Incorrect Course and Slope Rating on Scorecard

[HJJ003]

This year especially I have noticed that at a few of the courses I have played that the Course and Slope ratings listed on the scorecard didn’t match what I looked up on ncrdb.usga.org. In fact 2 of the last 5 courses I have played at the wrong information listed (and a few others this year) on their scorecard, and only one course I play has updated their scorecards since I have been playing it with any updated information of course and slope rating. 

Is this as common as it think, or do most of the courses you play list ratings that match the database? Do you even double check database prior to posting? If you have a GHIN does it automatically pull from the database? I use DiabloGolf as my HI tracker, and have had to double check the database with every new course I play to make sure I got the ratings correct. 

[Vinsk]

I believe courses are supposed to be re-rated at least every 10 years or if significant changes have been made to the course. Maybe it’s due to one being behind the other as far as being updated? I imagine ‘popular’ courses are better regulated to keep the database/score card in sync. Just a guess.

[FLOG4]

Economic pressure on many clubs has dictated they don't spend on redoing score cards if the raters have made changes to their rating. That which is in the GHIN database is correct. The only time I input manually is when I play a course not in the database. Like international courses.

[billchao]

Courses have to get rated at every 10 years or 5 for newer courses, so it's likely the course had its rating updated but not their scorecards.

Ghin automatically uses the updated ratings.

One of the courses I play at got updated last year. I play from the same set of tees but they have different ratings from last year and this year on my ghin account. 

[phillyk]

My course is getting re-rated Thursday but we have 2 boxes worth of scorecards left.  I'm not sure if our rating will change or when they take effect if they do change.  But we won't order another batch of scorecards until closer to the end of the year.  I assume most courses will react the same.  They will make sure they run out of the old one before ordering new cards.

 

I'll add that we order scorecards every year.  Making changes to the scorecard costs close to nothing so long as you are ordering a normal size batch.

Edited August 5, 2018 by phillyk

[HJJ003]

Thanks for the feedback guys. I figured it may have something to do with re-rating, but was unsure. I wouldn’t think economics would play too much into it considering it would only be a cost incurred every 5 or 10 years, but maybe so. 

[Shindig]

35 minutes ago, phillyk said:

My course is getting re-rated Thursday but we have 2 boxes worth of scorecards left.  I'm not sure if our rating will change or when they take effect if they do change.  But we won't order another batch of scorecards until closer to the end of the year.  I assume most courses will react the same.  They will make sure they run out of the old one before ordering new cards

My course did similar;  we didn't get re-rated just yet, but rather re-evaluated which handicap numbers are on which holes.  I think half or so changed.  To make matters worse, someone found a box of older scorecards they're now using.  So there are now three sets of scorecards in circulation.  

[iacas]

1 hour ago, Vinsk said:

I believe courses are supposed to be re-rated at least every 10 years or if significant changes have been made to the course. Maybe it’s due to one being behind the other as far as being updated? I imagine ‘popular’ courses are better regulated to keep the database/score card in sync. Just a guess.

If a course is not re-rated after 10 years, they actually get removed from ncrdb.usga.org as their rating is no longer valid.

[dennyjones]

I played a course the other day that caught me by surprise.  The score card didn't match the tee boxes but I looked at the usga site and they listed their tee boxes as 1, 2, and 3.   The tee boxes were identified as 1, 2, and 3.  I thought that was interesting.   

[Missouri Swede]

While out of town a couple of years ago, I played a course that had slope/rating info that was different from the usga database.  I emailed the course pro, and he told me that the info on the card was correct (but didn't say why the database had different info).

I emailed the usga, who forwarded my question to the state golf association.  They stated that the database was correct, and not the scorecard.  When I tried to followup with them as to why it differed, I got a reply that what is on the scorecards doesn't matter and that they don't even recommend putting ratings on the scorecard.  I didn't pursue it further.

[iacas]

The database is the definitive source.

[Shindig]

1 hour ago, Missouri Swede said:

I got a reply that what is on the scorecards doesn't matter and that they don't even recommend putting ratings on the scorecard.  I didn't pursue it further.

Why don't they recommend putting ratings on the scorecard?  At the very least we want the slope rating so we can figure out who gets how many strokes when we play Captain and Crew or whatever we're playing that day.

[Missouri Swede]

2 hours ago, Shindig said:

Why don't they recommend putting ratings on the scorecard?  At the very least we want the slope rating so we can figure out who gets how many strokes when we play Captain and Crew or whatever we're playing that day.

They didn’t say. I find it useful as one way of determining which tees to play at a course I’m not familiar with. But I usually look that up ahead anyway (or could look up on my phone), so having it on the card is probably not necessary. 

[DaveP043]

10 hours ago, Shindig said:

Why don't they recommend putting ratings on the scorecard?  At the very least we want the slope rating so we can figure out who gets how many strokes when we play Captain and Crew or whatever we're playing that day.

I'm sure that the USGA and the state association understand that many courses aren't going to throw away perfectly usable scorecards simply because the course has been re-rated.  They would rather not have wrong information printed on your scorecard.  The ratings are required to be posted prominently in the club, along with the table showing course handicap as a function of the Slope Rating, you can determine your course handicaps when you're in the pro shop.

[saevel25]

11 hours ago, Shindig said:

Why don't they recommend putting ratings on the scorecard?  At the very least we want the slope rating so we can figure out who gets how many strokes when we play Captain and Crew or whatever we're playing that day.

The course buys 10,000 scorecards. In two years, the course gets re-rated. Do you think they go through those 10,000 scorecards? Do they just toss them out? They use them, even though they have the wrong information. There is a course near me that has recently did construction. Adding a par 3, and turning two par 4's into a par 5. The scorecard still shows the old course layout.

35 minutes ago, DaveP043 said:

The ratings are required to be posted prominently in the club, along with the table showing course handicap as a function of the Slope Rating, you can determine your course handicaps when you're in the pro shop.

Good suggestion.

 

[RFKFREAK]

On 8/5/2018 at 11:41 PM, Missouri Swede said:

They didn’t say. I find it useful as one way of determining which tees to play at a course I’m not familiar with. But I usually look that up ahead anyway (or could look up on my phone), so having it on the card is probably not necessary. 

I usually go by total yards from the tees first, then factor in course rating and slope rating.

[Aflighter]

Doesn't really matter because the total yardage that scorecard says seldom matches what the real distance is.Usually they inflate they're yardage on card.