SMGA Handicap Responsibilities

• Handicap Principles

  Rule 1- 3 (i) of the USGA Rules of Handicapping requires that:

  1. Each member tries to make the best score on every hole in every round to be posted.

  2. Each member accurately posts every acceptable score for peer review.

• Posting Responsibilities

  1. Members MUST post all acceptable rounds as defined in Handicap Rule 2.1 (other than rounds in SMGA events) as soon as possible after the round and before midnight local time. AII scores posted must include any adjustments under Rule 3.

  2. Scores made under certain conditions are not acceptable for posting under Handicap Rule 2.1a. These include:

  a. When playing 6 or fewer holes.

  b. When playing alone.

  c. When a player ignores one or more Rules of Golf and fails to adjust the hole score or record the appropriate penalty (e.g., anchoring a club while making a stroke and not recording a penalty for doing so.)

  d. When playing a format not in accordance with the Rules of Golf (e.g., a scramble).

  e. When being coached on the course.

  f. When using non-conforming equipment.

  g. When the number or type of golf clubs to be used is restricted.

  Instead of posting, the member must make a note in the SMGA Error Posting notebook in the Posting Room.

  3. If 14 or more holes are completed, an 18-hole score is to be posted. Any holes not played are to be scored as par plus any handicap strokes the member is entitled to receive for that hole (Handicap Rule 3.2).

  4. If 7-13 holes are completed, a 9-hole score is to be posted. If fewer than 9 holes are played, any holes not played are to be scored as par plus any handicap strokes the member is entitled to receive for that hole (Handicap Rule 3.2)

  5. Members do NOT post scores for any SMGA event, that posting will be done by the Tournament Committee.

  6. Members who realize they have made a mistake in posting should note it in the SMGA Posting Error notebook, located in the posting room (or email the SMGA Handicap Chair if not in SaddleBrooke).

  7. Members must post the correct date, course, and set of tees. Members must post “a most likely score” for any hole started, but not completed. Post all rounds played at SaddleBrooke Golf Club as “HOME” scores, rounds at other courses as “AWAY” or “COMPETITION”.

   

• Most Likely Score - Maximum Score

  A player who starts but does not complete a hole or is conceded a stroke must record for handicap purposes the most likely score, unless entering a maximum hole score under Rule 3.1. The most likely score consists of the number of strokes already taken plus the number of strokes the player would most likely have taken to complete the hole based on the distance from that position to the hole under the guidelines in Handicap Rule 3.3. This number may not exceed the players maximum hole score for handicap purposes under Rule 3.1.

• Handicap Penalties

  Any member not posting in accordance with the USGA Handicap Rules and the policies of the SMGA may be penalized as follows:

  
  1. For failing to timely post or posting an incorrect score, a penalty score equal to the lowest handicap  differential in the last 20 posted rounds will be posted by the Handicap Committee.

  
  2. Repeated or more serious violations will result in additional penalty scores, SMGA Board review with the potential assignment of a revised handicap, suspension of playing privileges in SMGA events, and potential revocation of a player’s handicap index.

  Any handicap penalty may be appealed.

  The procedures for doing so are described in the SMGA Policies. section III.C.2.

  Email the Handicap Chairman: Email

• Handicap Peer Review

  While the SMGA Handicap Committee regularly monitors members’ scoring, it is the inherent responsibility of all members to participate in peer review.  Peer review is defined in the USGA Handicap System as “the ability of golfers to gain an understanding of a player’s potential ability and form a reasonable basis for supporting or disputing a score that has been posted.”

  
  If you feel a fellow member is not posting or not posting accurate scores, it is your obligation to alert the handicap committee.

  Email the Handicap Chairman: Email

  Golf is a game of integrity, and the only valid reflection of the player’s potential can come from the posting of all scores

• Most Improved Golfer Award

  The SMGA gives a “Most Improved Golfer” award to the full member of the SMGA who improved his index the most during the previous calendar year. To qualify, the member must have posted a minimum of 50 rounds of golf at the SaddleBrooke courses during the year for which the award is given.