popular group game. It can take some pressure off weaker players and encourage them to enter.

 

[Skytot]

I want serious golf in the summer, Medals with the odd Stableford & Bogey . We save the fun comps until the winter .
Sorry I’m not much help

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Where I play (membership of over 800) singles play, either stableford or handicap stroke play are well supported at weekends and by the senior section for their regular Monday comps.
4BBB less so with many gaps on the booking sheet at weekends.
Weekday comps get relatively little support maybe up to 20 players.
Special events tend to get well supported e.g Captains Day and the format is varied.
Bowmakers (best 2 or 3 from 4 or progressive) get well supported
Texas or other scramble the same. Yellow ball similar
We get exceedingly little support for greensomes and I do not think we have had a foursomes this century.
Drawn partners in any format does not go down well, usually only about half the normal field with many usuals choosing to play the 9 hole course instead

There is definitely more support for stableford comps than handicap stroke play.

These formats are also generally popular at my place. We also run Mixed Greensomes or other similar format mixed comps on Bank Holidays and these are well supported. But we have a very active membership - both gents and ladies.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Try and get partners involved by having a competition where the golfer plays all shots to the green and the non-golfer does the putting. This and other fun competitions now and again will keep people interested

And this also - there is nothing stopping any of us inventing our own format that is appropriate to engaging the maximum numbers of members and formats aimed at involving non-member partners/family participants...fun competitions.

 

[Hobbit]

One of my fav competitions during winter, when it’s a bit cold and people want to keep moving, is Canadian Greensomes. Both tee off, then you hit your partner’s ball and he hits your ball. Then you choose which ball to finish the hole with.

With shorter days, later competition start times and twilight/dusk coming earlier + it can be really cold, It helps get the max amount of members around the course at a reasonable pace.

 

[jim8flog]

Does that imply you don't play stableford as handicap competitions?

no I said that way to differentiate between each type of stroke play competition where a handicap is used.

 

[Banchory Buddha]

We have one 4BBB & one Texas during the summer months, they are dreadfully poorly attended.

really for me, pairs and team events are winter games when you don't want to be putting cards in for h'cap

 

[AndyS86]

Some brilliant suggestions, thank you everyone.

I quite like the idea of having more 'fun' competitions over the winter to try and drum up a bit of enthusiasm for it where it wont affect everyones handicaps.

I'll definitely look into the other formats, formats like Bowmakers I've never even come across before!

As an aside, great idea on the non-golfer putting; I can remember playing in one of those a father/son pairing when I was a nipper and it was good fun.

Thanks everyone! If anyone has any other suggestions then please put them in!

 

[chico]

Good afternoon everyone,

So I have recently become the Competitions Secretary for a very small club (180-odd members) which is quite varied in terms of age across both Men and Women and generally play is during the week rather than weekends strangely.

I have never held a position like this, but I'd like to try and do my best to make it quite interesting for everyone in terms of competitions to play in and not just have a standard stableford/medal every week or every other week which is how the club has set things up over the past year.

So my question is, if you were to be a competitions member for your golf club what would you add to make it more interesting and varied for the members? A betterball every now and then? Texas scramble etc? Or are you generally happy with a classic stableford and medal competition at your club?

No judgment either way, just trying to get a general consensus. Being quite a small club it's hard to ascertain if everyone is happy with how things are because generally speaking the entry numbers can be quite low for any given competition as a by product of so few members. Didn't want to set up a poll because I wasn't sure what options I'd include!

Thanks everyone!

With such a small membership I'd be asking them what they want. Especially the one's that don't play in competitions.
Give them an email with suggestions you get on here.

 

[ntommo]

At our club anytime we put anything other than stableford or medals there isnt much interest to be honest. The medals arent that well supported either to be honest so we have the majority of our competitions as stableford as thats where the biggest entries are. Try a couple of different ones and see what the uptake is and also ask all the members what they would like to play. Just remember that whatever you do once youre in a golf club committee position youre there to be shot at. Sad but true

 

[BiMGuy]

Do split comps

When you have a medal, make the higher index bracket a stableford.

Have a separate comp on the day from a set of forward tees.

Personally, I don’t play too many comps as I have no interest in winning a few £ worth of shop credit. Mostly because I know I am not competing in a level playing field. So I play in a few medals and some of the bigger comps and stick mostly to the match play, where I can keep an eye on my opponent.

I do enjoy a game of foursomes, again it has to be a medal not stableford.

The fewer scrambles the better. To me they are the worst format of golf and take far too long. They are good at getting juniors involved in the game and that is about it.

Make sure members who don’t want to play in weekly competitions aren’t excluded from playing whenever they want.

 

[Banchory Buddha]

The fewer scrambles the better. To me they are the worst format of golf and take far too long. They are good at getting juniors involved in the game and that is about it.

 

[Swango1980]

The fewer scrambles the better. To me they are the worst format of golf and take far too long. They are good at getting juniors involved in the game and that is about it.

I love a scramble, even though I feel the WHS handicap calculations are now a load of rubbish

Sure, I wouldn't recommend overloading on them, but perhaps 2 or 3 a year isn't excessive to most, and many will find them quite enjoyable. The higher handicappers should adore them, the amount of shots they get these days on that format

 

[RichA]

I love a scramble, even though I feel the WHS handicap calculations are now a load of rubbish

Sure, I wouldn't recommend overloading on them, but perhaps 2 or 3 a year isn't excessive to most, and many will find them quite enjoyable. The higher handicappers should adore them, the amount of shots they get these days on that format

I like a scramble. We have 2 per year and my pals and I maybe do another couple informally.
The high handicappers don't get that many shots, the way that the team HI is calculated. The highest team handicap for our last scramble was 11 (HIs of 16, 18 and 24).
And it's no slower than an average 3-ball comp.