Can (And Should) Handicap Secretaries Do More To Spot Bogus Handicap Submissions?

It would be fair to say the World Handicap System (WHS) has not been universally popular since its introduction to the UK in 2020.

I have written quite a bit on my concerns over the system and possible ways it might be improved. I also think there are significant potential positives with WHS in terms of inclusion and cohesion, if communication between different software works properly, that is...

From a personal point of view, though, my main gripe with WHS has been that it has made me care a good deal less about my handicap and, as a result, I have been less excited about playing regular, club-level competitive golf.

One of the reasons for that is that the handicap can change very quickly under WHS. I’m not so concerned now when mine goes up a little and I’m not so thrilled when it comes down a little.

This year my handicap started at 1.1. I played poorly for a while, and it went up as high as 3.1. I then had a few decent rounds, and it tumbled back down to 0.9.

It nearly tripled in the space of two months and then was reduced by more than two thirds in the next two months… That seems ridiculous. My handicap graph looks like the outline of the Himalaya.

The other reason I don’t enjoy club-level competition so much is that rogue scoring seems to remain a problem, despite all the efforts of the governing bodies.

I continue to witness it, and I continue to hear from people in person and online – tales of nett scores that are way beyond anything someone with a correct handicap could come close to matching, and match play contests where way too many shots have been handed out, with inevitable results.

Handicaps can be manipulated under WHS, there’s no doubt about it. Like anything in life, there will always be unscrupulous people who look to gain unfair advantage if they think they can get away with it.

The thing is, although unscrupulous people can manipulate their WHS handicap, either to pull off a little “banditry” or as a “vanity project,” they really shouldn’t get away with it.

Handicap secretaries, golf club managers and committees have the information through the WHS software to identify and sanction players who are clearly submitting bogus scores and manipulating their handicaps.

The question in the title of this article – “can and should handicap secretaries do more to spot bogus handicap submissions?” – is a loaded one…

The answer to it is this: a handicap secretary or committee can, and should, do all they can to spot bogus handicap submissions. If not, they aren't doing their job properly.

Obviously, in all occupations, some people are better at their job than others. Handicap secretaries, managers or committees can do a great deal to spot bogus handicaps, and they should use every tool available to do so. They should take appropriate action when they do spot fraudulence.

As a first step, handicap committees can conduct a “handicap review” of all the handicaps at the club or facility they are responsible for. This could be done annually or even more frequently.

The review identifies players who are consistently scoring above, or below, their ‘expected’ scoring range or where other abnormalities within a player’s scoring record exist. Committees can then make a recommended adjustment to the handicap index of each player identified, up to a maximum of two strokes.

Other reports that can be used to identify manipulation include:

– General play vs competition play scores. If a player consistently shoots significantly lower or higher scores in general play than they do in competition, that is a key indicator that someone might be trying to swindle the system.

– Deleted or withdrawn scoring intents. A report can be generated to see if players have submitted an intent to post a score but have then withdrawn that intent. That’s also an indicator of dishonest action if it happens more than once or twice.

– Players consistently not completing rounds. You can see if players are avoiding certain holes on a course. If they are routinely skipping a difficult section of the layout in general play, that could be a sign they are up to no good!

– Soft and hard caps. How often is a player hitting the soft or hard caps within WHS? If it’s a frequent occurrence, that would suggest scores are going in that are above expected on a regular basis.

You can also see from geo location and timings when a player has signed in to submit a card, when and where that score was entered, and who the attester was.

All this information can be used to identify suspicious activity within WHS and spot players submitting bogus scores to create bogus handicaps.

Committees have never had such a level of data at their disposal to deal with handicap cheats as they do now.

If a committee does feel there’s sufficient evidence that a player has been manipulating their handicap, there are various actions they can take.

If they feel it’s justified and necessary, they can freeze a player’s handicap at a particular point.

If it’s been ongoing and blatant, the committee can withdraw a handicap.

They can do that for a set time be it, a month, six months, a year… During that time, the player would not be able to submit scores for handicap purposes. That’s effectively a ban from competition golf.

There are other, less severe options.

A committee can stop certain people attesting scores. If a certain name is constantly appearing to attest questionable scores, they can be struck off as an accepted attester.

A committee can say they will only accept competition round scores from a certain player. Effectively, they can ban that player from entering general play scores.

With sufficient evidence, committees can turn to their union for support in sanctioning an individual for handicap manipulation.

Handicap secretaries and committees have all the data they need at their disposal to identify and sanction handicap cheats. They can, and should, be able to spot bogus handicap submissions.