2 Man Scramble - match play style league rules questions

[n8dogg2669]

Guys I play in a golf league, and it is definetly a beer league. We have played the same format the last two years and we are looking to shore up some rules and procedures and I am looking to see what other people have done and get some ideas. We play a 2 man scramble that is match play style against another team and it is handicapped. This is a nine hole league. So basically you take your scramble team score against the other teams scramble score and you either win the hole or lose the hole. Each hole is worth 10 points, a tied hole each team gets 5 points. And the team who won the most holes gets an additonal 10 points, or that 10 can be split if the holes are split. So there is a total of 100 points available each match. We play double par is the worse you can get, but that seems to have issues with the handicapping system sometimes. We have some guys that will intentionally take a double par if they cannot win the hole. We also have issues with subs, or lack there of, and we run into the occasional issue where both players dont show and they dont find subs. So below are a list of issues we have, I would love to hear some feedback from you guys, especially if you have played in a league setup similar to this one. Thanks in advance.

1. Substitutes - We all know everyone cant make each week, but what would be a good policy if you or your partner cant make it and cant find subs? Also, how do you handicap the sub? We had an issue where a team brought a sub and the kid shot par or better and the guy he was subbing for is a 25 or higher handicap for 18 holes. Subs seem to be the big sticking point, we dont have a clear rule on this and I would like to come up with something for it. What is the penalty for not showing up at all? I like the idea of penalizing 100 points, but then another team gets 100 points for doing nothing.

2. Double par rule - Considering this is scramble, I think a double bogey is as much as we should go, thoughts?

3. Handicapping - The lowest you can have is a zero, should we change this to include negative handicaps? We use a 5 previous score rotation, and I can tell you I was a Zero or 1 all year, and when you play a 4 or 5 handicap it is tough to be giving a stroke on almost or over half of your holes in a 9 hole scramble.

4. Any other recommendations are greatly appreciated.

Thanks - Nate

[David in FL]

Kill me now.

Why don't you just play a 4-ball, and play actual golf , rather than a damn scramble?!

[UncleRobot]

Here is an easy solution to your Scramble:

(1.) The handicap part seems to be the problem (Especially in a scramble format.).

(2.) The Sub can be taken care of easily by solving the first problem. So, lets start with #1.

for

(1.) Since you are playing a scramble there should not be handicaps applied. There should be equity for the level of play, therefore there should be a two putt limit for Greens in Regulation. That will give every team a chance to go for the one putt. If you both miss, pick it up and take the two putt max. (This will make it fair for the higher handicaps as you are not penalized for not lagging it close enough to make the second putt, and it gives you two chances to make the putt in one stroke.)

The two putt max equalizes the end of the hole. Now, lets equalize the beginning of the hole. (This will take care of the Sub issue.)

(2.) The lowest handicap of your team will determine where you tee off from. Your "Team Handicap" will be the lowest of the two handicaps.

You said you had a 0 to 1 handicap for the year. Your team handicap would be 1 or zero. Your team should tee off from the furthest (Back) tees. The high team handicap should tee off from the closest (Front) tee's. (You are an 18 handicap and your partner is a 20 handicap, your lowest high handicap is an 18.) That leaves the middle tees for teams that have mid handicaps as their lowest high handicap.

It would be something along the lines of: Back tees: 0-8 handicaps, Middle tees: 9-16 handicaps, and Front tees: 16+.

For all substitutions your team must play from the back tees, no matter the handicap of the lowest high handicap.

This should bring equity, lower scores and a faster pace of play for your Scramble.

Thanks!

[clearwaterms]

Another rule you can change is maybe consider basing handicap only off of winning holes.

Something along this lines of the first round of the year is the round you play just as a team and you post your team score.  As your handicap adjusts as a player throughout the year, if you lose the hole, you have to post your score from the last time you won that hole, or your score from the first round of the year.  This should prevent players from sandbagging a botched hole to keep the handicap high.

I do like the ideas of tee boxing adjusting, but am not certain that I would like the subs to have to always play from the back.  The problem is that often times it is difficult to find Subs on short notice, and if they are not very good golfers they might not want to come back depending on how hard the course was playing from the tips.