Great Course Scorecards

[iacas]

I'd like to celebrate the great scorecards we see in golf. What's great about this is whether the course is top 50 in the world or barely makes the top 50 within 50 miles of you, it can have a great scorecard.

Let's try to keep these to scorecards we have for ourselves, or at least courses we've played, and limit the number of photos of scorecards we get off the Internet.

Rules are simple:

1. Post a photo of the scorecard.
2. Talk about what makes it great, in your opinion.
3. Assign the scorecard a number grade - 1 to 10 - where 5 is truly average. You may use a single decimal point.

That's it.

---

I'll start with Rolling Rock Club, a VERY private and rarely played course in the Pittsburgh area:

First, the scorecard inside is austere, simple, etc. There are six lines for writing - the ideal number, IMO, because you can keep track of a foursome and still have two lines for wagering. The grouping of three and three is nice as well, as it clearly separates the teams, or lets you play two individual matches against each other using the top and bottom row of the three plus the middle line for scoring.

The front could not be much better. Maybe ditch the double border. I like austerity in a scorecard.

The back, well, I don't really need to be told that USGA Rules Govern Play, who the head pro is, to be reminded to repair ball marks,  etc. It's also not a Local Rule, so don't put it there. Put the Local Rules and the Course Ratings/Slope. and for goodness sake, rate the course for women from the whites and even the Blues. And rate it for men from the Reds.

Overall Grade: 8.7.

[Double Mocha Man]

And nary an advertising photograph of a bottle of Rolling Rock beer. I like the austerity.

[mcanadiens]

Not sure how we are defining great, but ...

This is a scorecard from the year Dayton, OH's Community Golf Club opened.  They had all sorts of historical memorabilia on display, so it was pretty easy to find this puppy. ... It's sort of amusing to note that they called it "Country Club"" back then. Also only nine holes instead of the current 36. Kind of wonder what the footprint of the original nine looked like.

[Double Mocha Man]

8 minutes ago, mcanadiens said:

Not sure how we are defining great, but ...

This is a scorecard from the year Dayton, OH's Community Golf Club opened.  They had all sorts of historical memorabilia on display, so it was pretty easy to find this puppy. ... It's sort of amusing to note that they called it "Country Club"" back then. Also only nine holes instead of the current 36. Kind of wonder what the footprint of the original nine looked like.

Hey, there's nothing under "Proper Golf Apparel" mentioning hoodies...

[mcanadiens]

7 minutes ago, Double Mocha Man said:

Hey, there's nothing under "Proper Golf Apparel" mentioning hoodies...

Go figure. 

Short of discovering time travel and putting it to the test, its hard to say if they would have let you and your hoodie play or not. 

Today, no problem. ... It's been a hard 100 years and our standards aren't what they used to be.

[bkuehn1952]

Pulled this out of my archives.

I prefer a single fold card and this is a double. Simple cover but they did let a bit of advertising in (Allianz, the German insurance company).  I like the course map on cards, especially when the routing is tricky.  The Local Rules are clearly laid out.  The section for scoring  seems to assume a two person match, which is rather limiting.  Plus a bit of advertising for the other Links Trust courses.

And yes, I shot a modest 85 BUT the caddies stated we played on the windiest day up to that point in the year (45 mph or so). 😉

Give the Old Course a 6.0 for historical value.

Edited March 3, 2020 by bkuehn1952

[DaveP043]

6 minutes ago, bkuehn1952 said:

Pulled this out of my archives.

I remember this format from much of Scotland, columns for just your score (individual or team) and your opponent's.  Also the "time par", you should always know where you stand as compared to finishing under 4 hours.

[DaveP043]

1 hour ago, bkuehn1952 said:

The section for scoring  seems to assume a two person match, which is rather limiting.  

Actually, that could be for a fourball match too.  They don't post match play scores for handicap (they may start sometime with the WHS), so all you need is one score for the team, the low ball. Or for a two-man stroke play event, there's room for both players on the team, and the marker.  The format of the scorecard kind of indicates the general competition culture of the area.

[VOX]

Oops. Here is the back

[bkuehn1952]

My "home" course is our local muni.  The card is a simple single fold, my preference.  No advertising, a plus from my viewpoint.  Nice photo of the 9th fairway.  Local rules listed along with info on the course and staff.

I have to down grade the rating since the card is out of date by at least a year.  The course ratings are inaccurate and our superintendent is no longer Scott Spooner.  Scott was a GREAT super but he was promoted to running the entire city's department of public works.

Edited March 31, 2020 by iacas
please post a picture, not a PDF to download

[iacas]

Not much to say about these.

They're great. I'm generally not a fan of vertical cards, either, even though they're definitely an "old school" way of doing cards, but these pull it off really well. I could do without the "self, partner" labeling on the Mid-Pines card, preferring the blank entry lines on the Pine Needles card, but I appreciate the "SMOOTH FOOTPRINTS IN SANDY AREAS" on both sides of the card for Mid-Pines.

Either way, I give both cards a 9/10. They're austere, elegant, and classic without feeling old.

[Bonvivant]

On 3/3/2020 at 12:09 PM, mcanadiens said:

Not sure how we are defining great, but ...

This is a scorecard from the year Dayton, OH's Community Golf Club opened.  They had all sorts of historical memorabilia on display, so it was pretty easy to find this puppy. ... It's sort of amusing to note that they called it "Country Club"" back then. Also only nine holes instead of the current 36. Kind of wonder what the footprint of the original nine looked like.

This is a cool find. I find it really interesting that the "strokes" row (hole hdcp) is done almost entirely by yardage. 290 yard par 4 being harder than a 243 yard par 3 !?!?! I'm curious about the original footprint too. I know that there were polo fields there at one point, and I don't know if that coincided with the golf course. I know that Patterson owned some ridiculous amount of land in that area and donated it off as he got older. I believe at one point he owned most everything east of Dixie, west of Far Hills(48), south of Schantz, and north of Dorthy. If you look at that plot of land on the googles, it's mind boggling that one man could own so much so close to the city.

I used to work at Hills and Dales metropark (I still call the golf course Hills and Dales too sometimes), and I got to learn a good deal of history about the park, which kind of went hand in hand with the golf course as it was donated at, or around the same time. The Olmsted brothers did much of the design for the original park. They have history with some golf clubs in the US as well. Patterson was an amazing man that actually cared about his factory workers getting outside and enjoying nature in a time (early 1900s) where that was extremely uncommon (it's still uncommon today to some extent). 

On 3/3/2020 at 12:18 PM, Double Mocha Man said:

Hey, there's nothing under "Proper Golf Apparel" mentioning hoodies...

Nor gloves, lol. Interesting tidbit thought: Our current premier performing arts center in Dayton was built on the original site of that store.

[iacas]

8 hours ago, Bonvivant said:

290 yard par 4 being harder than a 243 yard par 3 !?!?!

No:

 

[Club Rat]

I've collected scorecards I've played for years of various courses all over.
During my ski bum days, I would hang them on a small Christmas tree for decorations and as a conversation piece when friends would come over. I would place my best rounds on the fireplace mantle.
A friend used to keep the cards and mark the days and scores on a calendar.

Now, I more into using electronic scoring and seldom write on a card, except in events when cards are the only means accepted.
Nothing pretty about the App scorecard, just a simple means to track scores for 1-5 players.

[MiuraMan]

Below is the scorecard for my home course Bear Trap Dunes. Open invitation - If you are ever in the area (Coastal Delaware or Coastal Maryland), I would be happy to host anyone for a round; dutch treat.

The scorecard is a simple tri-fold design containing just the basics.

OVERALL GRADE: 5

 

 

[MiuraMan]

I spent a month in Sedona, AZ. It was November. I played a lot of rounds at the Sedona Golf Resort; it was affordable and otherwise fun to play.

The scorecard is pretty basic; though it highlights their signature hole, a par 3 with the red rocks in the background.

Overall Grade: 6

 

[DeadMan]

These are two of my favorites. Really simple, clean, not too many colors. 

[dagolfer18]

Several courses in my area have decent scorecards, but I picked out this one in particular. Why? The inside is great, it’s basic, and no ads (ads in golf scorecards kind of drive me crazy). Also has mens’ and ladies’ pars and handicaps, which I consider to be features of a good card.

What I find most interesting about this card, though, is that there are strokeplay and matchplay handicaps, which is something I don’t see a lot of. 

The outside of the card could be a bit better, IMO. Although I do like the logo on the front, I feel that it’s a bit lacking. The back is a bit better than the front, but it could use some local rules, even if it’s just two or three. 

Overall Grade: 7

Edited April 26, 2020 by dagolfer18