We trust that you had a restful Festive Season and we hope that you were able to squeeze in some rounds of golf over the break.
With borders reopening and overseas travel beginning to pick up again, this month we explain how to enter a foreign round on the HNA system. Some golfers are members of more than one golf club and we explain how and when to select one of these clubs as your home club.
Foreign rounds
We currently have golf clubs from multiple African countries registered on the HNA system and the normal score entry procedure can be followed when playing at these courses.
If a club you play at is not on the HNA system but has an official World Handicap System Course- and Slope Rating, it is necessary to enter these scores as soon as possible after playing. This is normally done the day after the round – once the Playing Conditions Calculation (PCC) adjustment for the course is published – using the Foreign Round facility on the HNA App. This will ensure your Handicap Index remains as accurate as possible.
To enter a foreign round on the HNA Handicap System, select ‘Foreign Round’ during Step 1 of the score entry process and follow the prompts. It is important to input the Course- and Slope Ratings of the tees that you have played off, as well as the PCC.
Members of multiple clubs
Although players may belong to more than one golf club in the same country, they must designate one as their home club, and this club will be responsible for maintaining their Handicap Index.
Players should also ensure each golf club knows the details of which other golf clubs they are a member of, and which golf club they have designated as their home club.
Decisions on which golf club to designate as their home club should be based on:
- Proximity to primary residence
- Frequency of play
- The golf club where they submit most of their acceptable scores.
Some players belong to multiple clubs within different jurisdictions, for example, a club in South Africa and in the United Kingdom. As per the Rule 1.4b/3 Interpretations in the WHS Rules of Handicapping, where a player is a member of a golf club located in a different jurisdiction from the location of their home club, the player may be required to hold a separate Handicap Index issued by the authorised association responsible for handicapping within the different jurisdiction.
While such a requirement is discouraged, in order to ensure the same Handicap Index is issued by both authorised associations, it is the player’s responsibility to return all acceptable scores to both their home club and the golf club that is located in the different jurisdiction.
Should there ever be a discrepancy between a player’s Handicap Index as issued by the different authorised associations, the most current Handicap Index within the jurisdiction where the last 20 rounds were played should be used. When playing outside of either jurisdiction, the lowest Handicap Index should be used.
Submitting a score for handicap purposes
Golfers on the HNA system with a WHS Handicap Index must enter all scores played outside of their home country for all recognised formats of play (as they would do in their home country), provided the course is WHS rated and the score is valid, as designated in the GolfRSA WHS rules for acceptable scores.
Quote of the Month
“I am not feeling really well, I need a doctor immediately. Ring the nearest golf course.” – Groucho Marx.
