Uncle Snoopy Answers Your Handicap Questions Section III Q: How do I get a USGA Handicap Index? US: Join a golf club, which has a Handicap Committee, by-laws, and follows the USGA Handicap System, then personally turn in all your scores. Or, you can form your own club with as few as ten members. Maybe you play regularly with a group of golfers at your office. You can be issued a USGA Handicap Index after joining a golf club and turning in as few as five scores.
Q: Why can't I use an on-line service to establish a Handicap Index? US: One of the most important elements of the Handicap System is a golf club. As the term "System" implies, there are several elements that work together to produce the final result, a USGA Handicap Index. The USGA authorizes golf clubs as the structure to issue Handicap Indexes to their members. The structure is important because it provides members with the opportunity to play with fellow members. It provides the members with a Committee to turn to when problems arise. It maintains the element of peer review. It can perform the necessary functions of the Handicap System. On-line programs, most of which allow a player to establish a "Handicap" without being a member of a golf club, are not acceptable. They are usually setup to include people with no reference to any geographic cohesion. Neither the requirement of playing together nor the human interaction that is part of peer review is being satisfied. For these reasons the USGA has authorized only golf clubs to issue Handicap Indexes to their members. On-line sites and the USGA are not considered golf clubs according to the Handicap System and therefore, cannot issue Handicap Indexes.
Q: Why do I have a Handicap Index and a Course Handicap? US: Your Handicap Index represents your potential on a standard playing difficulty golf course. Your Course Handicap represents the specific number of strokes you need on a specific set of tees. You need both in order to play.
Q: Where do I get my 19 strokes? US: Simply look at the course scorecard. Each hole is assigned an allocated handicap stroke number, 1 through 18. You'll get a stroke on each hole, and two strokes on the #1 handicap hole.
Q: My friends Mary (15), Susan (10), Barbara (20), and Anne (30) like to play better-ball-of-two matches (four-ball). How do we handicap the event? US: The lowest handicapper, Susan, plays to scratch. Mary, Barbara, and Anne get the full difference between their Course Handicaps and Susan's Course Handicap, or five, ten, and 20 strokes, respectively.
Q: If I pick up on a hole, what score do I post? US: For handicap purposes, record the score you most likely would have made-BUT, that score must not exceed your Equitable Stroke Control limit.
Q: If we quit after I lose a match, 4 and 3, I haven't completed 18 holes. How do I turn in a score? US: For the holes you didn't play, record a par, plus any handicap strokes you would have received using your full Course Handicap.
Q: If I join my friends for a round of golf in the snow, just for fun must I post that score? US: No. Most northern golf associations have an active season running from April through October. Scores made outside of that season aren't posted. However, if you're vacationing or wintering in the South, where the season is year-round, you must keep track of your scores and post them by the time your club reopens.
Q: If I've been ill or have a temporary physical disability, can my Handicap Index be adjusted? US: Sometimes. For example, when Woodstock broke his leg, his scores were too high for his handicap. He was given a temporary handicap until his leg healed and he was able to turn in enough scores to make his handicap correct. A temporary Handicap like this may be used only at your home course.
Q: What happens if I fail to post a score? US: Yes, even I, once forgot to post a score. The Handicap Committee at my club, Beagle Haven Country Club, had these options: (1) Have me post the score as soon as possible. (2) Post a penalty score, which is the score and ratings, that equates to the lowest handicap differential. Had I forgotten to post regularly, the Committee could have adjusted my Handicap Index. Had I not been following the USGA Handicap System deliberately, I would not have been entitled to a USGA Handicap Index and the Committee would not have issued one to me. Luckily, the Committee at Beagle Haven just made me post the score as soon as possible.
Q: Can my Handicap Index be reduced in other ways? US: The Handicap Committee can adjust your Handicap Index if it doesn't reflect your potential scoring ability. For example, if a talented beagle puppy starts as a 36-handicapper and improves more rapidly than the System can react, the Committee can lower the pup's Handicap Index. Another modification is for players who score exceptionally well in tournaments. That adjustment is automatically done by the USGA Handicap System.
Q: If I haven't played in several years, may I just start over with a new Handicap Index? US: No matter how long since you last played, if you are still a member of a club, you should resume playing with your old Handicap Index. If you have your last 20 scores or fewer, post them, then add your new scores. If your old scoring record is unavailable, use your old Handicap Index until you've posted at least five scores and qualify for a new one.
Q: If we play "winter rules" or "preferred lies", does it affect my score? US: The USGA doesn't endorse winter rules for several reasons and advises against using them. If, however, winter rules are in effect, scores must be posted unless the Committee decides differently. Long term use of preferred lies will tend to lower scores and lower your Handicap Index which will put you at a disadvantage against players who don't use preferred lies.
Q: What happens when I belong to two or more golf clubs? US: All your scores must be posted at all your clubs. If the clubs use the same computer handicap service, you may register with that service as a multi member and post each score at the club where you played. The computer service will combine your scores into one scoring record.
Q: If I belong to more than one club, will I have the same Handicap Index at each one? US: Unless your clubs have different revision dates, a computer service should give you the same Handicap Index at all of your clubs. If you have different Handicap Indexes, play with the lowest one when you compete with golfers from more than one club or when you're playing away.
Q: Do clubs issue Handicap Indexes above the USGA limits of 36.4 for men and 40.4 for women? US: Yes, but only for intra-club play. These handicaps are identified as local handicaps by the letter "L." If local handicaps are used away from the club, they must be reduced to the USGA limit.
Q: My golf course has a Slope Rating of 135. Your golf course has a Slope Rating of 125. Does this mean my golf course is more difficult than yours? US: No, not necessarily. Remember that Slope Rating is not a measure of absolute difficulty. You need to know the other components (Course Rating and Bogey Rating) and what type of golfer you are talking about (low, middle or high handicapper). High Slope Rating means scores between scratch golfers and non-scratch golfers spread out more.
Q: Where can I get more information on the USGA Handicap System? US: By visiting our web-site www.usga.org or just contact your local amateur golf association or my buddies at the USGA and tell them Uncle Snoopy sent you! Write to the USGA Order Department, P.O. Box 708, Far Hills NJ 07931, and ask for the USGA Handicap System Manual. It's $3.00 plus shipping.
You also can call the Order Department toll free at 1-800-336-4446. Be sure to ask about other publications as well, including the Rules of Golf and the Decisions on the Rules of Golf.
