What is the best way to get a handicap?

[Deke]

Hi forum muckers,i need your help! As a new golfer i am keen to get a handicap asap,but wont have the funds to join a club for some time,i have seen several sites online that offer a handicap,card,software,etc,for about £15-20 a year,are they worthwhile? Do clubs accept these cards as proof? Am i better off waiting till i can afford membership of a club,then handing in 3 scorecards? All advice appreciated! Cheers

 

[DCB]

Why do you need a handicap ?

Normally, a handicap is issued by a club after you have recorderd three scores and submitted the cards. You then manage your handicap by playing in as many qualifying competitions as you can and hopefully your handicap will reflect your current performance.

If your just playing with your mates, there's no real need to have an official handicap. if your looking at trying to enter any open competitions, then it would need to be an official handicap issued by a golf club. these online type ventures may well issue you with a certificate, but, it's not an official CONGU handicap so it is in effect just a piece of paper.

If you do decide eventually to join a club, then that's where the fun starts. Club golf becomes away of life if you let it. It's great fun.

 

[Fyldewhite]

Yeah, echo that. The handicapping system is run by the council of golf unions (CONGU) and each golf club belongs to one of the unions (eg English Golf Union EGU). So to have an official handicap you need to join a member club.

That doesn't stop you having a handicap with your mates that you all agree on though. Also, another thing to consider would be golf societies maybe at work or a local pub or social club ? They are a great way to get regular games on different courses and make friends too. Each society usually operates a handicap system of sorts and many casual players then play off their "society handicap" in their friendly games too.

 

[Deke]

Thanks for the input guys! The main reason i want a handicap is that many of the courses i want to play at home and abroad demand a minimum(usually 22-26),and it would be nice to have a rough idea of how well i am doing.I will be joining a club as soon as i can,and i am very keen to enter competitions.Also some clubs have a minimum handicap needed to join,so how can i join if i dont have a handicap first? Thanx.

 

[Mike_j_golf]

Hi,
Heard the golf courses were cheap to join in scotland if you play once a week at 20 quid a pop thats 1000 a year so it would prob be cheaper to join a course and get a proper handicap.
Mike

 

[Timh27]

If you just want to see how you are doing you could try

www.myonlinecaddie.com

I use this site just to keep track of my progress and use the handicap there to see how i am doing. I dont treat it as a real h/c or consider it accurate but just use it as a rough guide to see how i am progressing.

As far as i know most clubs that require a h/c to join will let you join without one. I think they say once you have had a few lessons with there pro they will issue you with a temp h/c but it is best to phone these clubs and ask.

 

[Deke]

Cheers Timh27,will check out.Looks like i will have to join a club sooner than i thought!

 

[AMcC]

Hi,

In the west of scotland I believe a lot of the pub based clubs can actually register with the SGU without actually owning a course to play on. Think they can still issue valid handicap certificates to allow you to play open comps etc. May be worth asking around to see if any are local to you. They generally have a council run course they state as being their "home" course. May not be too expensive to join.

hth