When did you last see level par do much in a professional golf tournament? It’s a birdie blitz at the elite. You won’t keep your card for long if you don’t go low. But in the club game, hitting your handicap – 36 Stableford points – is a badge of honour. It’s a milestone.
My inbox has been full of your World Handicap System comments and there has been a common refrain – that achieving this magic number isn’t enough to compete.
That in a world of 40 and more points dominating the prizes, 36 is now nothing better than the middle of the pack.
You are right, by the way. Thirty-six points won’t normally bring you any laurels.
But as much as I admire anyone who can grind through shanks, double crosses, and missed tiddlers to play to their mark on any given day, should it?
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Why 36 Stableford points isn’t a mark of achievement
The old CONGU system was about potential. Hit or better your handicap more than a couple of times in a year and you’d had a good season. You probably also received a healthy cut.
But WHS is more about the shots you need to get around a golf course. Your index is your demonstrated ability – shown over the last 20 rounds.
The entire system is based around reflecting current form. It’s what you’re capable of scoring at that point.
So if that’s what it is doing (and I accept some of you may argue the toss about that) then when you shoot 36 haven’t you just done what the system says you should? Is that worth a pro shop voucher?
Sometimes it does work out. I actually got lucky in my last competition, shot nett level, and nicked a prize. It does happen. But I didn’t expect it. I’d simply played to my Course Handicap.
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We still tend to think one or two-under is something rare but just as it doesn’t often cut it at tour level so the bar has also moved at our clubs.
Yes, higher handicappers have more scope to shoot 40-plus points. That’s down to rate of improvement, variance, and just plain numbers.
But if clubs want to reflect the reality of scoring under WHS, they shouldn’t just wait for members to start breaking down their doors. There are things they can do to even out the prize distribution if they feel it is an issue.
What can clubs do?
If 36 Stableford points is now par for the course, and golfers are frustrated a wider demographic of the membership isn’t featuring enough towards the summit of the leaderboard, here’s how clubs can manage the irritation.
Divisional prizes: It never fails to astonish how many clubs don’t do this. You know they can do this for board competitions too? If high handicappers are dominating competitions, split the prizes into divisions. It means the higher handicappers are fighting it out among themselves while the lower handicappers compete against their peers.
Gross prizes: The worry is this can be dominated by the same player every week, but a lowest gross prize can keep scratch and better players engaged when they know they’d otherwise probably have to smash the course record to win the overall competition.
Spot prizes: Why does nearest the pin or longest drive have to only be the preserve of big golf days? If you want to add variety to a prize fund, think about adding some spot prizes to share out the load. It doesn’t have to be just about the 2s club.
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Season-long competitions: Having an overall Stableford champion, alongside your aggregate gross and handicap medal winners, can lessen the sting of a single score on the rest of the club and reward consistency over a big day out.
So there are options. But golfers need to get over expecting 36 points to give them anything now. It’s satisfying under WHS but not always a lot more.
Now have your say
What do you think? Is 36 points worth fighting for? Should hitting your handicap come with more rewards? Or is it all just par for the course? Let me know by emailing me at s.carroll@nationalclubgolfer.com. We’ll share some of your views in an upcoming WHS postbag. You can also leave a comment on X.
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