Smokin' it with the bandits..

Wow....played a fourball better ball knockout last night, I had to give the opponants 7 and 9 shots respectivley and my partner(brother) 1 shot.

We were 4 under par at the point where we scraped through with a 2and1 win, yes thats right 4 under and only won 2and1.

Now I know that people can have freakishly good games, but these guys were clearly better players than their hcps suggested..(ok we played very well too but to be fair I am expected to make the odd birdie to compensate for the few I drop).

It was suggested to me this morning by a few members that these guys 'protect' their hcps to help them progress in knockouts and prosper in opens/invitations.

I know this does go on and as done since winning was invented but.....

Why do people do this? I love winning as much as the next man, but surely the idea of having a hcp is to get it as low as possible...

Any thoughts? anyone do this? are these people 'bandits' or dare i say it 'cheats'?

Higher handicap players will always raise their game when confronted with 2 low handicappers. I might add that being four under par could also be taken as being a bandit pair yourselves.

Dan, being as low as 4, I would expect you would be giving a lot of shots away, soo in real terms birdies are most probably the only chance on winning the hole in the BB format. I play of 21 and some days can mange 6 pars and a handful of bogeys, so that would give me a chance on my day.

I've ceased to be amazed by it Dan, and as much as it may upset you John most of the time it's perpetrated by 'proper' handicaps from 'proper' clubs - they are just far too easy to manipulate. The last time I was 'Congu'd' was at a corporate day not long ago, the top five players all scored 40+ points, were all high teens (or in the case of the winner, 20) handicappers from respectable clubs in this area. To cap it all we played at a pretty difficult course off 3/4 handicaps. If that's what floats their boat then that's fair enough, I simply wouldn't want to win anything under those circumstances. Just give me a society where the handicaps are constantly monitored and are cut to suit general play.

one would indeed think that getting your handicap as low as possible was the target Dan, but alas no. I would like to think that it is only a minority that protect their handicap though. We all make jokes about sombreros and donkeys tethered in the car park, but it really does annoy me that there are golfers out there that are cheating ! I know that higher handicappers have bigger swings in performance and their handicap gets lowered quickly when they start, so i am not just talking about high handicappers; but i am talking about those who have been playing years off an artificially high handicap. Its an age old discussion that has accompanied many a post round pint of mine, and also been a thread on here many times. I have played with many people who in my opinion (which is not as important as congu) who are much better than their handicap and have been for a number of years. Just take the moral high ground (but not the trophies or prizes)

Why would you think it would upset me, Tim, I have seen this all my golfing life.

4 ball BB is a joke competition as it will invariably produce wins from even the poorer combination. Foursomes is the only true test, but seems to be something that new players are frightened of.

I know how Dan feels, having spent many years battling against higher handicap players.

I played in a 4bbb comp with a friend at Halifax 2 months ago and we were paired up with 2 guys from Woodhall Hills. On the first tee we compared handicaps and one guy was off 10 the other was off 15. The guy who was off 10 openly admitted that until recently he was a scratch golfer and later on the 15 handicapper said that last year he was single figures. Between them they shot 45 points and played to level par. But how did they manage to gain so many shots in such a short time? P.S Today I got a hole in one at Oulton Hall. hole 6, 180 yards from the white tees.

For me personally, seeing my handicap tumble is far more rewarding than a cabinet full of trophies. I am playing in a society event Monday week and know that as a 12 handicapper have not really much of a chance. Played yesterday and managed 44 pts and now off 10. For me that's the reward I get out of golf. My only competitor on the course is me.

Dan,

I see Golfers in different sections. Some (me included) strive to be as low as possible. I want to be Cat 1, but my 'official hcp' is still 5.6. Some just play for fun and their hcp is just a number. There are some that also play for money. They want an artificially high hcp so they can cheat money out of others. many a time I have seen arguments on 1st Tees where a deal is being sought. Others are the improvers, for a time whatever hcp they have will be too high. Come up against these in a Knock-out and your stuffed. All in all, golf is full of "wrong hcps".

I'm a big fan of the 3/4 hcp games - I think that gets a better balance from the 'good' games from the high handicappers.

3/4 was always the format to prevent this kind of thing happening on too frequent a basis. After all it is far easier to know shots off from the higher end of the spectrum.

Robert N mentioned that he quite often has 6 pars in a round, which ordinarily in stroke play will mean nothing, but as an opponent in a 4 ball BB his contribution will then become quite significant.

I'm with Dan on this, my club handicap is 16 and my sole aim is not to win a comp, but to get my handicap as low as possible. If I win a comp along the way, happy days. I can't understand why people would not want to get their handicaps low?

Adrian

Why on earth did you not do something about it? You knew their club, they admitted their handicap history so their club should be challenged. If they failed to disclose their handicap history to their club, they are culpable. If the club knew their history and chose to ignore it, the club is culpable. There is no point in complaining about bandits if you have the ammunition and choose not to use it.

It is sad fact but one that I am beginning to learn myself.

I've entered a few of the public "Race to Dubai" type competitions in the last few years and seen if too many times. This year we met a pair (really nice guys) but in their 4 matches they scored 42+ points each round off 3/4.

I'm thinking I should save my money.