Ignore the critics – there is plenty to like about the WHS changes
Changes to the World Handicap System have brought familiar protests but, says our club golf editor, there is still much to welcome
It feels like the blink of an eye since the World Handicap System arrived in our clubs. Now some of the measures we’ve just started getting used to are being revised.
These changes, which come into effect in Great Britain & Ireland from April 2024, affect all of us.
You can’t mention ‘World Handicap System’ without someone getting into a twist. The reaction in those quarters to the new R&A and USGA measures has been predictably unruly.
But while it may be inconvenient for those who have decided WHS is bad and nothing will ever change that, there are some clear plusses to what we’ve got now.
People forget, under CONGU, their handicaps became inactive if they didn’t play enough. How was that keeping people invested in golf?
I see a stream of invective saying golfers are ditching competitions. Where is the evidence outside of the anecdotes spitting from a couple of corners of the clubhouse and the echo chambers of social media.
In England this year, more than eight million rounds entered into the World Handicap System portal. Contrary to the “system has made a mess of golf brigade”, people seem to be engaging in club life in record numbers.
At my own club, competitions are rammed in the summer season. It’s not unusual to see close to 200 entries. Does that signify a crisis?
What’s the other moan? People cheat. Did they not cheat before?
Some committees seem terrified to tackle anyone suspected of manipulation. But they have never had more tools at their disposal – and they’re getting more next year.
From detailed breakdowns of scores – competition and general play – to target figures, they have all the data they need.
Let’s get onto some of these changes.
The move to Course Rating minus Par should have been applied at the outset. We all work to par anyway when we measure scores – particularly in Stableford formats. Now our handicap system will reflect that.
Mixed tee and mixed gender competitions, which have been complicated to explain to say the least, will be far easier to manage.
World Handicap System changes: ‘Clubs are not just about competitions’
That will hopefully encourage more clubs to dip their toes in the water. I’ve heard the misogynists moaning about mixed competitions and sharing tee times. But, in my opinion, clubs won’t be able to deflect using the weak Equality Act for much longer.
It is incredible some can still routinely restrict when men and women can play golf based on nothing more than their gender and the tradition of some daftly named pot. Pay the same fees, you should get the same opportunities for course access.
Clubs wanted something done about fourball betterball. These measures will start to pick off those teams which consistently raid the top end of these events.
Though the criteria for such scores to count may seem strict, the perception someone is now watching should at least make those players who are tempted to manipulate think again.
And though it has not received much attention, moves to include more shorter courses within handicapping will provide more opportunities.
That’s particularly true for beginners who may not be ready for the rigours of a full-sized course. A handicap means they can measure their progress and feel like they belong.
Clubs are not just about competitions. Even if you’ve got those 200 playing on a busy Saturday, there are far more in your community that aren’t interested.
Did you know the recent Golf for All report commissioned by the PGA revealed half of on-course players did not consider themselves to be ‘golfers’. That feeling must be addressed.
It’s at the heart of what is wrong at our clubs and it’s our perceptions around handicaps, and their fake importance, that is the cause.
If these World Handicap System changes can make more players feel like they’re being embraced by the game they will have done the job – even if they fail to silence some of the naysayers.
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Now have your say
What do you think about the World Handicap System changes? Is WHS a complete bust, or is it time to start making the best of it? Let me know what you think with a comment on X.
WHS Changes 2024
- What is Course Rating minus Par?
- Your fourball betterball score could soon count towards your handicap!
- You can submit a score at a Par 3 golf course?
- What is Expected Score?
- Competitions with odd numbers of holes?
- What are these new numbers on my Course Handicap?
- It’s all about the governance! Why the R&A and USGA have carried a review of the World Handicap System
Steve Carroll
A journalist for 25 years, Steve has been immersed in club golf for almost as long. A former club captain, he has passed the Level 3 Rules of Golf exam with distinction having attended the R&A's prestigious Tournament Administrators and Referees Seminar.
Steve has officiated at a host of high-profile tournaments, including Open Regional Qualifying, PGA Fourball Championship, English Men's Senior Amateur, and the North of England Amateur Championship. In 2023, he made his international debut as part of the team that refereed England vs Switzerland U16 girls.
A part of NCG's Top 100s panel, Steve has a particular love of links golf and is frantically trying to restore his single-figure handicap. He currently floats at around 11.
Steve plays at Close House, in Newcastle, and York GC, where he is a member of the club's matches and competitions committee and referees the annual 36-hole scratch York Rose Bowl.
Having studied history at Newcastle University, he became a journalist having passed his NTCJ exams at Darlington College of Technology.
What's in Steve's bag: TaylorMade Stealth 2 driver, 3-wood, and hybrids; TaylorMade Stealth 2 irons; TaylorMade Hi-Toe, Ping ChipR, Sik Putter.
