If you’ve been an SCGA member for long enough, you’ve probably heard ad nauseam from us, your club officials, and other members that you need to post all your scores to keep your Handicap Index® accurate. It’s become a routine at this point: you walk off the 9th or 18th green and immediately pull out your phone to record your final score. But does that truly mean that every single score gets posted?
While most rounds that you play are likely to be eligible to count toward your Handicap Index, there are restrictions in place for which rounds are acceptable for score posting. These exist to ensure that everyone who uses a Handicap Index is playing by the Rules of Golf and keeping an accurate record of their scores. Here are four scenarios that might have you asking, “should I post this round?”:
Scenario 1: The Solo Round
While the concept of having a tee time all to yourself may seem like a foreign concept at Southern California public courses these days, there may be a time when you have a round with just your game, your thoughts and the sounds of nature. One of the thoughts that may wander through your head in this scenario is “can I still post this score to my Handicap Index?” Every golfer dreads the thought of finally carding a hole-in-one with nobody around to witness it, but should this fear extend to having the round of your life?
The World Handicap System™ is rooted in the concept of peer review, which means every round posted to your Handicap Index needs to be attested by another individual. While you may be an upstanding player who follows the rules no matter the circumstance, it’s only fair that everyone be held to the same standard when it comes to posting scores.
The verdict: Do not post the score when the round is not attested by someone else. (Rules of Handicapping Rule 2.1a/1)
Scenario 2: Conceded Holes
Seasoned golfers are conditioned to finish out every hole, especially in a competition setting. But there are some exceptions, such as conceding a hole in match play or picking up after net double bogey in a Stableford format. So how do you post a score from these rounds?
In the Stableford instance, net double bogey is the maximum score you can post for any hole anyway, so you can consider that hole “completed” for handicap purposes. As for conceding a hole, you can still record your Most Likely Score for those holes and post. The USGA has provided the following guidelines for determining your Most Likely Score:
The verdict: Post using Most Likely Score for any unfinished holes. (Rule 3.3)
Scenario 3: Bending the Rules?
You need to play under the Rules of Golf to post a score, but sometimes the rules are a bit less rigid than they appear. Whether it’s allowing for preferred lies or altering the standard stroke-and-distance penalty, there are times when you don’t always play under the typical set of rules.
When the change is a temporary Local Rule allowed by the USGA and enacted by your club’s Handicap Committee or the course, such as using the “lift, clean and place” rule during adverse conditions, then this score should be posted for handicap purposes. However, that latitude does not extend to you and your buddies deciding to call every putt inside of 10 feet “good.”
The verdict: Post, if playing with authorized modifications.
Scenario 4: The Scramble
After a grueling year of grinding through stroke play tournaments culminating in a heated club championship, your club decides to take a breather and host a scramble for this month’s tournament. You’re playing in an event with an officially sanctioned SCGA club, so the round should count, right?
Regardless of who’s hosting the event, if you don’t play your ball on every shot, you can’t post it. This applies to any form of scramble, alternate shot or even a round where you play two balls for practice. That does not mean all team formats are invalid, though; if it’s a format like four-ball/best ball where you play your own shot every time, you should still post that round.
The verdict: Don’t post if you didn’t play your own shot. (Rule 2.1a/1)