World Handicap System refresher
The WHS was launched in November 2020 and many people are still struggling to get to grips with it. Here’s everything you need to know…
eveloped by The R&A and USGA, the World Handicap System (WHS) has represented a major shift in handicapping and unites six bodies across the globe under one standardised method. Its aim is to make for a fairer and more equitable system of calculating a golfer’s current playing ability.
A few months before the implementation of the WHS in this country, England Golf launched ‘Know the Score’ – a campaign to help clubs provide members the information they needed before its launch.
Scottish Golf, Wales Golf and the Golfing Union of Ireland also attempted to educate clubs and players on the system. Here, we give the lowdown on some of the key things you may need to refresh yourself with.
Why was the WHS adopted?
The principal aim was to make handicapping easier to understand and transferable to any course. Handicaps used by 15 million golfers in 80 countries worldwide would be equitable. It aims to make it easier for players to obtain and maintain a handicap and to enjoy a level playing field, whether in recreational games or competition.
How do I get a WHS handicap?
If you already had a CONGU handicap, you wouldn’t have needed to do anything. WHS software will have provided your new Handicap Index by calculating the average of the best eight scores from your last 20 rounds. If you are new to golf or don’t have a handicap, you will need to submit scorecards amounting to 54 holes. From those, an initial Handicap Index will be provided. This will be altered when 20 scores have been submitted for a fully developed Handicap Index.
And what is Handicap Index?
This is the key number in WHS. It’s calculated from an average of the best eight of your last 20 returned scores. When a new score is submitted, the Handicap Index is automatically recalculated and updated at the end of the day’s play, ready for use the following day. Maximum Handicap Index is 54 and nomadic players can register for England Golf’s igolf scheme.
Won’t my Handicap Index be liable to vary wildly?
There will be caps in place – soft and hard – based on a player’s lowest Handicap Index in a one-year period. If a player’s handicap goes three shots above the low index, further rises are reduced by 50 per cent (soft cap). If a player’s handicap moves 5.0 strokes above the low index in a 12-month period, it cannot rise any further (hard cap).
How is a course rated?
Two calculations are made – Course Rating and Bogey Rating. Course Rating is how many strokes a scratch golfer (someone with a Course Handicap of 0) should take on that course. Bogey Rating measures playing difficulty for a bogey golfer (someone with a
“WHS aims to make it easier for players to maintain a handicap and enjoy a level playing field”
handicap of roughly 20 for a man and 24 for a women).
Knowing these two ratings allows the new system to determine the difficulty of the course and to produce a Slope Rating for each set of tees, which will then allow all golfers to work out how many strokes they will receive on a particular course – Course Handicap. At a course where all players compete from their Handicap Index, the Slope Rating is 113.
How do I work out my Course Handicap?
Every club should have clear signage displaying Course and Slope Rating for every set of tees. A player will then cross reference their Handicap Index with the table to find their Course Handicap. They
then go out and play to that number.
Does every round count?
No! Although playing a recreational round can be counted, you will have to pre-register before teeing off if you want it to. If you haven’t pre-registered, a score cannot be submitted for handicap purposes.
What scores/formats are acceptable for submission?
A singles competition score or preregistered social score from a course and tee that has a Course and Slope Rating for your gender, played to singles medal, Stableford, par/bogey format.
Are playing conditions taken into consideration?
Yes. The system includes a ‘Playing Conditions Calculation’ that looks at how all players who have entered a score on a course have performed on that particular day, compared to their expected performance.
At the end of each day’s play, a Playing Conditions Calculation will be made by the system.
Where can I find out more?
You can find further details at the websites of each of the home unions. England Golf launched a campaign called ‘Know the Score’, which clubs were able to use to give their members all the necessary information. A WHS toolkit was also issued to all golf clubs in England, which can be found online. Google ‘WHS toolkit’ to find out more information and a detailed breakdown of how the new system works.
Prior to the WHS launch, England Golf’s head of handicapping and course rating, Gemma Hunter, said: “We want golfers to understand all the key elements of the new WHS before it is launched by providing a consistent message, in clear language that is easy to digest. We encourage golf clubs to use all the resources provided in the toolkit, so golfers have the best possible opportunity to take on board everything they need to know.”
1Picking your ball up to identify it without first marking its position
Yes, the Rules have been relaxed so you no longer have to have someone observe the lifting, but you do still have to mark the ball’s position first and you may only lift it if it is reasonably necessary to be able to identify it. Many people didn’t first mark its position before the 2019 Rules changes and still don’t now. If you need to lift your ball to be able to identify it positively, always remember to mark its position first and only clean it to the extent necessary to identify it before replacing it in its original spot.
Rule 7.3: one-stroke penalty