Handicap??

Hi all, I've been playing golf now for 9 months after not playing for about 20 years! My handicap seems to be dropping fast but I am a bit worried that it's due to the local courses I play. My game has improved dramatically due to lots of practice but the 3 local courses I play seem to be a bit forgiving. They all are par 69-71 courses, but it just doesn't feel right saying I play off 16 just from my scores from these 3. I do intend to venture further away now that my game has improved to see if it's me or the courses, does anyone else feel this? My scores have dropped since I got a new ping i15 driver and most holes i play on these courses consist of a drive and a wedge, they just don't seem challenging enough? (that's not me being cocky but just honest) I feel a different course may put me back to upper 90's???

Shane,

You will always find that if you play tougher courses your score will be higher.  This is why SSS was put in place.  I play a course local to where I am working in Bristol (Woodlands) that is par 70 and I would be very disappointed if my score was above 89.  I was a member of The Belfry until recently where The PGA is also par 70.  I would be very happy with an 89 around there.  The SSS around Woodlands is 68 and the SSS of the PGA is 71.  This means I should expect to score 3 shots lower around Woodlands than around the PGA.  SSS is not perfect and there are many who disagree with it, but the theory is that an 18 handicap player from the courses I mention above should be of the same standard. 

I made a concious decision to join a course that wa going to be challenging.  I felt that this would improve my game and course management much more than playing an 'easy' course.  I believed that when I then went elsewhere to play I would see the benefits and this is starting to ring true. 

See if you can get to a course that doesn't suit your game and see how you get on.  It may be that these 'driver-wedge' courses play to your strengths so find a course that forces you to use mid or long irons on many of the holes.  You will struggle initially and your scores will go up, but you will benefit in the long run.

Shane,

The link below takes you to the CONGU (Concil of National Golf Unions) website answering your question specifically.   

http://www.congu.com/faqDetail2.asp?id=39

David has explained it fairly well though.  Basically, it's what a scratch golfer playing the course should expect to score and is based on things like length, hazards, difficulty, etc.  It is in place to ensure that players with the same handicap but from courses of differing difficulty are indded to the same standard.  Opinions vary signifcantly on the effectiveness and applicability of it (especially on here!) 

Get yourself registered for one of the Golfshake Open qualifiers.  They would be a great test and fun.

Blatent plug.  Just cos you own the site doesn't give you the right to spam Darren!

I agree with Darren, get yourself into one of the Golfshake qualifiers Shane.  It's one thing to knock around the same courses and quite another to try and grind out a decent score on a new course (and most of them are pretty good too), playing with strangers and under pressure - that's when you find out how good or bad you really are - with the added bonus of getting to see some really good players doing their stuff too.

PS - still playing off 17 Perry?

Down to 16.9 Hawkins.  But for the five (yes five, how embarassing!) penalties on my last round the cut would've been more than 0.3. 

The race is on to see who can get down to 14 first Hawkins (14 means no shots on par 3's on the majority of courses)

Hawkins is already there in my book he's just a charlatan

It's the only word i could use the one's I wanted to use would have broken all the AUP rules !!

Remember David, one swallow does not a summer make.  My drop in handicap will just make it easier for you to beat me..