News: Changes made to betterball shot allocation
The Council of National Golf Unions Limited (CONGU) has formally announced that there have been changes to the Unified Handicapping System.
The new CONGU manual is in the process of being published and is the result of a four-year review cycle with the ultimate aim of assisting club members to have handicaps that properly represent their ability.
The Niggle: Do higher handicappers need more shots?
As previously reported by NCG, the shot allocation in four ball better ball will now be 90% of the difference as opposed to the current system which is 75%.
Here’s an illustration of what the rule will mean in practice:
Tom, who plays off 4, and Dick, a 10 handicap, are playing a fourball betterball match against Harry, 20, and Gary, a 28 handicapper.
Under the existing system, Tom gives Dick 5 shots, Harry 12 shots and Gary 18 shots.
Under the new system, Tom will give Dick 5 shots, Harry 14 shots and Gary 22 shots.
Under the existing system, if Tom and Dick were a pair playing against the field, Tom would receive 3 shots and Dick would get 8 shots.
Under the new system, if Tom and Dick were a pair playing against the field, Tom would receive 4 shots and Dick would get 9 shots.
Under the existing system, if Harry and Gary were a pair playing against the field, Harry would receive 15 shots and Gary would get 21 shots.
Under the new system, if Harry and Gary were a pair playing against the field, Harry would receive 18 shots shots and Dick would get 25 shots.
Other key changes
Continuous Handicap Review: The introduction of a process to flag players with seven consecutive 0.1 handicap increases so that Handicap Committees can review and apply an immediate handicap increase if required.
Club handicaps: A new ‘Club Handicap’ of up to 54 will be introduced for adults as well as juniors. Handicaps higher than 28/36 will only be valid at the player’s home club for use in club-run events and cannot be used in opens etc.
Nine holes: It will be possible to put in Supplementary Scores over nine holes for handicaps. Nine-hole scores will also be taken into account for an Exceptional Scoring Reduction.
Reinstatement of Handicap Status: The reinstatement of a competition status handicap requires a player to submit three qualifying scores, which could be 18-hole competitions, 9-hole competitions or Supplementary Scores both at home and/or away.
Dates: The handicap year will now follow the calendar year of 1 January to 31 December, and a player’s handicap will be based on scores returned within that period.
“The CONGU Unified Handicapping System does not stand still”. Jim McArthur, CONGU Board Chairman. CONGU Board Chairman Jim McArthur said: “We again have a number of further refinements to the system reflecting both experience and new evidence.
“We continually review the system to encourage participation in both competitive golf and social golf whilst at the same time trying to ensure that the system is fair for players of all abilities.”
There have been various other changes to the system which you can find here.
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