Press Release
New Handicap System is Fairer - 20th June 2007
"The new golf handicap system being implemented across the country, by the South African Golf Association (SAGA), is fairer than the previous system for all levels of golfers," said Neale Kunhardt, President of the SAGA, today. This system has been adopted by both the SAGA and Women's Golf South Africa (WGSA) and will be applied at all clubs affiliated to its member unions or associations.

According to Kunhardt the principle changes, which will be implemented, starting on 1t July 2007, are the introduction of a full handicap allowance and what is termed the Betterball Handicap Allowance.

"We are ready to roll," exclaimed managing director of National Golf Network (Pty) Ltd (NGN), Marcel Smulders. NGN is the company partnering with the SAGA to provide the technology and software to administer the handicap system. "The first phase of the changes planned are already embedded in the software at golf clubs and will activate for the 1st July handicap calculation at those clubs who have connected, as of 20 June, to our central system," he said.

In September 2006, each Union making up the SAGA sent their handicap representative to a meeting in East London where a review of the current system took place. "The single biggest issue that came out of this meeting was to address ways of combating the manipulation of handicaps by players. The new system will hopefully close loop holes exploited in the old," commented the SAGA President. "Over the last six months a number of systems used in other countries were reviewed by the SAGA's working committee," explained Neale Kunhardt. "The result of this research and hard work is the new handicap system which we are confident is an improvement on the current system," he concluded.

According to Kunhardt the introduction of a full handicap allowance for players gives a player his or her true handicap. He went on to state that comparatively speaking now a player's handicap will be 100% of the average of his or her ten best scores and not 85% as it is currently. He added that a player's handicap is still calculated in the same fashion as in the previous system, namely the average of his or her ten best differentials (being the difference between the player's gross score and the course rating).

"In betterball competitions (one in which the better score of two players counts) high handicap golfers tended to excel more often than those who had single figure handicaps," explained Neale Kunhardt. "With the Betterball Handicap Allowance, in all future betterball competitions, a player's applicable handicap will now be 75% of his or her full handicap," explained Kunhardt. The effect of this is best illustrated by example; a player who has a 6 (full) handicap will now play a betterball competition off a 5 handicap while a 24 (full) handicap golfer will play off an 18. "This system is fairer," stated the SAGA President. "We are hoping that it will be far more attractive to be partnered by a low handicap golfer now," joked Kunhardt.

Another change is the introduction of what is termed Calculated Rating. "Currently no provision is made for difficult weather conditions that often arise especially in coastal areas. In such conditions a player can record a nett score well over par having played well. This results in a skewed differential in the sense it is not a true reflection of the player's ability under those conditions," explained Kunhardt. He went on to state that Calculated Rating is a formula used to reassess, as it were, the course rating based on the performance of the field as a whole in prevailing weather conditions. So it could happen that a course, with a course rating of 72, on conclusion of a round, once all scores are captured and processed, may be pushed out to 74. "The resulting differential (between the player's gross score and the revised course rating) will be a truer reflection of that player's ability," said Kunhardt.

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The Calculated Rating, briefly, will be established by ranking the nett scores (gross score less full handicap) of the entire field in score order. The score that is placed in the position that reflects 20% of the field size (eg: in a field of 144 X 0.2 = 28.8, that will be 29th position), will become the Calculated Rating (i.e.: new course rating for this round). This rating, calculated by the computer programme provided by NGN on conclusion of the round, will be used (in place of the club's Course Rating) to compute participating players' differentials. "This Rating cannot exceed 4 shots above the Course Rating," pointed out Kunhardt.

Those players who have failed to capture their scores will face a new penalty calculated as being the lesser of the lowest differential of the last 20 scores captured by the player or the result of taking 6 shots from the total of the Course Rating added to the player's full handicap. "We have introduced the latter option as an additional incentive, so to say, to encourage players to capture their scores immediately they conclude their round," explained Kunhardt. Players have 72 hours in which to capture a registered round before this penalty is applied.

Another change is the revision of handicaps which will now be once a month and not twice as is currently the case. "With one exception," explained Kunhardt. He said, "If a player records a nett score of three under par or better, his or her handicap may be revised immediately; Dynamic Revision is the term used to explain this process."

"In implementing the new handicap system, we have automated, through the new software NGN are providing, a lot of these processes. We found that the old handicap system was mismanaged by a lot of golfers and administrators through ignorance rather than an inherently faulty system, we hope the new software will encourage a more participative role by the persons responsible for handicapping at both club and union level," concluded Kunhardt.

"The first phase of the changes to the NGN system will address the full handicap allowance and the Betterball Handicap Allowance calculations. The second phase, which relates to the Calculated Rating and Dynamic Revision, we plan to have implemented by the end of September 2007," explained Marcel Smulders.

For more detail on the handicap system, a publication entitled 'South African Golf Handicapping System for Men and Women' will be available from both the SAGA and WGSA websites at www.saga.co.za and www.womensgolfsa.co.za respectively. Alternatively the SAGA or WGSA can be contacted at the following e-mail addresses admin@saga.co.za or womensgolfsa@global.co.za.

For further information please contact:
Neale Kunhardt (President: SAGA): Cell 082 374 3456
Bruce Younge (Executive Director: SAGA): Cell 082 374 3455

Press release was written and distributed on behalf of the SAGA by:
Nic Lanham: Cell: 082 990 6067 or e-mail: nlanham@icon.co.za.

Handicap Calculation
How does the system work?

Q : How does the National Golf Network system work?
Answer : When you pay your green fees, your card is swiped at the green fee terminal.

The system then registers you are about to play a round of golf, and will therefore expect you to enter a score once the round is played. (Should you forget to do this, the next time your card is swiped through one of NGN's handicapping terminals, the system will ask for the score to be entered.)

Once you have entered the score, the score is then stored in an information packet.

This information is then sent via the network to NGN's main server and updated to the website. At the same time clubs around the country return their packets of information and this is also refreshed to the site.

Q : How long does it take for my score to reach my home club and the internet site?

Answer : Your score should be updated to the NGN main server overnight and by the following day it should appear on the web. All things being equal, the complete update should take no longer than 24 hours. Furthermore, should NGN receive any new data during the day, this new data will automatically be updated from NGN's main server to NGN's website.

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Q : How are handicaps calculated?
Answer : CHANGES TO THE SAGA HANDICAP MANUAL
The following changes will be implemented with effect from 1st January 2003.
1. FORWARD TEES FOR 65 YEARS +
If a player over the age of 65 takes the option of being allowed to play off the forward tees - his adjusted score for handicap purposes shall be determined using the regular club rating.
2. TWO-OVERS
As from 1 January 2003 the SAGA have changed the rule on maximum strokes allowed per hole. A golfer may take as many double drops as his/her handicap allows.
For example: If you are a 10 handicap you may take your double drops as they occur until you have taken 10 doubles, thereafter you may only take a single drop with a ring. If you are a 17 handicap you can take a double drop on any hole that they occur unless you have taken a maximum of 17 doubles already. This rule will apply to all golfers no matter what handicap.
3. HANDICAP WINDOW
The handicap window is extended to the best 10 scores of the last 20 scores .
4. HANDICAP REVISION
The handicaps must be revised at least monthly.
5. PENALTY SCORES
Should a player fail to return a score on the handicap system he shall have a differential equal to the best of his last differentials recorded as a penalty score . Should a player persist in this practice, disciplinary measures as described in the SAGA Handicapping Manual should be instituted.