Purpose of an RCGA Handicap, and How it Works. For more information, visit the RCGA (see "links") The RCGA Handicap System makes the game of golf more enjoyable by enabling golfers of differing abilities to compete on an equitable basis. The System provides fair Course Handicaps for players regardless of ability, and adjusts a player's RCGA Handicap Factor up or down as their game changes. At the same time, it disregards high scores that bear little relation to the player's potential scoring ability and promotes continuity by making handicaps continuous from one playing season or year to the next. An RCGA Handicap Factor is useful for all forms of play. A basic premise underlies the RCGA Handicap System, namely that every player will try to make the best score at each hole in every round, regardless of where the round is played, and that the player will post every acceptable score, adjusted by Equitable Stroke Control (ESC), for peer review.
An RCGA Handicap Factor, issued by a golf club or authorized golf association, indicates a golfer's skill and comes in the form of a number taken to one decimal place, e.g. 9.2. An RCGA Handicap Factor is issued only to individuals who are members of a member golf club.
An RCGA Handicap Factor compares a player's scoring ability to the scoring ability of an expert amateur on a course of standard difficulty. A player posts scores along with the appropriate RCGA Course Rating to make up the scoring record. An RCGA Handicap Factor is computed from no more than 20 scores plus eligible Tournament Scores in the scoring record. It reflects the player's potential because it is based upon the best scores posted for a given number of rounds, ideally the best 10 of the last 20 rounds.
An RCGA Course Rating is the evaluation of the playing difficulty of a course for scratch golfers under normal conditions based on yardage and other obstacles that affect scoring ability. An RCGA Slope Rating is an evaluation of how much more difficult the course plays for individuals who are not scratch golfers. Each course is rated from each set of tees for both the scratch golfer and the bogey golfer. The Course Rating reflects the difficulty of the course for the scratch golfer. The RCGA Slope Rating reflects the difficulty of the course for players who are not scratch golfers. The greater the difference between the scores of the scratch and bogey golfer on a certain course, the higher the RCGA Slope Rating will be and the more strokes golfers will receive. Conversely, the less the difference, the lower the RCGA Slope Rating will be-and the fewer strokes golfers will receive.
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