Your New WHS Index

The max handicap allowance change (prior to the new WHS) is a joke. No one (unless there is a very good reason) should be playing competitive golf of a 54 handicap, end of story. Previously there was provision for a handicap above 28 to be allocated (had to be approved by the GUI I recall) and it was in exceptional circumstances only e.g. some sort of disability. Now I see GAA lads in theirs 20's playing golf of 30 handicaps which guys waiting for hip replacements hobbling around courses playing a decent level mid teens.

In their efforts to make it more inclusive, the governing bodies will end up with the opposite. The talk of limiting majors to people with 20 scores is just the tip of the iceberg; what is going to happen is we will have tiered comps in clubs (much like scratch cups) with max handicaps allowances either forcing people to drop down or more likely preventing them from entering full stop.

The problem is at the moment we are seeing the affects of new allowances, the implementation of WHS and a large uptake in the game due to covid - plus you could add in the good weather which helped shorter hitters. People seem to forget that large number of members were struggling to play off too low handicaps; these same members would have got a big bump at the start of the year (when the handicap index's were calculated) and are suddenly competitive again. It's a kinda perfect sh1tshow at the moment and unfortunately the people who had a consistent HI are the ones getting rode.

Hi, just a quick question. I played my first competition and was off 21 (26 on the course). I hit 40 points and was cut to 12.6.

I am trying to get my handicap back to a reasonable number (18-20) as ive never shot under 90. I handed in a card the last day from a casual round but it appears to have had no impact on my score.

Does this type of round not count?

As a new member I like the transparency of the WHS. I know when a score is dropping out and subsequently that if i shoot better or worse than a certain score my handicap will go up or down accordingly.

One qualm i do have though is the fact my handicap is not the average of my best 8 differentials from the last 20 rounds. I understood this was how it works but I am consistently playing off at least a stroke below the average of my 8 differentials which i do not get.

My ultimate goal is to get better and improve my handicap but I also want a HI that represents my current ability. Is there a system to have your handicap recalculated?

Your index is the average of your best 8 from 20

Your Course Handicap is your index adjusted for the course slope.

Your Playing Handicap is your CH adjusted for the type of competition you're playing. For stableford thatll be 95% of your CH which might account for the lower number?

Such nonsense. What does it matter if they're young and played gaa or if they're old and hobbling? All that matters is how many shots they take. And that's what the handicap is based on. If they play well, they'll get cut.

Clearly talking about capacity to improve. Young and athletically talented players will have an obvious capacity to improve as opposed to the older player who is experiencing diminished physical attributes

WHS has this built in anyway. As can be seen from the screenshot above showing handicap index progression. Basically put in your three cards, get your new index, put in a better score, that's your new index. And this pretty much happens all the way along until the twenty scores are in. But there's nothing wrong with putting in a reasonable adjustment that 'anticipates' likely improvement based on the progression shown in the initial three cards. Those initial adjustments drop off immediately a new score is put in.

Why should the limit be 28 and not 54? If a fella can't play to 28, what would be the point in forcing him to? And likely, confining him to the bottom of every competition.

The days of giving fellas a handicap of 18 or 20 or whatever were fine for those who would play enough to get to a level where their ability and handicap meet. But for the fellas who take up the game and are only getting out every few weeks, what was the point in them playing off 18 every time they get out? If they're young fathers there's a good chance that they'll only be able to get out in half a dozen comps a year, so over 2 years they'd get a shot back. Because the handicap secretary isn't going to be looking at the lads only playing in a couple of comps every year. Sure they'd be vilified if they gave them extra shots and then God forbid they win a comp.

If clubs aren't willing to let these lads have appropriate handicaps, then they shouldn't charge them full membership. And those who are playing more regularly should pick up the tab.

it matters when lads are handing in cards of 100+ to get 30+ handicaps and then popping up in their first comp shooting 81 gross etc... Then it transpires that people hand in crappy cards otherwise "as advised by other members" he would get an initial handicap allocated (under Congu rules) they would never be able to play to for years despite that not possible under WHS if it is followed correctly.

Why should it be 54 and not 108? When is there a limit on it? 28 was the established limit and there wasn’t half the grief about it.

An appropriate handicap is not 54 strokes. A standard par 72 would see them going around in 124 strokes IF they play to their handicap. No wonder rounds are taking so long if that’s the case

There wasn't the grief about it because the guys who couldn't play to their handicap just didn't play. And if they take a bit longer to go around so be it. I'd prefer to give up an extra few minutes of my Sunday so that fellow members can play rather than tell them I'll take your membership money but you can't win a prize in our competitions or even can't play in them.

The guys I'm thinking of for the high handicaps are the young fathers who take up the game, but struggle to get out once a month. Under the old system they'd have gotten a handicap of 20 perhaps and would end up avoiding comps because they can't compete in them. Whereas under the new system they might get a handicap in their 30s and actually have a chance to turn in a respectable score. Have we any data on the percentage of comps won by guys with handicaps in the 30s compared to how much of the membership they make up? My guess would be that they're not winning more than their fair share. But every time they do win one we end up getting screenshots of it sent around whatsapp groups calling it a disgrace.

And while they're the group I'm thinking of, they're not the only ones. I'm thinking of one lad in particular that I grew up with. He didn't play as much as me, but would have played once or twice a week over the summers. As a junior he got regular lessons. And he was just bad at golf. Most of us got senior handicaps when we got down to about 20. He never got off 36. When he reached 18 the club gave him a handicap of 22. With literally years of scores in junior comps to look at with a handicap of 36 and I don't know if he ever reached 20 points, I can't for the life of me understand why they gave him 22. I think he played in about 7 comps as an adult and only broke 10 points once or twice. There's no reason he should be bad at golf, but he is.

For me this new system giving guys handicaps higher than we've ever seen before is great. I've gotten shots back from it because I've been playing terribly for about a year and initially I was annoyed / embarrassed by it, but I'm coming round. It's nice to come in with a more respectable score. I want my handicap to come down, but it only means something if that's because I'm playing well.

The 54 was ladies cap wasnt it? Thought 36 was the increased mens cap?

When they introduced the increased handicaps they were limited to home club comps if i remember correctly. I think there was a cap still of 28 on away comps?

The 54 handicap index wasn't really an issue until now because (due to covid) we've seen a large uptake in golf memberships with new handicap allocations and (due to the WHS) a mass handicap review meaning that a lot of handicap which members have previously struggled to play to have now jumped. As I say we are in a kind of perfect storm at the moment and it's gonna take time for it all to settle unfortunately.

As I say, I believe the 54 limit will eventually lead to a tiering or separate members comps. The biggest issue with golf participation at the moment is pace of play - covid is an anomaly and eventually that bump will disappear.

If statistically a golfer will play to their handicap or better 1 in 6 rounds (I think it's around that but you'll get the point) - therefore if a member is playing in a stableford comp off 54 comp potentially (on a par 72) they could have 144 strokes. If it's a strokes competition, then all bets are off. That's just impossible to play with and puts everyone under pressure in the group; irrespective of the impact of the rest of the field behind them. Already you see better players avoid certain people on the timesheets and try to ensure they are not behind them.

No. 54 was universal. It was originally introduced for disabled and injured golfers and discretionary (clubs could opt in or out of it), but there was no take-up and it was then introduced fully.

"Already you see better players avoid certain people on the timesheets and try to ensure they are not behind them."

There is a four ball that my mate and I avoid for the slowness of it and they are all under 18 h/c.

I play with a lady who is low 40s. She's not slow at all and easily keeps up with me and my group.

High handicapper does not in itself mean slow.