Playing on a shorter golf course doesn’t mean you can’t put your handicap to the test.
Par 3 golf courses and academy layouts can apply for a Course Rating allowing players to submit a World Handicap System score.
The minimum length an 18-hole course needs to be is 1,500 yards. It is 750 yards for 9-holes.
Why can you submit scores from Par-3 courses?
With short courses often proving a first step into the game for many new players, these minimum yardages aim to encourage more juniors, beginners, and golfers with disabilities to gain a handicap and bridge the gap between starter golf and club membership.
It also allows those clubs with additional shorter courses to provide more attractive membership options as golfers would be able to gain an official handicap there before needing to graduate to the full 18-hole layout.
And it is designed to encourage golf facilities not currently affiliated with governing bodies across the home nations to join the fold.
Frequently Asked Questions about the World Handicap System
What is the World Handicap System?
Also known colloquially as WHS, the system was developed by the R&A and USGA together with existing handicapping bodies around the world.
Designed to be unified, it aims to provide a “single, consistent measure of playing ability that calculates a golfer’s handicap in the same way regardless of their location in the world”.
It is now used by more than 120 national associations. With the Rules of Golf, Rules of Handicapping and Rules of Amateur Status under a single set of regulations, WHS brought handicapping under the same umbrella.
When did the World Handicap System come into force?
WHS replaced the old CONGU system of handicapping in Great Britain & Ireland in November 2020 but had actually been launched in other parts of the world at the start of the year.
The later start date was designed to give players in GB&I the traditional club off-season to familiarise themselves with the changes.
But, with Covid restrictions having severely impacted golf courses over the winter of that year, most players only really started getting to grips with the new system in the spring of 2021.
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What are the benefits of the World Handicap System?
The R&A, on their website, say the benefits of WHS are:
- Consistency of calculation around the world;
- Portability of handicaps from course to course and country to country;
- As the world becomes a smaller place with a much greater frequency of international play, the development of a single handicap system facilitates easier administration of international events;
- The potential for National Associations to focus attention on other areas.
How does the World Handicap System work?
Your Handicap Index is worked out from the lowest scoring differentials in your record. A full record is considered to be one that contains at least 20 scores.
The index is then calculated by averaging the best eight of those 20.
Having obtained a Handicap Index, that is converted into a Course Handicap which takes into account the difficulty of the course and the tees from which you are playing.
Working out that number requires considering a number of factors, including Course Rating, Slope Rating and Bogey Rating.
In competitions only, depending on the format, an allowance can then be applied that changes the Course Handicap.
But this Playing Handicap, which aims to provide equity, does not affect the Score Differential produced for your handicap record.
How can I get a Handicap Index?
Join a golf club, or an independent golfer scheme (such as iGolf in England or OpenPlay in Scotland) and submit a minimum of 54 holes.
That can be done using any combination of 9- and 18-hole scores.
Who runs the World Handicap System?
It is governed by both the R&A and USGA. They, with the help of governing bodies across the world, set the rules and regulations.
The administration of the scheme, as well as the responsibility for ensuring it runs as it should, is the responsibility of national associations.
They are issued licences to run WHS, which actually gives them considerable authority at local level.
Is the World Handicap System the same in all countries?
No. National Associations have discretion to alter small parts of the system depending on the golfing culture of their countries.
For example, in the United States, ‘most likely score’ allows players to pick up and add a score to handicap in certain conditions and formats but is not applicable in GB&I.
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The aim is for the system to maintain its key principles – such as Course Rating and Slope – but allow for some flexibility in formats.
How often is the World Handicap System updated?
Just like the Rules of Golf, the Rules of Handicapping are reviewed and updated on a four-year cycle. The most recent came into effect at the start of 2024. These 2024 World Handicap System changes were applied in Great Britain & Ireland in April 2024.
Now have your say
What do you think? Would you put in a score for handicap from a Par 3 course? Should handicaps only apply to full layouts? Let me know by leaving a comment on X.
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