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Uncle Snoopy and Woodstock try to sneak in a round several days each week at one of their favorite courses, like Beagle Haven Country Club or Pumpkin Patch Golf Club. With all this play, it's sometimes difficult for them to find time to post all their scores and keep their USGA Handicap Indexes accurate and up to date. What should they do to ensure that their Handicaps remain correct and timely?
The first thing they need to do is to follow the correct procedures about when to post or not post scores. (They were outlined in our March/April 1993 column.) Their scores must be made during an "active season". as declared by the golf association having jurisdiction in the area where the round is played. Remember, scores made in an area during its active season must be posted even if the club where they usually post is in an inactive season. So, in other words, if Uncle Snoopy and Woodstock have a home course in Michigan and vacation in Florida during the middle of winter, they must post their Florida scores at their Michigan home course.
Scores should be posted as soon as possible after the completion of a round so that they may be used when handicaps are next revised. Some clubs allow only manual posting in person, while others have computer terminals for entering scores, such as the ones Uncle Snoopy and Woodstock are using in the drawing. Our duo can also mail or fax their scores, together with the USGA Course and Slope Ratings and the date they played, to their home club-if such an arrangement is permitted by the club's Handicap Committee.
What does the club do with all this information? Most employ a golf association or computation service that performs calculations based upon timely and accurate scoring records of a player's last 20 reported rounds. Posted scores made in a new playing season or calendar year are added to scores of previous seasons or years to formulate a player's scoring record. These records are maintained continuously from year to year, and are easily called up on the club's computer. If your club doesn't have a terminal, they normally are displayed on a printout that is posted at the club in a location where all members can review them.
What happens if Uncle Snoopy and Woodstock play at an away course or belong to more than one club? How easily can they keep their Indexes accurate at their home club(s)? It depends upon the computation service used by the clubs. It's not difficult if their golf association or service is capable of transmitting all acceptable scores to the club(s) where Uncle Snoopy and Woodstock belong. If not, then Uncle Snoopy and Woodstock will have to undertake the chore of posting all their scores at each club where a USGA Handicap Index is maintained in person, or by mail or fax if it is permitted by the club). Failure to post all acceptable scores at all clubs produces an Index that is not based on a player's best 10 of his last 20 scores and, consequently, may not be termed a USGA Handicap Index.
That's all there is to keeping your USGA Handicap Index accurate and timely. The steps are simple ones to take. Post every eligible score. If you belong to more than one club, you must make sure that your golf association or computation service is capable of posting at all your clubs with one entry. Otherwise, you must post each eligible score at each club where you have an established Handicap, either in person, by fax, or by mail. You want to make sure that, like Uncle Snoopy and Woodstock, you always have a correct and up-to-date Index that allows you the right number of strokes in order to have fair games.
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