Your Course's Handicap Committee

[newtogolf]

I haven't met with the handicap committee and only know their names because an e-mail was sent out stating who they were for this year. 

[Club Rat]

@iacas  and @DaveP043

Would you share your knowledge or thoughts of the duties a HC committee person does during meetings.
At our club they meet monthly and review dates when golfers are on the tee sheets and reference score posting of individuals.

They will send emails to golfers who do not post a score, requesting their score on such given day/dates. Apparently, many members were slacking or neglecting to post.

They would seldom check accuracy of scores being posted which I feel is a higher priority. Many members do not use ESC or did not have knowledge of the purpose ESC. 

[bkuehn1952]

28 minutes ago, Club Rat said:

At our club they meet monthly and review dates when golfers are on the tee sheets and reference score posting of individuals. They will send emails to golfers who do not post a score, requesting their score on such given day/dates. Apparently, many members were slacking or neglecting to post.

Interesting that the Committee is that involved in checking for posted scores.  We eventually decided to post our tournament scores for our members (part of the software package we purchased for recording and calculating the tournament results).  Cajoling and pressing the members to post was more work than just taking over the job.  We have not figured out a way to check on the posting of non-tournament scores.  We know people are playing outside our events but documenting the activity has proven to be impossible.

[DaveP043]

1 hour ago, Club Rat said:

@iacas  and @DaveP043

Would you share your knowledge or thoughts of the duties a HC committee person does during meetings.
At our club they meet monthly and review dates when golfers are on the tee sheets and reference score posting of individuals.

They will send emails to golfers who do not post a score, requesting their score on such given day/dates. Apparently, many members were slacking or neglecting to post.

They would seldom check accuracy of scores being posted which I feel is a higher priority. Many members do not use ESC or did not have knowledge of the purpose ESC. 

I mentioned this in another thread, but will repeat it here.  At my club, we went without an appropriate HC for the first 20 years of the club's existence.  I can't say whether it was lack of interest or knowledge on the part of the members, or lack of organizational effort on the part of the head pro.  The result is that this year, we're doing our best to break some old bad habits.  That means that at this stage, our first prority is getting the members to post all of their scores.  Our procedure is to check the computerized records of play and the handwritten tee sheets against Ghin records of scores posted, and find out who's not posting their scores.  We notify members, either by email of face to face, remind them to post, etc.  Eventually, we'll get most people posting, or they'll let us know that they don't want to maintain a handicap.  For the remainder, we'll start a more formal process of notification, and then posting actual and/or penalty scores.  Eventually they'll get the message, I hope.

As for checking the accuracy of the scores, that's a secondary priority.  We WILL keep tournament scorecards and check those for ESC, and launch an educational effort where required.  Longer term, we'll ask that scorecards for casual play be turned in occasionally, and do the same there.  A difficulty in checking those scorecards is that the HC is not allowed to require that all cards be turned in.  We can do it for a player whose handicap has been modified or withdrawn, but for general play we can only request them.  http://www.usga.org/content/usga/home-page/Handicapping/handicap-manual.html#!decision-14379

@bkuehn1952, our club keeps a computerized record of who plays on which days, whether they walk or ride a cart.  We also keep the handwritten tee sheets, and the pro shop staff makes specific notes when they know a player is going out alone.  I can compare those to the Ghin records pretty easily.  I now have Admin rights to our club's Ghin records, so I can get whatever reports I want to have.  Its definitely a hassle to try to train people to post properly, but most of our members are pretty accepting of our efforts, they see it as helping make play more fair.  For the remainder, we'll end up posting a couple of penalty scores, and they'll eventually fall in line, I hope.  If they choose not to post properly, they'll have to live without a USGA handicap.  From 8-4 of the Handicap Manual:

Quote

A player must earn a Handicap Index. No player has an inherent right to a Handicap Index without providing full evidence of ability to the golf club's Handicap Committee.

 

[bkuehn1952]

19 minutes ago, DaveP043 said:

 

... our club keeps a computerized record of who plays on which days, whether they walk or ride a cart.  We also keep the handwritten tee sheets, and the pro shop staff makes specific notes when they know a player is going out alone.  I can compare those to the Ghin records pretty easily.  I now have Admin rights to our club's Ghin records, so I can get whatever reports I want to have.  Its definitely a hassle to try to train people to post properly, but most of our members are pretty accepting of our efforts, they see it as helping make play more fair.  For the remainder, we'll end up posting a couple of penalty scores, and they'll eventually fall in line, I hope.  If they choose not to post properly, they'll have to live without a USGA handicap.  From 8-4 of the Handicap Manual:

 

Our problem is we are a club-without-real-estate.  The only time our members are together is for the tournaments we run.  If a player only plays our tournaments and never plays a postable round elsewhere, then we have the data.  On the other hand, if a player chooses to play a round at Leslie Park Golf Course with 2-4 non-members, there is no way for us to check whether he posted or not.

We continue to beat the drum about posting scores outside our tournaments.  Most members seem to hear us and post non-tournament rounds but ultimately we have no ability to assure compliance.

[DaveP043]

50 minutes ago, bkuehn1952 said:

We continue to beat the drum about posting scores outside our tournaments.  Most members seem to hear us and post non-tournament rounds but ultimately we have no ability to assure compliance.

I can understand the problems you face.  We have the same issue when someone plays at another course, whether its in the area or when they're on vacation, we have no way to check them.  I really think the bulk of our members are pretty honest, and do their best to post properly.  While there's often good-natured talk about tournament winners being sandbaggers, we don't see anyone winning consistently enough to earn real suspicion.

[Elmer]

22 hours ago, iacas said:

Describe your course's handicap committee. Who are the members? Who is the chairman? Do they meet? Have you ever interacted with them?

If you don't know, say that.

We dont have a handicap committee.
One of the guys in my league collects dues for GHIN, which we enter ourselves.
This same person is working on setting up a computer in the pro-less "proshop" so golfers can enter their handicap before they leave the course!

[Grumpter]

I am pretty certain one of the clubs I play league in does not have a committee. The other seems to be addressing some concerns about handicaps but I cannot confirm 100% that they have a committee. From my perspective I only care if they try to make league play more competitive since I don't actually belong to the club. For most public courses I would think it would be a lot tougher for them to have committees as the number of club members is usually much smaller than a private course.