Qualifying Competitions Rant

[Fish]

How many qualifying competitions does your club still have now and during the season at weekends?

My club seems to rush everything at the start of the season and combine monthly medals with board comp qualifiers which for me, removes the spread of qualifying comps over the season as we have now dried up when the course is starting to look and play at its best and I have only 1 weekend medal or qualifier a month for the remainder of the season! How can you attack your handicap on such rations!

In April we had our Monthly Medal (Q) combined with a qualifier to a board comp (Mitchell Goblet), other than that, we had no qualifiers for the rest of the month as the weekend comps were, Captains Drive-in (NQ), Professionals Comp (NQ), Foursomes Board comp (NQ).

So a single weekend qualifier for the first month of the season!

May was much improved with a qualifier each weekend, Monthly Medal (Q), Garrard Cup Qualifier (Q), Member Guest (NQ), Don Boam (Q), De Montford trophy (Q)

June unfortunately totally dries up again, Monthly Medal (Q), Captains Weekend (NQ) and that's it!

July offers nothing to look forward to again with only a Monthly Medal (Q), Club Champs (single handicaps only), Philpot Salver (NQ).

August has combined a Medal with a board comp Stanley Dunn Cup (Q), Presidents Cup (NQ), Phelps Bowl (Q).

September has a combined Monthly Medal with the Rabbits Chalice (Q +19 handicaps), Joe Gardner Trophy (Q),

October there is a Monthly Medal (Q) and then that's it, no qualifiers until the following April!

I make that 12 weekend qualifying comps over 25 weekends (50 days) of the season covering April 1st - October 31st. Yes there are lots of other competitions during that period but, they are pairs, greensomes, better-balls foursomes and are all non-qualifiers.

We do have only once a month a mid-week stableford qualifier but other than that, that's it. Personally when I read on here and look at other clubs diaries, I don't think we have enough qualifiers to seriously have a go at reducing our handicaps unless we put supps in!

How does your club fair by comparison?

 

[chellie]

I know there seems to be comps on every weekend for the men plus midweek stableford but I've no idea if they're all qualifying ones. Things like that haven't been explained to us. Know we have to enter 3 medal comps before the end of the season to keep a handicap active but that's it.

 

[Imurg]

As a Midweeker I get 9 Stableford and 7 Medal qualifiers from March to December.
They will be running one comp a month over the winter though....
1 of the Medals was NQ due to course conditions and I'll probably miss another 4 or 5 due to other commitments so I'm looking at less than 10 qualifiers for the year.
The 7 dayers have 11 Stablefords and 11 Medals + they can enter the midweek comps if they are available.......so potentially 36 qualifiers.

Nothing wrong with putting Supps in though, it's an accepted way of ensuring your handicap's as accurate as it can be..

 

[Foxholer]

Does seem weighted towards the beginning of the season.

Obviously, there have to be the actual competitions that those 'qualifier for's are for, so there will be competitive activity.

Plenty of opportunity for Supplementary Cards though! 10 per year, though not more than 1 per week is the norm!

 

[pbrown7582]

Our calendar is much the same as yours and seems the norm to me, with places that have countless qualifiers unusual

 

[chris661]

Every sunday will be a qualifier at my place. Plus most bank holidays and a few others dotted throughout weekdays probably 70+ throughout the year. Tben you can play other courses which will have a comp on during the week and take it to well over a 100 if you wanted.

 

[Fish]

Nothing wrong with putting Supps in though, it's an accepted way of ensuring your handicap's as accurate as it can be..

I've put a supp in already last week and immediately shot -9 but, it has been frowned upon in some quarters as its without the added pressure of being in a competition apparently! Personally, I think that's a load of tosh, its still a card in the hand, back white blocks and strokeplay, plus, we have to declare and sign the book that were playing a supp so I see no real difference in pressure.

 

[louise_a]

I have 25 qualifiers between April and August, plus, this year at least, another 4 in regional competitions

 

[Fish]

Obviously, there have to be the actual competitions that those 'qualifier for's are for, so there will be competitive activity.

I would like to see all the combined Monthly Medals taken away from a qualifier into a board comp trophy played at the same time and have those on their own, this will create an additional qualifying comp/round then.

 

[Rooter]

Why would people frown upon you trying to reduce your handicap??!! The lower you get, the less likely you are to win in a comp!

Ignore the naysayers, you have the game to go way lower fish, get as many cards in as you can. And as we discussed, a handicap at your gaff should travel very well!!!

 

[Imurg]

I've put a supp in already last week and immediately shot -9 but, it has been frowned upon in some quarters as its without the added pressure of being in a competition apparently! Personally, I think that's a load of tosh, its still a card in the hand, back white blocks and strokeplay, plus, we have to declare and sign the book that were playing a supp so I see no real difference in pressure.

The only diference is in the head of whoever is saying it....

There's still 0.1 at stake if you mess up, you still play to the rules, you play exactly the same game as those who are playing a Medal - the exception being that you play to SSS instead of CSS. As CSS can change, it can actually be harder to get cut on a Supp than in a comp.
If there's not enough qualifiers put Supps in - if people don't like it then ask them if they'd prefer you to play off 19 or 23 in the next comp. They'll be hard pressed to answer that one and stay fashionable.....!!

 

[Fish]

the exception being that you play to SSS instead of CSS. As CSS can change, it can actually be harder to get cut on a Supp than in a comp.

I never thought of that :thup:

 

[Birchy]

Qualfying comp every Saturday at ours all through the season. Two midweek medals per month too. Also we have Captains, presidents and Davyhulme (top 90 nett qualify) which include another qualifying round on a sunday as they are two day comps.

Every club should have minimum of 1 qualifying comp every weekend imo. If it was up to me they would have one Saturday and Sunday every week! I get bored sometimes just knocking it around for fun.

 

[Birchy]

I've put a supp in already last week and immediately shot -9 but, it has been frowned upon in some quarters as its without the added pressure of being in a competition apparently! Personally, I think that's a load of tosh, its still a card in the hand, back white blocks and strokeplay, plus, we have to declare and sign the book that were playing a supp so I see no real difference in pressure.

Tell them to stop bleeding frowning and put some more comps on for people to play

 

[brendy]

Every weekend from the 3rd week or so of April is a qualifier for us, I intensely dislike the fact that the first few weeks before that are silly team competitions that I have no interest in and is not the reason I play golf on a Saturday morning.

 

[Bratty]

Assuming the weather hasn't adversely affected the course, there's 2 medals and 2 stablefords (1 weekend, 1 midweek) per month from March to October, and then stablefords only from November to February, all qualifiers. Guessing 6 board comps, plus another 2 or 3 comps.

Not too bad I think.

 

[Foxholer]

I have sympathy for Committees on this as they have to satisfy all styles of members.

If competitions are important to you, their frequency should be part of what you look at when you are considering joining the club. I've certainly seen Medals also used as qualifiers for other comps to allow for 'social' events to cater for that side of the club.

Supplementary cards are definitely the way to go if there are not enough qualifying comps during peak period. Absolutely legitimate thing to do imo.

 

[fundy]

Quick look at our diary:

Weekend Qual comps:

Mar 3, Apr 2, May 4, Jun 2, Jul, 2, Aug 4, Sep 1, Oct 1, Nov 1, Dec 1

In addition we get a midweek medal and stableford per month, plus a midweek club champs at the end of summer.


Im one of those who "has frowned upon supplementaries" to fish, its my opinion that its far easier to shoot a decent score with a supplementary card in hand than in a competition. That said I find it amazing how few comps there seems to be at his course, do you not have any midweek medals/stablefords etc? As for it uses SSS and can thus be harder to be cut, the flip also applies and it can be easier, CSS (like the value of your investments lol) can go up as well as down!

One thing is for certain, at no point have I criticised his determination to reduce his handicap (as its been long needed lol)

 

[Fish]

Quick look at our diary:

Weekend Qual comps:

Mar 3, Apr 2, May 4, Jun 2, Jul, 2, Aug 4, Sep 1, Oct 1, Nov 1, Dec 1

In addition we get a midweek medal and stableford per month, plus a midweek club champs at the end of summer.


Im one of those who "has frowned upon supplementaries" to fish, its my opinion that its far easier to shoot a decent score with a supplementary card in hand than in a competition. That said I find it amazing how few comps there seems to be at his course, do you not have any midweek medals/stablefords etc? As for it uses SSS and can thus be harder to be cut, the flip also applies and it can be easier, CSS (like the value of your investments lol) can go up as well as down!

One thing is for certain, at no point have I criticised his determination to reduce his handicap (as its been long needed lol)

I'd forgotten about your frown TBH

As stated, only a single stableford comp per month which for some unbeknown reason they call a mixed extra medal! Other than the qualifiers listed, nothing weekly or midweek, that's dominated by seniors, ladies, mixed comps and societies recently.

Here's July, only a single weekend medal (July 6th) and 1 "extra medal" (July 18th) although that's stableford, other than those 2 there are NO qualifiers for me to enter!

http://www.kenilworthgolfclub.co.uk/diary?year=2013&month=7

 

[Deleted Member 1156]

Fish

Why don't you have a look at playing in a few singles opens on your non competition weekends? Good value and the chance to play other courses. I've played 14 qualifying rounds in opens already this year with another 10 in my diary still to come.