How To Use The Golf Course Rankings To Select Which Courses To Play

Golf course ranking numbers can give you an overall indication of the difficulty of any given course, from the set of tees used in the calculation. The rating is an estimate of the average number of strokes it would take for a scratch golfer to complete the course. These rankings can and should be taken from every set of tees in use at the course, so that the person using the ranking can assess the difficulty with accuracy. This ranking system was created by the United States Golf Association, but is now in common use around the world.

Of course, even this ranking system has its limitations. It can only measure the average with which a scratch golfer would be expected to go round the course. It does not, for example measure any standard deviation from that average. You could have, for example, two courses with an identical ranking but with totally different characteristics. One could be set in an area with relatively stable weather, and have wide fairways so that the scratch golfers who play it tend to shoot relatively stable scores. Another course could be set in a far less stable area, and have narrow fairways. During the calm times, the course could play very easy as trouble could just be driven over and avoided, but in stormy conditions the scoring might be very high.

The overall averages of these two courses may well be similar, but the second sample would show a far greater deviation. If you were a handicap golfer, it might be better to avoid the second course on a bad day, unless you were prepared to accept a high number in advance and were keen to meet the challenge. Also, the potential score for a scratch golfer may have absolutely no relevance to the potential score of a handicap player.

To take the most simple example of all, if you have a course with a lot of difficult bunkers lining narrow fairways, it may be possible for a scratch golfer using modern equipment to simply drive over the top of the problems. A handicap golfer would have no chance of repeating this, and would be forced to play short and hope to be accurate. In effect, the handicap player would be playing a totally different course.

Despite these potential inaccuracies with the system, the golf course ranking still works as a useful guide most of the time. It certainly gives a golfer who is considering traveling and playing some new courses a benchmark from which to work. Use this number as preliminary research, and then go on from there to study the courses you are considering in detail. Pay special attention to any area which is a problem for you. If you make sure that there are no specific features which your game will struggle to cope with, you can take notice of the basic golf course ranking.

 

 

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