"I stopped counting at 12. Just put down my maximum, a seven." the second golfer replied. The question can be asked, Is this second golfer cheating on their score.
Outwardly, it appears so. Why did he do that? It doesn't make much sense and the whole thing seems to be all wrong. But it may not be the case. Let's take a closer look.
Golfer A and B have established handicaps. Both play in handicapped and flighted tournament events are based on those indexes and course handicaps. When that index is inflated, it is not fair to the rest of the field entered in that particular tournament. The golfer with the artificially inflated index enters that tournament, they enter it with an unfair advantage of having more handicap strokes. We call this what?...Sandbagging.
What did golf do about this problem? It established a procedure by which the golfer with a handicap would adjust their score on a given hole to a maximum number of strokes. The procedure is called called Equitable Stroke Control. For example, I carry an eighteen handicap and can only post a maximum of seven strokes. Believe me, many times I have gotten down on my knees and thanked "The Golf Gods" for implementing this. It is a way to keep the game honest. However, the golfer is still on their honor to post all scores, not just the high scores and this posting of just high scores can still lead to some serious sandbagging.
I use equitable stroke control when I post. It is in the rules and is a fair way to level the playing field when it comes to club tournament and amateur golf. I can honestly say that my handicap is accurate. The scores that I post are adjusted to reflect equitable stroke control. I am totally OK with that. If my handicap was not accurate, then when I do play in a tournament there would be a huge discrepancy between my regular play scores against my handicap and what my tournament scores would be with my handicap. There isn't. My tournament scores are generally within one of two strokes, plus or minus, of what my course handicap should be depending on whether or not I had a good or bad day on the course.
Does equitable stroke control stop sandbagging? My answer to that is of course not. It is not the cure all because you still are on your honor to post all your scores, high or low. I post all of my scores. I do that because I want to have an honest handicap. In tournaments, I want to do my best and accept the challenge of accurately competing. I feel great when I do well and place in a tournament, my scores are what they should be.
At any rate, equitable stroke control is a good thing. Don't forget to check out my website http://the-golf-course-travel-bag.com. I am continually updating it to keep you up to date on courses and other things related to golf. I am really proud of the videos on the site about the courses I have played. If you haven't taken a look yet, please do so. In the meantime, hit 'em long and straight. Don't leave that birdie putt short.
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| The leaderboard at the end of the tournament. |
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