How often should you shoot to your H'cap?

[turbowoowoo]

I have just joined a new club and submitted three cards to get my initial handicap (16). I have nbeen a nomadic golfer for many years and usually shoot between 10 and 22 over.

Saturday I played with some new members on an 'easy' course and shot 13 over (39 Points) - 24 on the back 9!!

Now, I didnt play particularly well, but with winter tees and some good putting , I shot low for my handicap.

I want to enter some comps but dont want to be known as a bandit if this happens again(24 points back 9). And between me and the internet, I feel I could shoot 6 or 7 shots better on thsi course....

Do winter tees count in handicaps? I know when the summer comes the rough will make the course twice as hard.

 

[Doh]

For a round of golf to count towards your handicap it has to be a messured course or within so many yards of the original.I can;t remember how much someone on here will tell you. It usually has to be a qualifier unless you are doing it for handicap purpose which you have to state first.
I think most of that is right.

 

[MashieNiblick]

I think there are some stats that suggest generally people should play to their handicap 20-25% of the time.


In our qualifing comps 39 points is pretty common and would rarely win you anything unless the weather was bad. 40-42 points is a common winning score and our members have very genuine h/caps.

3 under your h/c won't get anyone thinking you are a bandit. Qualifying rounds on full course are a different beast to friendlies anyway so I wouldn't worry.

If you shoot 6 or 7 under regularly your handicap will soon start coming down. People should realise that this can easily happen when someone gets a first h/c. It's people off 22 who shoot 78 gross in the big events that get people grumbling.

 

[Ethan]

Someone with a stable handicap will probably beat or equal handicap 20 or 25% of the time. A new player who is improving fast (or asandbagger) may exceed that. Players might also do a bit better in casual play.

 

[brendy]

Generally on parkland courses (mostly affected by the winter weather), shorter winter courses are a lot easier. This year I think I have failed to make my handicap twice. That isnt to say I have won much either, but having the option to reach a couple of the par 4's with a good drive makes things easier, certainly at our course anyway. All of our par 5's have been marked down to par 4's and SI's adjusted accordingly.

 

[Region3]

You say it's an easy course, and on winter tees. Does it have an SSS, and what is it compared to par?

 

[USER1999]

My last eleven rounds were way under handicap. Not boasting, it's just the course is playing short due to the positions of the winter tees. These effectively reduce CSS down to 69 from 72, so I have to shoot 3 under just to buffer zone.

From April, the tees will be put back to the tomb stones (right at the back), and the CSS will revert to 72. The course will play a lot tougher (for instance, stroke index 1 off winter tees, driver, 50 degree wedge, off summer tees, driver, 4 iron). This is when I can assess my game and see if I have improved.

In your instance I would not worry about shooting great scores at the moment, just enjoy it, as the course will toughen up once the clocks change and the rough grows up.

 

[turbowoowoo]

You say it's an easy course, and on winter tees. Does it have an SSS, and what is it compared to par?

SSS is 68 Par is 69 (Our other course is Par 71 and is a harder test of golf) , but as people have said, some of teh par 4s are now in driving distance due to position of winter tees.

Thansk for all the advice

 

[Losttheplot]

I have just joined a new club and submitted three cards to get my initial handicap (16). I have nbeen a nomadic golfer for many years and usually shoot between 10 and 22 over.

Saturday I played with some new members on an 'easy' course and shot 13 over (39 Points) - 24 on the back 9!!

Now, I didnt play particularly well, but with winter tees and some good putting , I shot low for my handicap.

I want to enter some comps but dont want to be known as a bandit if this happens again(24 points back 9). And between me and the internet, I feel I could shoot 6 or 7 shots better on thsi course....

Do winter tees count in handicaps? I know when the summer comes the rough will make the course twice as hard.

I can't shoot to my handicap so I can't possibly comment!

 

[patricks148]

I have shot under my handicap every game I've played in the last few months, but that is cos we are playing shorter courses soft greens and no rough to speak of. My mate is a member at Fortrose and his course must be over 5 shots easier in winter an he has regularly shot 8 under his handicap when I've played the bugger. He's under no illusion that he's an eight handicapper all of a sudden. Once the season gets under way and you have a card in your back pocket its a whole different storey.

 

[muttleee]

I was always led to believe that your handicap represents your 'best' golf, so I would think that most people would equal or beat it a lot less than 25% of the time. I know I do.

 

[Society_Fan]

When I played 30 comps a year
10 would be outside of the buffer
15 would be inside the buffer
5 would be below handicap

 

[Ethan]

I was always led to believe that your handicap represents your 'best' golf, so I would think that most people would equal or beat it a lot less than 25% of the time. I know I do.

Handicap is simply a summary statistic which describes a data set (your golf scores). The precise percentage of scores below handicap for any player can vary depending on how variable the data set is. A player who is very streaky, i.e throws in a mixture of very good and very bad scores needs to better handicap less often, because the magnitude of each reduction is high. If you score a few nett 62s with 1.2 or 1.4 off handicap, you can afford quite a few nett 80s which give back 0.1 each. On the other hand, a Luke Donald type player who always scores around CSS needs more scores under handicap because the magnitude of each reduction is less for each of their nett 68s.

The US system uses a different method (a moving average method) but that is balanced around the 25th centile score. The UK system has much the same effect albeit through a different mechanism, and differences in UK and US handicaps are probably largely down to course ratings/SSS.

 

[Swinger]

2010 - played 47 Events

Outside of buffer - 22 (46.81%)
Buffer - 8 (17.02%)
Under - 16 (34.04%)
Reduction Only - 1 (2.13%)

2011 - Played 15 Events to date

Outside of buffer - 5 (33.33%)
Buffer - 2 (13.33%)
Under - 5 (33.33%)
Reduction Only - 3 (20%)

Thats my playing record and I try to play as many qualifiers as possible because I like my H/C to give a true reflection of my ability. There will be a fair few other rounds in there but all matchplay or social golf and I have no idea what I have shot.

 

[GOLFER1994]

I have shot under handicap every round this year with: (par 71)
90- 1 under
86- 5 under
88- 3 under
89- 2 under
84- 7 under Personal best
Some days have been all sumnmers, some all winters and some mixed. But i am expecting my handicap to drop this year.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

In 2010 I played in 55 rounds and hit the buffer zone on 23 occasions but actually played to or below my handicap 8 times.