Monday, February 3, 2020

This notice of the new handicap system is sent from the North Halton Handicap Committee.  Barb Rieger is the contact if you have any questions.


World Handicap System                    

 ESC REPLACED BY NET DOUBLE BOGEY
Times are changing and  concessions were  made to have harmony developing the World Handicap System (WHS). The concept of Equitable Stroke Control, as of January 1, 2020 has gone the way of the Edsel.  ESC came into being in 2012 and is exiting 8 years later. In its place is the concept of the NET DOUBLE BOGEY as the MAXIMUM SCORE you can take on a hole.
Although this concept can be a bit confusing at first soon you will be comfortable with its calculation. 
  1. You must know your course handicap from the tee box that you are using that day. That handicap will be added on to the par plus double bogey allowing you extra strokes on those handicap holes.
  2. If you worry that you can not figure out the Net Double Bogey correctly you can always enter your gross score in the computer Hole by Hole (HBH). I know that you may think this is very onerous and time consuming but it took me maybe 15 seconds to enter my scores that way. You enter your gross score and the computer automatically adjusts that score to the Net Double Bogey. Golf Canada is really advocating this HBH method for many reasons. If you are worried about lining up at the computer you can do it through the Golf Canada website as I did ( I understand the App is not that user friendly but give
    it a whirl).
  3. If you do not have an account with Golf Canada ask any of the Club Pros to get you hooked up and a username will be assigned to you then you just have to set up a password and voila, online score entry from the comforts of your home, car, if you are not driving, etc. Also once set up you can change your username if you so desire.                                                      
  EXAMPLES 
 If your course Handicap is 18 and if par on the hole is 4 then 2 for a double bogie + 4  for the hole par and + 1 for your Handicap allotted stroke holes.
If your course Handicap is 22 and if par on the hole is 4 then 2 for a double bogie  + 4 for the hole par and, here’s where it gets a bit tricky,1 for each hole + 1 for each of the 4 most difficult holes equaling your total of your Handicap allotted stroke holes. The  score cards all designate which holes are shown by their level of difficulty for both men and women and they differ by gender.
If your handicap is zero then your maximum score under the NDB method would be 5 on a par 3, 6 on a par 4 and 7 or a par 5.
If your handicap is 18 then your maximum score under the NDB method would be 6 on a par 3, 7 on a par 4 and 8 on a par 5.
The calculations are not as intuitive for handicaps that are not multiples of 18.    
We know this may or may not sound confusing so if you just put your scores either in the Club Computer or on the Golf Canada website Hole by Hole the site will do the computing for you.    
Our Club recommends this but has NOT made it MANDATORY like other Clubs. Our Club Computer still defaults to total score entry but is is super easy to click on Hole by Hole ( HBH) and enter your score that way.
Reasons for Change
The Net Double Bogey adjustment is more consistent from hole to hole than the ESC procedure.
For example – using the ESC procedure, a player with a Course Handicap of 21 would have the same maximum score (8) on each hole – regardless of the Par or difficulty of the hole.
By factoring in Par and Stroke Index values under the Net Double Bogey procedure, adjusted hole scores will be more precise and reflective of each player’s demonstrated ability. This is a more personal assessment compared to the grouping together of Course Handicap ranges.
While this is a change for all who have used the Golf Canada Handicap System, Net Double Bogey has been used successfully in many parts of the world – as it is the equivalent to zero points in the Net Stableford format of play which is widely used elsewhere.
The 2019 “Rules of Golf” introduced the maximum score form of stroke play, and Net Double Bogey was included as a recommended maximum score.
When Net Double Bogey is the maximum score set by the Committee, no adjustments are necessary for handicap purposes.
Below is a link to a video about net double bogey. Love the accent!
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