Handicapping The Unhandicapped
Will It Occur, And If So, How Much?
The USGA Handicap System is well recognized and widely accepted by golf clubs throughout
the country. However, this Handicap System is based on a player's most recent series
of scores, and therein lies a problem that besets many tournament committees, particularly
those who organize convention and resort events. Not everyone who wants to play
golf has a USGA handicap.
How should a committee determine a fair handicap or allowance for novice or occasional
player who do not have USGA Handicap Indexes?
How can a committee give everyone a chance to win net prizes at the annual company
tournament?
The questions are good ones because the concept of a one-round handicap is deceptive.
Why? Because the information gained from a single round of golf is not sufficient
to evaluate any player. Any one score can be as much as 10 strokes different from
a player's true golf handicap. When a player who has no score history shoots 100
there is no way to determine whether that score was a poor round of a good player
or a good round of a weak player.
That's why there is no substitute for score history, which is the basis of the USGA
Handicap System. It's based on the best 10 differentials from a player's last 20
scores.
A differential is determined by subtracting the USGA Course Rating from the adjusted
gross score, then multiplying the resulting value by 113, then dividing this result
by the corresponding USGA Slope Rating and rounding off to the nearest tenth.
When not everyone has a USGA handicap, here are four ideas to help handicap the
unhandicapped:
Second Best Score System
The USGA has developed a simple estimator of a player's ability called "Second Best
Score System" or "Second Best Handicap" for short. Second Best Handicap is not a
substitute for the USGA Handicap System, but it can produce acceptable results and
is a reasonable system for handicapping the otherwise "unhandicapped."
To create a player's Second Best Handicap, the tournament committee simply asks
each unhandicapped player to submit his three best scores made on a regulation course
(with par of 68 or more) in the last 12 months. Combine these scores with any previous
scores that the player has made in your tournament in the past two years.
The player's Second Best Handicap is the second best score he or she has given you
minus 70 for men or 73 for women.
For example, if a male player submits scores of 92, 96 and 98 and he had scored
90 in your tournament last, his Second Best Handicap would be 92 (second best score)
minus 70 (for men).
There is a special qualification for beginners or players who can submit only one
score. Subtract 74 from that score for a man's Second Best Handicap, or subtract
77 for a woman's Second Best Handicap.
If necessary, nine-hole scores can be combined to produce an 18-hole scoring history.
If a player has never played, the Second Best Handicap is not appropriate. The committee
should assign a maximum of 36 strokes for men, or 40 for women. Some allow a maximum
of 50 strokes, which generally gives three strokes on each hole except for par-3
holes.
Modified Peoria System
Another alternative is to use a hole score selection system, often called the "Peoria
System." Under this system, a player learns his handicap after the round is completed.
The committee secretly selects a par-3 hole, a par-5 hole and four par-4 holes from
an 18-hole course. The par-4s should be representative in length and difficulty
with two chosen from the front nine and two from the back nine.
A modified Peoria handicap then is calculated by adding the player's strokes over
par on the six selected holes, and multiplying that number by 2.8. This will be
the player's allowance to be deducted from his gross score. The maximum hole score
for allowance purposes is three over par on par-3s and 4s, and four over par on
par-5s.
Example: A player scores 98 for a round. She is 11 over par on the six selected
holes.
11 x 2.8 = 30.8 = 31 allowance
Net score is 98 - 31 = 67
The "Official Callaway System"
The Callaway System is a so-called "one-round" system or "worst-holes system" that
compresses the spread of gross scores when converted to net scores. It produces
a result such that the player with the lowest gross score almost always becomes
the low net score winner. Most players with higher gross scores end up with net
scores within a few strokes of the winner so that most players can feel competitive.
By the Callaway System, a player's allowance is determined after each round by deducting
the scores of the worst individual holes during the first 16 holes. The table shows
the number of "worst hole" scores he may deduct and the adjustment to be made, based
on his gross score.
For example, if his gross score for 18 holes is 96, he turns to the table and opposite
that score finds that he may deduct the total for his three worst holes scored on
holes 1 through 16 inclusive. Thus, if he has one 9, one 8, and a 7, his deduction
totals 24. Further adjustment is then made according to the table below each column.
For the sample score of 96, the deduction is reduced by 2 strokes, resulting in
a final allowance of 22. Thus 96 minus an allowance of 22 equals a net score of
74.
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--
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--
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70
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71
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72
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no holes and adjustment
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73
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74
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75
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--
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--
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1/2 worst hole and adjustment
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76
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77
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78
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79
|
80
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1 worst hole and adjustment
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81
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82
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83
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84
|
85
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1-1/2 worst holes and adjustment
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86
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87
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88
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89
|
90
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2 worst holes and adjustment
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91
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92
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93
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94
|
95
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2-1/2 worst holes and adjustment
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|
96
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97
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98
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99
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100
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3 worst holes and adjustment
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101
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102
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103
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104
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105
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3-1/2 worst holes and adjustment
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106
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107
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108
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109
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110
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4 worst holes and adjustment
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111
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112
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113
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114
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115
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4-1/2 worst holes and adjustment
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116
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117
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118
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119
|
120
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5 worst holes and adjustment
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121
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122
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123
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124
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125
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5-1/2 worst holes and adjustment
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|
126
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127
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128
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129
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130
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6 worst holes and adjustment
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Adjustment to Deduction
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Maximum Handicap - 50
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-2
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-1
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0
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+1
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+2
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Notes:
- No hole may be scored at more than twice its par.
- Half strokes count as whole.
- The 17th and 18th holes are never deducted
- In case of ties, lowest handicap takes preference.
Scheid System
The Scheid System is a "worst holes" system for large unhandicapped events that
is designed to give all golfers an equal chance, with a range of scores up to 151.
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--
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72
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73
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--
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--
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--
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no holes and adjustment
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--
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74
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75
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76
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--
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--
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--
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1/2 worst hole and adjustment
|
|
--
|
77
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78
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79
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--
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--
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--
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1 worst hole and adjustment
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|
--
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77
|
78
|
79
|
--
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--
|
--
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1 worst hole and adjustment
|
|
--
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80
|
81
|
82
|
83
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--
|
--
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1-1/2 worst holes and adjustment
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|
--
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84
|
85
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86
|
87
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--
|
--
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2 worst holes and adjustment
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|
--
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88
|
89
|
90
|
91
|
--
|
--
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2-1/2 worst holes and adjustment
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|
--
|
92
|
93
|
94
|
95
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--
|
--
|
3 worst holes and adjustment
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|
--
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96
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97
|
98
|
99
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--
|
--
|
3-1/2 worst holes and adjustment
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|
100
|
101
|
102
|
103
|
104
|
--
|
--
|
4 worst holes and adjustment
|
|
105
|
106
|
107
|
108
|
109
|
--
|
--
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4-1/2 worst holes and adjustment
|
|
110
|
111
|
112
|
113
|
114
|
--
|
--
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5 worst holes and adjustment
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|
115
|
116
|
117
|
118
|
119
|
120
|
--
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5-1/2 worst holes and adjustment
|
|
121
|
122
|
123
|
124
|
125
|
126
|
--
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6 worst holes and adjustment
|
|
127
|
128
|
129
|
130
|
131
|
132
|
--
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6-1/2 worst holes and adjustment
|
|
133
|
134
|
135
|
136
|
137
|
138
|
--
|
7 worst holes and adjustment
|
|
139
|
140
|
141
|
142
|
143
|
144
|
--
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7-1/2 worst holes and adjustment
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|
145
|
146
|
147
|
148
|
149
|
150
|
151
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8 worst holes and adjustment
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Adjustment to Deduction
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-3
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-2
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-1
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0
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+1
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+2
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+3
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