Home club handicap vs travelling

[Highfade]

How do you feel your home club handicap stands up when travelling to an unfamiliar course?

I would imagine the majority of club players play their own course 90+% of their annual rounds.
How do you fair when you venture into unknown territory?

For me, that is the test of what your handicap truly is. If you can play close to it on a different course then it’s probably accurate.
Travelling is essential to validating your handicap.

Do you feel your handicap is accurate.
Sometimes there’s a feeling that there’s a difference between plying well and scoring well.
Where do you stand on this?

 

[nickjdavis]

Disagree.

Largely the WHS now compensates for the relative difficulty of courses through the slope and CR-Par functions. Sure there will always be exceptions but, by and large the WHS does a far better job than the old Congu UHS (which actually didn't do a job at all) in respect of accounting for different course difficulties.

I was always an advocate, when our club members had a social away day, of adjusting our Congu UHS handicaps by the difference in SSS between our course, and the course we were playing.

No need now with WHS.

Playing isolated rounds on an away course is not a validation of your handicap. Many shots would be lost simply through unfamiliarity, not because your handicap wasn't accurate.

I think if you played 20 rounds on your "home" course and then 20 rounds on an "away" course you wouldn't see vastly different scoring differentials when the rounds were considered as a whole.

 

[AussieKB]

Disagree.

Largely the WHS now compensates for the relative difficulty of courses through the slope and CR-Par functions. Sure there will always be exceptions but, by and large the WHS does a far better job than the old Congu UHS (which actually didn't do a job at all) in respect of accounting for different course difficulties.

I was always an advocate, when our club members had a social away day, of adjusting our Congu UHS handicaps by the difference in SSS between our course, and the course we were playing.

No need now with WHS.

Playing isolated rounds on an away course is not a validation of your handicap. Many shots would be lost simply through unfamiliarity, not because your handicap wasn't accurate.

I think if you played 20 rounds on your "home" course and then 20 rounds on an "away" course you wouldn't see vastly different scoring differentials when the rounds were considered as a whole.

My 20 rounds on away course are better then my 20 at either of the two courses I am a member, one by a little and one by a huge amount.

 

[DickInShorts]

It’s quite noticeable in our Seniors friendly matches (4BBB)that the home club has a distinct advantage.

We have several instances of losing away 6 -0 only to win by the same score in the return match!

Under the old CSS system you’d almost always find that the away CSS was at least 1strome higher than the home CSS - so I suspect that statistically there is a definite advantage playing your home course.

 

[nickjdavis]

It’s quite noticeable in our Seniors friendly matches (4BBB)that the home club has a distinct advantage.

We have several instances of losing away 6 -0 only to win by the same score in the return match!

Under the old CSS system you’d almost always find that the away CSS was at least 1strome higher than the home CSS - so I suspect that statistically there is a definite advantage playing your home course.

There is always a home advantage when playing matchplay....but that isn't because the away teams handicaps are not accurate or "do not travel" well..

 

[jim8flog]

Pre WHS I used to play using the Dorset County card a lot plus Opens at various courses in this area over many years.

I used to know what course I could expect to play to , over or lower than my handicap.

e.g. Having played Burnham and Berrow many times I have only played to my handicap there once. The first time I played to par gross (8 under my home handicap) was at Bulbury Woods (old layout).

The WHS is supposed to have evened this out but I do really doubt it looking at some of the ratings etc. E.g B&B purple (old yellow) has the same slope rating but with a higher course rating so I do 'gain' a couple shots on my handicap. We often lose our Seniors Match there and they often win at our course

There is nothing better than course knowledge though. I use to reckon on dropping a few shots on the greens when playing a course for the first time.

 

[Orikoru]

My home course is rated 'easy' simply because it is short (5500 yards). It has plenty of tight tee shots and perilous greens, so losing two shots off my index feels like a kick in the teeth. Consequently, I often go to away courses, receive two or three shots more than I do at my home course, and then find the course much easier in addition to that because the fairways are wider and the greens are easier. So yes, my handicap travels well in that sense.

I've put general play cards in at a lot of away courses this year, and as a result:
- four of my 'best eight' rounds are from away courses
- my best three score differentials are all from away courses

So if anything I struggle to play to my handicap at home now. When I play there tomorrow I'll need to shoot 77 to earn 36 points (the layman's understanding of 'playing to one's handicap'). 77 is the best I've ever shot at my home course, having achieved it only twice.

 

[Highfade]

My home course is rated 'easy' simply because it is short (5500 yards). It has plenty of tight tee shots and perilous greens, so losing two shots off my index feels like a kick in the teeth. Consequently, I often go to away courses, receive two or three shots more than I do at my home course, and then find the course much easier in addition to that because the fairways are wider and the greens are easier. So yes, my handicap travels well in that sense.

I've put general play cards in at a lot of away courses this year, and as a result:
- four of my 'best eight' rounds are from away courses
- my best three score differentials are all from away courses

So if anything I struggle to play to my handicap at home now. When I play there tomorrow I'll need to shoot 77 to earn 36 points (the layman's understanding of 'playing to one's handicap'). 77 is the best I've ever shot at my home course, having achieved it only twice.

Good luck!
Doubtful I’ll get to play tomorrow.
-4 here today

 

[Orikoru]

Good luck!
Doubtful I’ll get to play tomorrow.
-4 here today

Yeah it's raining and bloody windy as well, but it still beats a day shopping with the missus.

 

[AussieKB]

24C forecast here with a chance of rain, which we hope for at this time of year.

 

[Highfade]

24C forecast here with a chance of rain, which we hope for at this time of year.

Jealous