A viral article on golf’s World Handicap System making it ‘impossible’ for scratch and low-single-figure players to win handicap competitions has led to a change of policy at The Players Golf Club in Bristol.
The article, which argues scratch golfers are unfairly punished by the WHS and claims golf is the 'only sport that rewards mediocrity', received significant support from different sections of the golf industry and was widely shared.
Players from numerous clubs have reportedly debated the article with their secretaries in a bid to draw attention to the perceived flaws in the system, and one facility has now enacted a change of policy off the back of those discussions.
In June, the Players GC issued a bulletin to its members in which the facility, located in south-west England, announced it would introduce prizes for the best scratch score in handicap competitions.
“Starting tomorrow, all weekend individual competitions that are on the website will have a gross prize attached. The best gross score will win the same amount as a divisional winner. This is being funded by the members’ committee,” it read.
So, why has the issue of scratch and low-single-figure players and the obstacles they face in winning club competitions come to the fore recently?
The crux of the issue is that it’s either very hard or impossible – depending on where you stand – for scratch golfers to win handicap competitions, because a mid- to high-handicapper is almost always coming in with a score of 40 Stableford points or above.
That means a scratch golfer would need to shoot at least four-under-par gross to even stand a chance – a very rare achievement and most golf clubs in the world.
It’s been an obvious issue since the introduction of the World Handicap System, but opposition voices have become louder and louder of late. It’s no surprise – there’s greater volatility the higher you go up the handicap ranks, and those who have worked hard and dedicated themselves to lowering their handicap aren’t rewarded as they should be.
“In a recent round at The Players, a low-handicapper shot a few under par,” says Sam Mendoza, whose initial mediocrity remarks set the wheels in motion. “But someone in division 3 got paid for shooting 3-over-par net! After that, the club decided to introduce a gross prize with the winning amount the same as winning a division prize.
“The low-handicappers have already said they would commit to playing more events as a result of it.
“A lot of my mates are members at another club and I know they’ve had the article presented to the secretary in order to discuss the format of competitions over there,” adds Sam.
Sam will no doubt be pleased about recent developments at his home club given his efforts to shine a light on the subject, as will other scratch and low-handicap golfers who are becoming increasingly disillusioned with club competitions.
“I recently played in an open competition at Cleeve Hill and on the Sunday I shot the lowest gross score and didn’t even get a pat on the back. It was playing really tough and two people came in with 44 points,” Sam said in the original viral article.
“I might sound a bit bitter, and I know there are scratch events I can go and enter, but I’d beaten one of these people by 19 shots – averaging more than one shot a hole less than them – and they got to sit there and celebrate the win.
“A couple of years back at the Players Club, I shot my best ever round – four-under-par gross. It was the lowest gross round by ten shots in the competition and I came 6th. It’s madness.
“You categorically can’t win handicap competitions if you have a really low handicap. I’m certainly not in the camp of no one should have a handicap, because that’s one of the beauties of golf, but it just doesn’t feel right to me as it is.”
It’s fair to say the World Handicap system is far from universally supported, but it must also be acknowledged how tricky a task handicapping is for the game’s governing bodies. It’s extremely difficult to preserve the integrity of the amateur game, please long-standing club members and also create a system that works for nomadic golfers.
In a recent poll on X, we asked our followers how they felt about the WHS. Some 22% of respondents answered ‘it works well’, 35% chose ‘indifferent’ and 43% responded ‘it doesn’t work well’.
Clearly, there is much for The R&A, the USGA, England Golf and others to ponder.
