The Trouble With Handicaps

White Feather

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[h=2]The Trouble With Handicaps[/h]
There seems to be a rather mixed reaction to the subject of the handicapping system. Personally having played golf for about 50 years I find the changes which were made 30 years ago not only confound my intelligence but have been the worst thing for the game I could have imagined.

We have arrived at rather a farcical position with winning scores in most competitions being up to 8 or more shots below S.S.S. or up to 45-46 points Stableford. This is rather like handicapping horses in a flat race to arrive at the finishing post 2 furlongs from home. What is the point of having a C.S.S. which is regularly beaten by a significant proportion of the entrants?
The whole ethos of the game has moved away from decades ago when the pride of performance was what golfers aspired to in even playing to their handicaps never mind beating them. Nowadays, it's all about what prizes people can win and for many, how to keep an upwardly mobile handicap. Because the new system takes little account of "general standard of play" and clubs in the main seem unwilling to apply Rule 19, "managing" a handicap is relatively easy. Hardly anyone brings a competition-winning card back to their home club for entry into the computer.

I can understand that 30 years ago, the authorities of our game were experiencing difficulties in sorting out truly excellent golfers from the very good in Category 1. County events were over-subscribed and a better way was needed to assess these golfers. All that was needed was to apply the present method of handicap adjustment to players but only with a handicap of 5 or less. In effect, they have to play to their handicaps every 2-3 competitions to keep their standing.

Match-play is now even more of a joke now that full handicap difference is applied to matches. Much is made of levelling the playing field so that players of all standards can compete equally but the fact is that Category 3 and 4 golfers usually concentrate their good golf over about 12-14 holes with the rest of their scores being somewhat less successful. This is why 30 years ago, a handicap committee would assess a player's abilities by looking at his best 15 holes rather than the total Stableford score and the reason why taking 3/4 of the difference is fairer.

I should like to comment on the mathematics of the present system and its failings,

Competition Standard Scratch

Mathematically, the present method of determining C.S.S. was fatally flawed from day 1. It is determined for each competition by how well players score against Standard Scratch. Amazingly, their performances then determine C.S.S. for that day. Over a very long period of time I have noticed that C.S.S. hardly varies whatever the weather and whatever time of the year it is! This is because there are always so many people playing in competitions with totally false handicaps. This would have been impossible 30 years ago because firstly, one was handicapped to one's best performance and not by a computer which will cut a Category 3 player by only 2 or 3 shots for beating C.S.S by 10 shots. Secondly, the club professional would have checked the wind speed and direction each day and also looked at general course conditions before judging from experience what the C.S.S. would be and have writen it on the notice board.
As a scientist, the present system demonstrates an incredible failure to even understand the basic mathematics. In Hi-Fi terms it resembles a sound loop where the sound is picked up by a microphone which then feeds it into the loudspeakers which broadcast the magified sound to the microphone again until everyone is screaming with pain. Another thing changed radically for the worse in 1981. The calculation of C.S.S. started being done by computers fed with phoney information as described above. I examined in detail some years ago the difference in the average score of all of the professionals playing in major European competitions. The wind needed to vary only slightly up or down to cause a daily difference in the average score of + or - 1.5 strokes. Nowadays, we can play on our seaside couse in a 50 m.p.h. wind and it makes hardly any difference at all to C.S.S. Unless players scores are judged against an outside arbitrary standard, how can their performance possibly be determined?

The first way to put a stop to this loop and also to end the criticism of how difficulty of courses is not fairly judged is as follows: a local panel of professional golfers should first assess the S.S.S. for each course in their county. The basis of their assessment should start with the normal CONGU calculation which takes into account course length and some other determining factors. Applied to this figure would be the comparative adjustment thought necessary for that course which would be based on the local knowledge gained by the professionals who are likely to have played at most golf clubs in their county. Terrain, gradient, rough and narrowness of fairways would all of course, contribute to their reckoning. Undeniably, there are significant variations in difficulty of courses with similar S.S.S.'s which is not taken into account using the present method. This will give each course a more relevant S.S.S. rating relative to other courses based on an independent assessment.

Each competition day the club professional would, if he deemed it necessary, then apply an upwards correction from 1 to 4 shots depending on wind strength and direction and other inclement weather variables. I think everyone knows that apart from the difference in degree of difficulty from course to course that the vagaries of our weather could easily add 4 shots to the C.S.S. Naturally, each club professional would work to the same formula in arriving at the local variation due to weather conditions.

Handicap Adjustments

Having set up an independent assessment of the C.S.S. which then acts as a true standard in assessing performance, it remains only to apply handicap corrections more according to achievements or lack of them than is presently apparent. At present, there is no possibility that cuts in handicaps ever keep up with actual results achieved. A fast achiever can win everything going for a year or two since his handicap rate of change can never keep up with his rate of improvement. I would suggest a better way to do this is to cut every player in categories 2,3 and 4 by half the amount by which he beats C.S.S. interpreted either as a net score or Stableford point score. Additionally, the computer programme can make increases in handicaps every 6 months according to the number of times he has played and how near he has come to his buffer zone. It goes without saying that more attention should be paid to players' performances in team events and K.O. matches. Perhaps cards should be recorded for these events too! As I suggested above category 1 can remain as it is since it meets objectives.

If adopted as a basis for change, these suggestions, in time would result in:

  • Preventing false handicaps resulting in ridiculous scores or matchplay results by bringing winning scores more in line with the daily adjusted C.S.S. of the course being played
  • Golfers who play badly for a period will still avoid becoming trapped on an artificially low handicap
  • Bandits will not necessarily be able to increase their handicaps by several shots during the winter and go on to win everything during the summer!
I put these thoughts to some of the most senior figures in the EGU about 4 years ago. They were treated with disdain and the sort of bureaucratic indifference which is now disillusioning anyone who wants to compete on a level playing field. I was told I didn't know what I was talking aboutand I told them that the controlling body of English golf needed more statisticians and mathematicians and less confessed experts who cannot take criticism!
I have now decided that so much enjoyment has been taken from the game by removing proper competition achieved through correct handicapping and surveillance that I can't take anymore. I'm still under 10 handicap and 78 years old but I don't like being unable to compete. Some of my low handicap friends go back home when they arrive to play in a competition and find they would need to shoot 4 under gross to stand a chance. Even McIlroy couldn't compete with one bandit I know - he won a singles matchplay recently and had the equivalent of 32 points after 10 holes!​

  • Golfers who play badly for a period will still avoid becoming trapped on an artificially low handicap
  • Bandits will not necessarily be able to increase their handicaps by several shots during the winter and go on to win everything during the summer!
I put these thoughts to some of the most senior figures in the EGU about 4 years ago. They were treated with disdain and the sort of bureaucratic indifference which is now disillusioning anyone who wants to compete on a level playing field. I was told I didn't know what I was talking aboutand I told them that the controlling body of English golf needed more statisticians and mathematicians and less confessed experts who cannot take criticism!
I have now decided that so much enjoyment has been taken from the game by removing proper competition achieved through correct handicapping and surveillance that I can't take anymore. I'm still under 10 handicap and 78 years old but I don't like being unable to compete. Some of my low handicap friends go back home when they arrive to play in a competition and find they would need to shoot 4 under gross to stand a chance. Even McIlroy couldn't compete with one bandit I know - he won a singles matchplay recently and had the equivalent of 32 points after 10 holes!​
 

HawkeyeMS

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No offense but I really can't be bothered to read this now, I don't have much time so I'll probably just read war & peace instead
 

MadAdey

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Actually in reply to what you say about the EGU not knowing about golf is a complete load of S@@@. Who did you actually speak to? I know who the Manager for handicaps is and he has been my club champion several times as well as county champion. Holds several amateur course records and is the reigning mids amateur champion. I think he understands and knows about golf...
 

BTatHome

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Lost interest at this point " ... I find the changes which were made 30 years ago not only confound my intelligence but have been the worst thing for the game I could have imagined ...."
 

Doc

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Another post on handicaps of biblical proportions.

Get off your soapbox and go play golf, it's much more fun.

Cheers

Steve...
 

HomerJSimpson

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Surely your club runs a stableford in divisions and so it should still be possible for you to compete on an even playing field with those around you.

If you are so hung up about handicaps, either don't play competitively and stop ranting or find a scheme so ingenious and able to work as well as CONGU and roll it out to an incredulous golfing world.
 

trevor

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It's a bit of a vague question really, all depends on wether they are light blue or dark blue trousers but I think black would be better in either case.
 

Basher

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Jesus, why such negative and rude comments about the initial post?

It's a forum and he's giving his opinion. Isnt that what this place is for? Ok it could have been in the henadicap section, but still. He's only written 2 posts, the fella is 78 years old, it's not very welcoming is it? I'd be surprised if he came back now.

Because he's posted it on 2 different threads mate. It's the longest post in the world, probably copied and pasted. It's a very dry subject. Nobody can be arsed to read it all. A picture paints a 1000 words, a diagram would have been better.

PS. Dark blue is the trouser of choice Trev !!! :D
 

TheJezster

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Because he's posted it on 2 different threads mate. It's the longest post in the world, probably copied and pasted. It's a very dry subject. Nobody can be arsed to read it all. A picture paints a 1000 words, a diagram would have been better.

PS. Dark blue is the trouser of choice Trev !!! :D

Yea, I didnt realise intially. I've deleted it now I've seen he's also posted it on the handicap thread. Not sure why it needed to be posted again. It's a fair enough post in the right place, even if a little long and boring :-D
 

rosecott

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What goes best with blue trousers? Black or brown shoes. :rolleyes:

That is a trickier question than at first sight. My normal daywear shoes are light brown but my footjoys are black. Should I take a second pair of trousers to change into before golf?
 
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