Are You a Vanity Capper?

[StuM]

I am "Definitely Not" a vanity capper.  with a 26.3 index and as @Zippostated, if that is a vanity cap then I am not doing it correctly.  If anything, someone who golfs with me infrequently and sees one of my better rounds may think I a sandbagger.  As @bkuehn1952said, all golfers will have rounds both above & below their HCP, that is how math works.

[DaveP043]

Like @bkuehn1952, I'm the Handicap Chair at my club.  I post all of my scores as required (not solo rounds), I do my best to estimate my Most Likely Score when I don't finish a hole, in essence I follow the rules.  My Handicap is as accurate as the system allows it to be.

5 hours ago, Hugh Jars said:

In Australia only rounds played in formal competition count towards handicap so fudging scores and submitting them, or choosing to not submit scores really isn't possible.

One of the remaining regional differences under the World Handicap System is the choice of which scores are to be posted.  Given my choice, I'd like to see the USGA move towards the model in the rest of the world.  I'd like to see competition scores be posted, as well as pre-registered and attested casual scores.  I think that would decrease the opportunity for a player to manipulate his (or her) handicap.  

[GolfLug]

48 minutes ago, bkuehn1952 said:

People that play in a lot of "net" events eventually learn that there is little benefit in having an unrealistically low handicap index.  Those that don't catch on become donors.

Yes. 90% of my Sunday games have something ($10-$20) on the line. The club net events have anywhere from $50-$100 per player pot (there is one every month of the season ; usually 5-6 each season).

We WELCOME vanity donors with open arms but those are hard to come by. Typically it's someone who is having a poor run. I'm one of those who has been on a hot run last two months or so but it's a tight group so we are all comfortable with where everyone is.  

[StuM]

32 minutes ago, DaveP043 said:

I'd like to see competition scores be posted, as well as pre-registered and attested casual scores. 

Most of the golfers I play with do not keep an official HCP.  With an "attested casual score" would someone from my group need to enter into the system or would I still be able to enter my own scores?  If they need to enter something into GHIN then I may not have many rounds posted and then the HCP would be meaningless since a very small sample of my rounds.  I do not play in competitive tournaments so "Only Competitive Rounds" would not work well for me either.  My purpose of keeping the HCP is to monitor my personal improvement, or lack thereof, not for competitive purposes.

[mcanadiens]

I suppose I went from being a vanity capper to being a no capper.

In my final year at my old club I was still doing a handicap, but I dumped a couple of scores along the way. I'd get mad about halfway through a round, chuck the card in the trash and stop counting for the day. Needless to say those lousy scores didn't find their way into the computer.  Obviously, it didn't help me win much of anything in the few events I participated in.

The pandemic shut the old club and when I finally got to the new one, there just didn't seem to be any point keeping a handicap. I play with my regular guys and that's about it.

[DaveP043]

3 minutes ago, StuM said:

Most of the golfers I play with do not keep an official HCP.  With an "attested casual score" would someone from my group need to enter into the system or would I still be able to enter my own scores?  If they need to enter something into GHIN then I may not have many rounds posted and then the HCP would be meaningless since a very small sample of my rounds.  I do not play in competitive tournaments so "Only Competitive Rounds" would not work well for me either.  My purpose of keeping the HCP is to monitor my personal improvement, or lack thereof, not for competitive purposes.

And I know you're not unusual in the way you use the Handicap System.  But Handicaps were developed to facilitate fair competition between players of different levels of ability.  And for better or for worse, in the USGA areas its pretty dang easy to manipulate your handicap, unless you're at a club which somehow verifies every score posted.  So we're caught between encouraging participation (including those who never actually compete), or taking measures to minimize manipulation.  I'd prefer to minimize manipulation, and if some players no longer choose to keep an official handicap, that's an unfortunate but acceptable side effect.

Just for information, this short article explains how "casual" rounds are handled.  In essence, you tell the system you plan to post your score before you play.  After you play and enter your score, that score is emailed to your playing companion for attestation.  https://howdidido.blob.core.windows.net/clubsitespublic/file_fee931f6-0df6-485a-a41f-e94f9145bd6b.pdf

[Shindig]

2 hours ago, bkuehn1952 said:

I am definitely not a vanity handicapper.  To people who don't know us, however, many of us appear to be vanity cappers at times.  A lot of players are unaware that someone with a 10.0 index only shoots a score of 82 or lower around 20% of the time (assuming a course rated 72.0 with a 113 slope).  In my role as handicap chairman, I often field questions that demonstrate how little most people know about the USGA Handicap System.

People that play in a lot of "net" events eventually learn that there is little benefit in having an unrealistically low handicap index.  Those that don't catch on become donors.

Definitely true on both parts.  I had a pretty good round recently that produced a 14 differential, but when looking at strokes gained, my total was pretty close to the 10 handicap benchmark.  I was wondering where the other four strokes went until it was pointed out to me 10 handicaps don't average a 10 differential... which of course I should have known.

[reidsou]

On the vanity side of things - I use my handicap to measure progress. I'm also on a handicap committee and players have complained about getting an ESR (Exceptional Score Reduction). Personally, I would love to get one of those, as it would mean I finally broke 70. 

[TourSpoon]

I am only a vanity cap on the Sand Trap forums as I haven't updated my handicap profile in a year. I am really playing to a 5.0 right now as of the last revision! 🤣 

Seriously, I think I failed to post 2 scores out of the last 30 because I was playing in lousy conditions. I do wish to have a lower handicap except in my weekly money games where I am glad to take the strokes.  When I have had to post a terrible round, it gets posted even though its hard to look at. 

[StuM]

1 hour ago, TourSpoon said:

Seriously, I think I failed to post 2 scores out of the last 30 because I was playing in lousy conditions. I do wish to have a lower handicap except in my weekly money games where I am glad to take the strokes.  When I have had to post a terrible round, it gets posted even though its hard to look at. 

If I only posted my good rounds I would rarely post anything.  I never feel good being reminded of my crap rounds, but I've gotten used to it.

[saevel25]

Depends on which driver swing shows up. Better than scratch golfer driver results or worse than a +15 handicap driver results. 😛

Its hard to say when my strokes gained with the driver is either +7 versus a 6 handicap golfer or -6 versus six handicap golfer.

 

Edited July 22, 2022 by saevel25

[iacas]

1 hour ago, saevel25 said:

+15 handicap

That's some DAMN good driving there…

[billchao]

25 minutes ago, iacas said:

That's some DAMN good driving there…

He said worse than +15, so he's still technically correct.

[iacas]

1 hour ago, billchao said:

He said worse than +15, so he's still technically correct.

Ha ha ha! True!

[David L Yskes]

I am not a Vanity Capper,  I'll be honest, I'm sure my handicap is probably 20something idk????   But it all depends on the course... 

On a short n easier course, i could shoot a low 40 over 9 holes, but then struggle on the back 9... 

If the course starts to get long and tough, i could struggle to break 50 over 9 holes..   

But it doesn't mean i won't have my chances at par's and birdies..   

[Denny Bang Bang]

I would say I’m definitely not (on purpose anyway).  I’ve been in a rut the past couple months, and am soft capped at the moment.  So technically my index is where it should be, but I’m definitely playing worse than it.

 I do like playing $ games vanity cappers though.  I think we all probably do

[RFKFREAK]

13 hours ago, bkuehn1952 said:

Your league should adopt model local Rule E-5.  When you have a situation as you describe, one determines approximately the point where the ball was lost or went OB.  Then one drops roughly laterally in the fairway with a 2 stroke penalty.

Alternative to S&D Model Local Rule.pdf (usga.org)

I don't carry an official HC but for my own unofficial one this is what I do.  It can be frustrating when I hit a ball that i can't find that i feel didn't go OB (which, if i did, I'd hit a provisional) but I'm not going to go back and re-tee it even though I'm likely going to be in a better position than a few feet from the OOB.

[saevel25]

5 hours ago, iacas said:

That's some DAMN good driving there…

Negative handicap is good, strokes gained is good, game golf stuff... It's hard to keep track of +/- anymore 😉