Course record new rules

[mini_me]

I been wondering about course records at everyone’s golf course.

When does a player set a new course record given the major changes to the rules of golf.


That is significant changes to the type of penalty areas going from yellow to red, or extending or removing out of bounds. New plugged ball rule change, drop within a club length not as close to where the ball lay. Dropping from knee height. Relief area when taking relief.

Also if a club decides that it should be a course record would you consider that the player with the lowest gross score in the first qualifying competition of the season, would set a new course record.

When playing to the new rules should this first comp guarantee a new course record regardless of their gross score??

Or maybe the lowest gross score during the new season sets a new course record??

Looking forward to your thoughts 👍

 

[IanM]

That’s an interesting thought....

...not one I heard mentioned. I’m wondering if our record will stand as if for no other reason, I bet there were no drops or penalties in them!

 

[KenL]

No need to have a new course record with what are minimal changes to scoring.

I doubt (m)any course records were set where penalties or drops were involved.

 

[mini_me]

No need to have a new course record with what are minimal changes to scoring.

I doubt (m)any course records were set where penalties or drops were involved.

We had our course record broken with a penalty drop from water on the 18th par 3 the player made a five but broke the record by 1. The record was then broken again last year don’t think there were any penalty drops in that round though.

 

[Bunkermagnet]

Course record is only reset if there are major changes to the course or it's layout, well at my course anyway.
As for setting a new record, if the round is played fully under the current rules then it stands.

 

[KenL]

We had our course record broken with a penalty drop from water on the 18th par 3 the player made a five but broke the record by 1. The record was then broken again last year don’t think there were any penalty drops in that round though.

Interesting. The new rules would still require a 1 shot penalty in this case so result would be unchanged.

So round of golf to have a double bogey and still set a course record.

 

[nickjdavis]

I don't believe that dropping from knee height offers any significant advantage compared to shoulder height and even if there were an advantage I could see that being offset by the fact that you now have a 1 club length defined relief area which the ball has to stay in, rather than having the ability to roll a further two club lengths.....swings - roundabouts.

Plugged balls are not likely to be an issue in the summer when it is highly likely that most clubs course records will be set.

The additional relief option that a red penalty area provides a golfer isn't likely to give an advantage to a player that he didn't have before and if it does then its quite possible that the course was badly marked before. (We had a prime example of this with a 90 degree dogleg going round a lake...the entire lake was marked as a yellow area but it was quite possible to drive to the dogleg and then shank a ball 45 degrees into the lake....under the yellow penalty area your likely dropping point could have been some 75 yards back from where you played the shank from. Its now been remarked as a red penalty area in its entirety. Many clubs simply haven't even made the change.... I played at a course last weekend where the local rules on the back of the card still refer to the old rules and numbers....still states that stones in bunkers are moveable obstructions.....no signage anywhere inside the clubhouse to suggest the LR's on the card are no longer relevant.

In short...I don't think the new rules overall have made the game harder or easier and there is no justification to warrant "resetting" of the course record.

If there are fundamental changes to the layout of the course then that perhaps is another matter.

 

[Grant85]

I saw a stat that listed a load of European Tour scoring records... think it was guys with 9 birdies in a row.

Monty and one other, Goosen?, had asterixes against their name.

The asterix was for preferred lies. So I guess people do remember these things on occasions where the rules may be to someones advantage.

However, I reckon the rule about being able to repair the putting surfaces will have a bigger impact on the professionals and we will lead to guys finding the odd shot here or there. The dropping rule, not so much.

 

[duncan mackie]

I been wondering about course records at everyone’s golf course.

When does a player set a new course record given the major changes to the rules of golf.

Absolutely no change involved.

Your biggest clue is that no one has suggested that all the courses in the world should suddenly be 're rated for these 'major' changes - they simply aren't that significant.

Way more significance in the position of the tees, the moisture levels on the greens, fairway bounce and pin positions. Even where there's massive evidence of ease, or difficulty, no one adjusts a score for course record purposes ie CSS goes +3 and a player shoots 1 higher than the current course record shot during an event where it was SSS -1... solid case for the latter score to represent a better achievement; but irrelevant.

 

[fundy]

congrats on shooting the lowest gross score in your first comp of the year, well played, but sadly not a new course record

 

[KenL]

Course records have never counted when preferred lies are in use.

 

[BubbaP]

If any new rules came in to make scoring significantly more difficult (e.g perhaps a major change in ball spec) then could perhaps follow resetting records. But the OP doesn't seem to be suggesting this.
If there is a perception that new rules might make a lower score easier, then crack on and beat the old record.

 

[Doon frae Troon]

I had one of the shortest course records in history.
After alterations and re-measuring at our course I played in the first qualifier and shot a level par 72.
Lasted about a month. Did not even merit a name on the board.

 

[Wolf]

I had one of the shortest course records in history.
After alterations and re-measuring at our course I played in the first qualifier and shot a level par 72.
Lasted about a month. Did not even merit a name on the board.

I remember playing in a 36 hole comp at my first ever club, in the morning our club Champ set new course record by the afternoon one of our juniors had beaten that score

 

[Scozzy]

I'm more interested in the changes to equipment/course maintenance etc than the rules, impressive to think quite a few fantastic scores up on boards around the country still hold their own considering the old clubs,balls and comparative lack of greenkeepers tech to assist in lovely putting surfaces and far superior bunkering now Vs back in the day