Hackers Handicaps

Hey folks, well down under summer is approaching and along with it comes daylight saving. Bunch of guys from work getting ready or the next season of twilight golf. Now we don't have enough to form a full on social club and there is a couple of us with AGU Handicaps but the other guys have no interest in joining a club to register cards etc. But to add some spice to the "competition" and to fully enable bragging rights around the office what would be the most sensible way to develop a "handcap" for the "Non golfers" could it be as simple as par 36 you shot a 50 to be 14 over therefore we will make your handcap 14 or is there a more scientific method.....

Any thought ideas to add some spice

That is what I would do, though you do need to be careful to factor in how dificult/easy the course is where the 50 is shot, or do that for everyone so as not to penalize those with handicaps. Also adjust it every week.

As for spice, lot of things you can do but to start how many players are we talking about??

14 over for 9 holes would equate to a handicap nearer 28 if the slope is approx 115 and rating around 67.

For guys who don't carry handicaps, why not play Bing, Bang, Boom (or Bingo, Bango, Bongo). This doesn't work too well with ready golf, however. Anyway, points are awarded as follows:

The first point is awarded for the first guy on the green.
The second point is awarded for the guy closest to the pin, once everyone is on the green.
The third point is awarded for the first guy to hole out.

You can see why the guy who's away needs to play first.

We did something similar for the golfers without an official handicap (including me!) when we started a little society.

First round without a handicap was to establish your handicap. You shoot 90 on a par 72 course you get an 18 handicap. Then your next handicap is calculated on the progressing average of your rounds. So following scores of 86 and 91 would give you a new handicap of 17 as (90+86+91)/3-72 equals 17.

The kicker is that if you win a competition, your handicap is dropped by 2 strokes instantly. This stops people being bandits and walking away with the prizes too often. It's not very scientific but it means that those with good official handicaps can still win, while being fair to those new to the game.

I've played bingo, bango, bongo before and while it's fun, it's a slow game as people start taking more shots, like hitting to miss the green so that when they do chip to get on they win the bango.

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Bingo bango bongo can be an interesting game just one fousome or group. I got the impression that there is more then one. Right/wrong ?

Thanks Bob, looks like we might end up with 3 groups of four.... don't want it to develop into the Masters but you cannot underestimate the value of bragging rights around the office cheers, Wayne

Definition: "1-2-3 Best Ball" is a competition format for 4-person teams. Each player on the team plays his own ball throughout the round. On each hole, a predetermined number of the lower scores is used.

One the first hole, the lowest score among the four players counts as the team score. On the second hole, the two lowest scores become the team score. On the third hole, the three lowest scores become the team score. On the fourth hole, it's back to the one lowest score, and so on throughout the round. 1-2-3 Best Ball is a good way to keep all the players involved in the fate of their team.

Definition: While there might be slight variations from game to game, Devil Ball is usually just another name for Money Ball, Lone Ranger, Yellow Ball, Pink Ball or Pink Lady. They all mean basically the same thing.

The basics are this: In Devil Ball, groups of four tee off in a competition. On each hole, two scores are combined to create one team score. One of those scores is from the person playing the "devil ball." So when it's your turn to play the Devil Ball, the onus is on you to come through for the team because your score is going to count.
The second score used is usually the low ball of the other three players on the team (however, the other three players might be required to play a scramble or best ball or any other format to produce the second score).
The two scores are added together for the team score. Before teeing off in Devil Ball, players are designated A, B, C and D, and the devil ball rotates among players throughout the round (A on the first hole, B on the second, and so on).

Also I played a game I believe was called a pro/ameture 4 ball, where you used the lowest 2 handicpped scores and the lowest 2 natural scores on the every hole. Though that was a good game where you had a couple high handicappers with a couple low handicappers. Not sre how it works with 4 similar handicappers.

Bob

To get back to the handicap issue ...

When I started, we used this system. It's quite good.