What would you change about the Handicap System?

[DaveP043]

We're about a year into the World Handicap System in the USGA areas.  What changes do you think would improve the system?  I'm aiming this primarily at US folks, but comments from anywhere are welcome.

Edited January 27, 2021 by DaveP043

[DaveP043]

Since I asked the question, I'll post the first suggestion.  This comes in large part from a thread elsewhere on the site.

I'd prefer that the posting of scores be restricted somewhat, and that some type of attestation be required.  My concerns are two-fold, really.  First, we're required to post basically every round we play, but some of those scores shouldn't really count for handicap.  Second,  our current system really is easy to manipulate for that small group who prefers to cheat.  

The first concern, I'd prefer to count only competition scores, along with pre-registered qualifying scores.  By that I mean that you've decided in advance to play by the rules and post your score.  If you're going out with 18 clubs in order to test them, or you're having an afternoon beer-filled round for giggles, you don't preregister.

I come at this after experience as a member of my club's Handicap Committee.  As it stands, I try to reconcile the course's records of who played against records of scores posted.  We have to assume that every round played should be posted.  Its damn near impossible to check out every round that doesn't get posted, yet that's what we're really required to do under the rules.  Pre-registration would decrease the number of scores we expect to see posted, and allow a guy to play "fun" rounds without posting their score, completely in accordance with the rules.

For attestation, that addresses the most common complaint about the USGA system, that its too easy to manipulate.  And it is, its really impractical for a Committee to require submission of every scorecard, let alone actually checking those cards, so players really CAN post whatever score they choose.  My preference, once you pre-register for your round, you also pre-register the name (or GHIN number) of the person you're playing with.  After you play, you post your score, and it gets electronically sent to your playing companion for attestation.  Or you both go to the Handicap Computer in the pro shop and take care of it.  Its not a perfect system, but it does make sandbagging a bit tougher.  It takes either willful teamwork, or complete disregard for the system.

Again, I'm on the Handicap Committee where I play.  We have very few complaints about sandbagging, but there is always occasional muttering.  The one guy who gets singled out is honest, but plays a bunch of those boozy afternoon rounds, and posts them (as he is required to do).  When he's sober, and cares, he plays better.  He's not sandbagging, he's following the rules.  The changes I recommend would alleviate that particular problem.

One thing that was mentioned in the other thread is the prohibition on posting solo rounds.  To me, the Handicap system is intended to allow reasonably fair competition between players of different abilities.  Competition means actually playing WITH another person.  Therefore, it seems completely logical to me to base your handicap on rounds you play with other people.  If you play differently when you're alone, no matter whether its better or worse, I don't believe those rounds should count towards your handicap.  

[TBT]

I would agree about solo rounds not being posted, I know too many guys (myself included) that will drop an extra ball and rehit a bad shot and scores can get confused, plus like you said you can sand bag easily.


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[CarlH]

Cheaters are going to cheat, regardless.  Personally, I like the current system, even though it has the potential to be manipulated by the unscrupulous.  It's convenient for the honest golfers.  

[silver & black]

I don't compete. I don't keep an official handicap. I use a free, on line handicap site. I enter all my scores..... 9 and 18 hole rounds. I play with others and I play alone. This just gives me a round about handicap. It gives me a somewhat idea of where my game is at.

If you don't compete and you want an official handicap, would the same posting requirements still hold for those people? If you play alone most of the time, it would seem to me that you couldn't have a "real" handicap?

[DaveP043]

9 hours ago, CarlH said:

Cheaters are going to cheat, regardless.  Personally, I like the current system, even though it has the potential to be manipulated by the unscrupulous.  It's convenient for the honest golfers.  

Yeah, cheaters are going to cheat.  As I said, the changes I would support don't only address sandbaggers, but also address concerns that honest golfers have, and eases the burden on Handicap Committee members in doing peer review.  I also recognize that any changes that improve the "security" of the system will also decrease the convenience for the rest of us.  To me, its worth the small extra effort.

[tony@CIC]

10 hours ago, CarlH said:

Cheaters are going to cheat, regardless.  Personally, I like the current system, even though it has the potential to be manipulated by the unscrupulous.  It's convenient for the honest golfers.  

I'd agree, don't have any input on changes. My issue is more (my) Club related as I don't think they provide a sufficient "penalty" in league for guys playing the forward tees. We have several holes where playing from the forward tees could be the difference between a wedge and a 5 wood (our tees) yet we get assigned the same number of dots/strokes. 

[DaveP043]

7 minutes ago, tony@CIC said:

I'd agree, don't have any input on changes. My issue is more (my) Club related as I don't think they provide a sufficient "penalty" in league for guys playing the forward tees. We have several holes where playing from the forward tees could be the difference between a wedge and a 5 wood (our tees) yet we get assigned the same number of dots/strokes. 

Does your league assign Course Handicaps based on the current WHS system, based on both slope and (Par - CR)?  

I've come to think of differences in playing levels in terms of partial strokes.  If I'm giving someone 9 strokes over 18 holes, I'm essentially better than him by about 0.5 strokes on each hole.  Maybe its 0.6 strokes on some holes and 0.4 on others, but it averages to a half-stroke per hole.  On the 9 holes where he gets a stroke, that essentially gives him a half-stroke edge on those, while I retain a half-stroke edge on the remainder.  In your case, playing even with those "front tee" guys on the hole you mention might give them a half-stroke edge, but I'd guess that on others you have a half-stroke edge.

[DaveP043]

1 hour ago, silver & black said:

I don't compete. I don't keep an official handicap. I use a free, on line handicap site. I enter all my scores..... 9 and 18 hole rounds. I play with others and I play alone. This just gives me a round about handicap. It gives me a somewhat idea of where my game is at.

If you don't compete and you want an official handicap, would the same posting requirements still hold for those people? If you play alone most of the time, it would seem to me that you couldn't have a "real" handicap?

Just my opinion, if a player wants an official handicap, that player should abide by the rules governing handicaps.  If the player is never going to compete, he has no compelling reason to maintain an official handicap.  If you play alone most of the time, but not always, you can still keep an official handicap, all you need is 54 holes played in the company of others, in some combination of 9 and 18 hole rounds.  If there's a small chance of being invited to play in a tournament somewhere, maybe your brother-in-law's Member-Guest, you might need an actual official handicap.  

[CarlH]

1 hour ago, tony@CIC said:

I'd agree, don't have any input on changes. My issue is more (my) Club related as I don't think they provide a sufficient "penalty" in league for guys playing the forward tees. We have several holes where playing from the forward tees could be the difference between a wedge and a 5 wood (our tees) yet we get assigned the same number of dots/strokes. 

If your club assigns the correct handicap for the tee being played, it should, in theory, adjust the handicap.  At my course, if I play the senior tees, I'm a 5 handicap.  If I play the men's regular tees, I'm a 7.  We also have a combo setup on the scorecard for which I play as a 6.  We also haveother tees available, but I don't play them and don't know what my handicap would be without looking at the app.  One set is the championship tees and I haven't played those tees in 5 years or more.  The other 2 tees are forward tees and I don't play those (yet).

[tony@CIC]

1 hour ago, DaveP043 said:

Does your league assign Course Handicaps based on the current WHS system, based on both slope and (Par - CR)?  

I've come to think of differences in playing levels in terms of partial strokes.  If I'm giving someone 9 strokes over 18 holes, I'm essentially better than him by about 0.5 strokes on each hole.  Maybe its 0.6 strokes on some holes and 0.4 on others, but it averages to a half-stroke per hole.  On the 9 holes where he gets a stroke, that essentially gives him a half-stroke edge on those, while I retain a half-stroke edge on the remainder.  In your case, playing even with those "front tee" guys on the hole you mention might give them a half-stroke edge, but I'd guess that on others you have a half-stroke edge.

Can't remember the exact details from last summer, but it always seemed like we were giving them strokes even though there wasn't must difference in our handicaps. I think the Club didn't assign strokes properly for the match play league events. I'll be pretty vigilant about that next year. 

[Micah T]

[mention=73605]TBT[/mention] & [mention=53160]DaveP043[/mention] where are you two playing where you can still get in a solo 18?!


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[Imp]

On 1/19/2021 at 10:15 AM, tony@CIC said:

Can't remember the exact details from last summer, but it always seemed like we were giving them strokes even though there wasn't must difference in our handicaps. I think the Club didn't assign strokes properly for the match play league events. I'll be pretty vigilant about that next year. 

It's easy enough to check their index, and then CH day of play, in the GHIN app with just their name and home club. The only time I can think of where they would be different, is a multi-day tourney where they freeze the CH at the start. Works great if they shoot worse, but doesn't protect the field if they shoot "lights out" the 1st day or two and it drops.

Edited January 27, 2021 by Imp

[Imp]

On 1/18/2021 at 7:52 PM, TBT said:

I would agree about solo rounds not being posted, I know too many guys (myself included) that will drop an extra ball and rehit a bad shot and scores can get confused, plus like you said you can sand bag easily.


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So, penalize the guy with no friends like me?    

Integrity is everything. But so is implicit trust that people will do the right thing by the rules like you do. 

I've pondered this quite a bit (solo rounds).

What's the difference between a solo round, and being a single, joining up with 2-3 random people you don't know, at a public course (for those not members at clubs), and probably won't interact much with, nor will they pay attention to your shots, because you're not part of their sanctum? Better yet... when they don't have a GHIN? They're not going to care what you shot. They don't care about the rules. And they can't enter your score for you as they're not GHIN members. (I know, you do it yourself, but that brings me to my point.)

How can a score played solo not count, when you follow the rules of golf, vs a round played with people that don't follow the rules of golf, nor care, nor have an index, themselves? Great, so you played with someone else. Check. Score counts. See the issue?

Which is why solo rounds should count, with a caveat... the "score that counts" is the average of last 4 scores played as solo and must identify they were solo rounds when entering via a new field (more on that in a min). Much like the system can combine 2 9s. It's just math. I think that's more than equitable. What this means is those 4 individual rounds don't count towards your index. Only the average of them count as ONE score towards your index.

Which brings me to the next point... I think for a score to count, the attesting GHIN should be entered along with your score (or, you cannot enter it, must be another player). If you don't enter an attesting GHIN, it gets counted as a solo round. And if the person attesting doesn't enter their round with your GHIN? Bam. It's a single round (using the rules above). There can be an exception if the scores are bulk entered (because competition/league/tourney) by the HC chair or Club Pro. (Again, it's just programming). But those in-between non-comp rounds? 

Too many rounds entered, without a score posted by the player you used to attest (they should have a score from same day/same course)? = flagging for review by HC Chair. 2-3 rounds sounds about right. While this doesn't eliminate sandbagging, it keeps more people honest. Sure, two people could be in on the sandbagging and doing it together... another flag for review could be repetitive entry by same GHINs as attesting. Husband/wife playing will probably be more common... or "buds". Still... review that stuff.

Sorry for the stream of thought, but yeah I've been thinking too hard about this stuff.

[Imp]

A little more clarity on the 4 rounds. It's not a rolling average where the old one drops off as the new one is added. It's when you complete the 4th round, you get your average that counts. Then you need to play another 4 rounds to get your next average. Again... like combining the 2 9s.

What this does is prevents entry of four rounds in a row, having it count, then next round, having it adjust, etc...... like "but I played 2 rounds a day the past 2 days". Yeah... it's going to take you 4 days to do that in a marathon of golf that not many people can handle to get that number up for the weekend tourney.  

Oh, and the 4 is an arbitrary number. Could be 3, could be 5. But I think 4 is good so that's why I picked it. 

Edited January 27, 2021 by Imp

[DaveP043]

4 minutes ago, Imp said:

How can a score played solo not count, when you follow the rules of golf, vs a round played with people that don't follow the rules of golf, nor care, nor have an index, themselves? Great, so you played with someone else. Check. Score counts. See the issue?

Going back t my point, handicap is intended to make competitions more fair, competition means playing with others, so only rounds you play with others should count, in my view.  If you play differently solo than you do when you have company, the rounds you play with others should be the ones you count.  And if you don't score differently, its no big deal.  I get your point about decreasing the influence of solo rounds, but I'd still prefer not to consider them at all.

As for attesting, I do agree.  I think that should be combined with pre-play registration for a postable round.  If you register and don't post, some type of "penalty score" would apply.  And if you don't pre-register, you don't get to post a score.

[Imp]

I don't think pre-reg solves anything. I could pre-reg on the 19th after the round, then enter the score. The only way that works is if the starter gets your ghin and takes your attendance ... and you actually play the round instead of heading off to the bar, practice area, and never set foot on the course.

--kC

[DiscipleofPenick]

I think there's two different worlds and motivations here. In my point of view there should be a lot more openness for what is allowed to be posted. I've made the same argument others in this thread have that solo rounds should be allowed to post. I can't post solo, but I go to the muni and get paired with any number of randos or brohaims and I can post that score.

I am posting everything because I want my handicap to be as low as possible. It's currently 5.4, been as low as 2.3, and I want to push for scratch this year. In the public golf world tournaments and events are contested at scratch. Even if an event is flighted, usually not by GHIN (I have GolfWeek Tour horror stories) it's still gross score wins the flight. There isn't a factor where I am playing off my handicap.

The concerns I'm seeing seem to stem from club/league play and money games. Things that are contested at Net, or points, or trying to determine how many strokes are given/received. As a caddy I've seen this and the BS guys will pull to game the system. I understand the want to prevent that as much as possible.

I guess it all comes down to motivation. Are people using the system as a metric to measure themselves and push for the best? Or are they gaming it to win $20 in the Saturday nassau? Unfortunately we can't regulate this and ruling bodies have to make a decision.

Take Dead Aim

[Tom the Golf Nut]

I play over 75 rounds a year. Probably 50 of them are solo. At least 10 of those are in some sort of charity event where its a four man scramble / captain's choice. So this leaves me with about 15 rounds that I could post.  Then you get with some friends and challenges come out during the game that would prevent you from playing your normal game. Now I am down to about 10 rounds that I could post.

I don't play in competitions, club championships or any type events like that. So my handicap is just for me to gauge myself and create my own goals. Did I improve over the season or not? So with this in mind why would I artificially sandbag my handicap one way or the other. I would be cheating myself and not working to achieve my own goals. My club charges me a fee every year for the Tennessee Golf Association membership which includes the GHIN.  So I use it, and I do post my single rounds because they are for my purposes only. This gives me a better average toward my handicap and personal goals.Typically if I'm playing with someone new and they ask what my handicap is I just tell them I'm not sure but I can get around the course ok. I just play because I love the game. I also do not wager on the course.  I caught up to a guy on the course and then he invited me to play with him on the last 7 holes. We were tied going into 18. He wanted to bet a drink on the last hole and I said it wasn't necessary but he insisted. I beat him by three strokes on the last hole. I birdied and he got a double. Then he wanted to buy me the drink after the round and I said thank you for the offer, but I declined.   

I realize there are people out there that post a higher score to raise their handicap. Then they play in events, get more strokes so they can win the prize money.  There are cheaters everywhere!  I'm not one of them. 

[DiscipleofPenick]

I play over 75 rounds a year. Probably 50 of them are solo. At least 10 of those are in some sort of charity event where its a four man scramble / captain's choice. So this leaves me with about 15 rounds that I could post.  Then you get with some friends and challenges come out during the game that would prevent you from playing your normal game. Now I am down to about 10 rounds that I could post.
I don't play in competitions, club championships or any type events like that. So my handicap is just for me to gauge myself and create my own goals. Did I improve over the season or not? So with this in mind why would I artificially sandbag my handicap one way or the other. I would be cheating myself and not working to achieve my own goals. My club charges me a fee every year for the Tennessee Golf Association membership which includes the GHIN.  So I use it, and I do post my single rounds because they are for my purposes only. This gives me a better average toward my handicap and personal goals.Typically if I'm playing with someone new and they ask what my handicap is I just tell them I'm not sure but I can get around the course ok. I just play because I love the game. I also do not wager on the course.  I caught up to a guy on the course and then he invited me to play with him on the last 7 holes. We were tied going into 18. He wanted to bet a drink on the last hole and I said it wasn't necessary but he insisted. I beat him by three strokes on the last hole. I birdied and he got a double. Then he wanted to buy me the drink after the round and I said thank you for the offer, but I declined.   
I realize there are people out there that post a higher score to raise their handicap. Then they play in events, get more strokes so they can win the prize money.  There are cheaters everywhere!  I'm not one of them. 

Thiiis!!!! I am in the exact same situation and carry a GHIN for the same reason. Same train of thought bud!

Take Dead Aim

[Tom the Golf Nut]

1 minute ago, Tsmithjr9 said:

Thiiis!!!! I am in the exact same situation and carry a GHIN for the same reason. Same train of thought bud!

Take Dead Aim
 

Great minds think alike. 

[DaveP043]

6 hours ago, Imp said:

I don't think pre-reg solves anything. I could pre-reg on the 19th after the round, then enter the score. The only way that works is if the starter gets your ghin and takes your attendance ... and you actually play the round instead of heading off to the bar, practice area, and never set foot on the course.

--kC

Preregistration combined with attestation could be more effective than the current system.  Either one, on its own, is more susceptible to being gamed.  That's exactly what has been done in the CONGU system for a good while, and we almost never hear our English friends complaining of sandbagging.

1 hour ago, Tom the Golf Nut said:

I don't play in competitions, club championships or any type events like that. So my handicap is just for me to gauge myself and create my own goals. Did I improve over the season or not?

 

40 minutes ago, Tsmithjr9 said:

Thiiis!!!! I am in the exact same situation and carry a GHIN for the same reason. Same train of thought bud!

I guess I don't understand a push to change the system from players who never use the system for its intended purpose, for competition.  I applaud anyone who's trying to improve, and tracking scores to mark their progress, but aren't there other ways besides posting scores to your official handicap while ignoring the rules regarding which scores to post for your official handicap?  If you actually ARE invited to play in your brother-in-law's Member-Guest, what do you do?  Claim you don't have an official handicap, tell them you DO have a handicap but you don't follow the rules, or just tell them your GHIN number?  I'd prefer that you enter the acceptable scores to your official handicap, and keep a second record of ALL scores for your own purposes.  To me, that gives you what you want for tracking your improvement, while maintaining the integrity of your official handicap.

[Tom the Golf Nut]

5 minutes ago, DaveP043 said:

Preregistration combined with attestation could be more effective than the current system.  Either one, on its own, is more susceptible to being gamed.  That's exactly what has been done in the CONGU system for a good while, and we almost never hear our English friends complaining of sandbagging.

 

I guess I don't understand a push to change the system from players who never use the system for its intended purpose, for competition.  I applaud anyone who's trying to improve, and tracking scores to mark their progress, but aren't there other ways besides posting scores to your official handicap while ignoring the rules regarding which scores to post for your official handicap?  If you actually ARE invited to play in your brother-in-law's Member-Guest, what do you do?  Claim you don't have an official handicap, tell them you DO have a handicap but you don't follow the rules, or just tell them your GHIN number?  I'd prefer that you enter the acceptable scores to your official handicap, and keep a second record of ALL scores for your own purposes.  To me, that gives you what you want for tracking your improvement, while maintaining the integrity of your official handicap.

I use the system because I am charged for it. Simple solution is to add a check box to the system for solo rounds. Then it can calculate both the legit and the combined. I'm not saying I'm lazy but I don't want to have to maintain two different handicaps in two different systems. Like I mentioned I don't play in events that require an official handicap. Not even if my brother in law asked me. I don't even play in my own clubs Member Guest, Member - Member, or Ryder Cup. In the event I am asked in a charity event what my handicap is or average score, I give them my average score. 

[DaveP043]

3 minutes ago, Tom the Golf Nut said:

Simple solution is to add a check box to the system for solo rounds.

I don't have a problem with this.  Its not a change to the Rules, rather to the software system to facilitate the entry of additional information.  I believe I've read that services like the Grint do have that as an option.  Have you ever asked your club to NOT charge you the Handicap fee?  I know mine will do that, but I don't know if its common around the country.

[Tom the Golf Nut]

46 minutes ago, DaveP043 said:

I don't have a problem with this.  Its not a change to the Rules, rather to the software system to facilitate the entry of additional information.  I believe I've read that services like the Grint do have that as an option.  Have you ever asked your club to NOT charge you the Handicap fee?  I know mine will do that, but I don't know if its common around the country.

The addition to the software would be nice and preferred on my part. Not sure if Grint has this feature or not, but I know they are now starting to charge $19.99 due to the world handicapping system changes. My club takes the fee out automatically for the golfers. I could probably have them stop it if I wanted them to. But this comes through the TGA which gives me discounts at other TN golf courses. So it's more economical to keep it. I definitely save a lot more than the $5.00 difference. So I'm inclined to use it as I do and know that although it is not "official" I am doing the right thing by using it only for my purposes. 

[FrogginBullfish]

I would like to see more rounds counted towards a handicap than just the best 8 of the last 20. I don't think 40% of rounds, and only the best 40%, is an accurate depiction of a player's ability. I would like to see at least the best 75-80% of rounds counted towards a handicap.

I also think solo rounds should be allowed to count for players who would like to carry a handicap but just don't have the opportunities to play competitive rounds against others as often. To account for potential fudgery, you can weight competitive rounds heavier than solo rounds but still allow them to be counted.

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[THEZIPR23]

16 minutes ago, FrogginBullfish said:

I would like to see more rounds counted towards a handicap than just the best 8 of the last 20. I don't think 40% of rounds, and only the best 40%, is an accurate depiction of a player's ability. I would like to see at least the best 75-80% of rounds counted towards a handicap.

I also think solo rounds should be allowed to count for players who would like to carry a handicap but just don't have the opportunities to play competitive rounds against others as often. To account for potential fudgery, you can weight competitive rounds heavier than solo rounds but still allow them to be counted.

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Handicap doesn't equate to a golfers ability it equates to a golfers potential. 

It would be interesting to see weighted rounds. 

[PMookie]

I don’t like the “could shoot” aspect of GHIN. How about what I AM shooting as an average. I had 20 consecutive rounds at one point this summer: 10 at 76-79, and 10 between 80 and 85. Not sure why it has me at a 4.5 when I’m averaging over 4.5!!!! Weird. 

[FrogginBullfish]

Which is my point. I don't think a handicap should equate to potential. I think it should equate to actual ability.

Handicap doesn't equate to a golfers ability it equates to a golfers potential. 
It would be interesting to see weighted rounds. 

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[LICC]

On 1/18/2021 at 12:48 PM, DaveP043 said:

Since I asked the question, I'll post the first suggestion.  This comes in large part from a thread elsewhere on the site.

I'd prefer that the posting of scores be restricted somewhat, and that some type of attestation be required.  My concerns are two-fold, really.  First, we're required to post basically every round we play, but some of those scores shouldn't really count for handicap.  Second,  our current system really is easy to manipulate for that small group who prefers to cheat.  

The first concern, I'd prefer to count only competition scores, along with pre-registered qualifying scores.  By that I mean that you've decided in advance to play by the rules and post your score.  If you're going out with 18 clubs in order to test them, or you're having an afternoon beer-filled round for giggles, you don't preregister.

I come at this after experience as a member of my club's Handicap Committee.  As it stands, I try to reconcile the course's records of who played against records of scores posted.  We have to assume that every round played should be posted.  Its damn near impossible to check out every round that doesn't get posted, yet that's what we're really required to do under the rules.  Pre-registration would decrease the number of scores we expect to see posted, and allow a guy to play "fun" rounds without posting their score, completely in accordance with the rules.

For attestation, that addresses the most common complaint about the USGA system, that its too easy to manipulate.  And it is, its really impractical for a Committee to require submission of every scorecard, let alone actually checking those cards, so players really CAN post whatever score they choose.  My preference, once you pre-register for your round, you also pre-register the name (or GHIN number) of the person you're playing with.  After you play, you post your score, and it gets electronically sent to your playing companion for attestation.  Or you both go to the Handicap Computer in the pro shop and take care of it.  Its not a perfect system, but it does make sandbagging a bit tougher.  It takes either willful teamwork, or complete disregard for the system.

Again, I'm on the Handicap Committee where I play.  We have very few complaints about sandbagging, but there is always occasional muttering.  The one guy who gets singled out is honest, but plays a bunch of those boozy afternoon rounds, and posts them (as he is required to do).  When he's sober, and cares, he plays better.  He's not sandbagging, he's following the rules.  The changes I recommend would alleviate that particular problem.

One thing that was mentioned in the other thread is the prohibition on posting solo rounds.  To me, the Handicap system is intended to allow reasonably fair competition between players of different abilities.  Competition means actually playing WITH another person.  Therefore, it seems completely logical to me to base your handicap on rounds you play with other people.  If you play differently when you're alone, no matter whether its better or worse, I don't believe those rounds should count towards your handicap.  

I couldn't disagree more with this. This is a very private-club centric view. Technology now allowing the handicap system to be useful for the recreational public-course players is a very good thing. Why shouldn't the avid golf buddies who play regularly at the local muni be able to use official handicaps for their games together? The system should be more accessible to more golfers, not less. Just by normal practice the ones who will use it are the ones who take playing golf seriously. The effort to prevent sandbagging should be just that- measures to prevent sandbagging. Not taking away the handicap system except for those private-club competition players.

Edited February 2, 2021 by LICC