The Course RatingTM Process
The World Handicap SystemTM Course Rating regulations require each Authorized Association to ensure all affiliated courses within its jurisdiction are rated in accordance with WHSTM approved procedures on a 10-year cycle.
The purpose of Course Rating is to establish the overall difficulty for each set of tees on the golf course for both scratch and bogey golfers by evaluating the obstacles and effective length corrections on every hole.
The relevant table values for each set of obstacles are recorded and used to calculate the appropriate Course RatingTM and Slope RatingTM.
The following are some of the basic definitions used in the process:
Scratch Golfer - An amateur player with a 0.0 Handicap Index. The notional male scratch golfer hits his tee shots an average of 250 yards and can reach a 470-yard hole in two shots. The female notional scratch golfer can hit her tee shots an average of 210 yards and can reach a 400-yard hole in two shots.
Course Rating - An evaluation of the overall difficulty of each set of tees on the golf course under normal course and weather conditions for the scratch golfer.
Bogey Golfer - A player with a WHS Handicap Index of 20.0 for men and 24.0 for women. Under normal situations the male bogey golfer can hit his tee shot 200 yards and can reach a 370-yard hole in two shots. Likewise, the female bogey golfer can hit her tee shot 150 yards and can reach a 280-yard hole in two shots. Players who have a Handicap Index between the parameters above but are unusually long or short off the tee are not considered to be a bogey golfer for course rating purposes.
Bogey Course Rating - An evaluation of the overall difficulty of each set of tees on the golf course under normal course and weather conditions for the bogey golfer.
Slope Rating - The mark that indicates the measurement of the relative difficulty of a course for players who are not scratch golfers compared to the Course Rating. The lowest Slope rating is 55 and the highest is 155. A golf course of standard playing difficulty has a Slope Rating of 113.
Slope Rating = (Bogey Course Rating-Scratch Course Rating) x 5.381 for men or 4.24 for women
The Course Rating for either golfer is determined by adding the length rating to the obstacle stroke value for that golfer.
The effective playing length for each golfer is derived by adding the measured yardage of the course to any adjustments made for elevation, roll, forced lay-ups, wind, and altitude. Adjustments are made to the measured yardage if there is any elevation change from tee to green (elevation), if there is a prevailing wind and if it is a factor (wind), if the fairway landing areas are hard or soft or if the tee shots land into an upslope or on a downslope (roll), if an obstacle or combination of obstacles prevent a golfer from playing a full length shot (forced lay-up), and if the course is located more than 2,000 feet above sea level (altitude).
The obstacle stroke value is a numerical evaluation of all obstacles (topography, fairway, green target, recoverability and rough, bunkers, crossing, lateral, trees, green surface, and psychology) on the golf course. It is also highly probable that the obstacle stroke value of the two golfers will be different. Generally, the nearer the obstacles are to the landing zones the higher the rating values.
Topography - A factor of how mounds and slopes affect the stance or lie in the fairway landing zone and whether the shot to the green is uphill or downhill.
Fairway - A measurement of the probability of hitting the fairway.
Green Target - A measurement of the probability of hitting the green from the fairway landing zones. The relationship between the length of shot played and size of the green determines these values. (i.e., long shots to small greens will generate higher values than short shots to large greens)
Recoverability and Rough - A measurement of the probability of missing the tee shot landing zone or green, and the difficulty of recovering if either is missed.
Bunkers - A measurement of the effect bunkers have on play, based upon their proximity to target areas and the difficulty of recovery.
Crossing - A measurement of how much penalty areas, extreme rough and out of bounds which have to be carried, affect the play of the hole based upon the proximity of the boundary to the fairway landing zone or green.
Lateral - A measurement of how much penalty areas, out of bounds and extreme rough which come into play laterally affect the play of the hole based upon its proximity to the fairway landing zone or green.
Trees - A measurement of how trees effect the play of the two players based upon the size and density of the trees, their distance from the centre of the fairway or green, the difficulty of recovering from the trees, and the length of the hole.
Green Surface - A measurement of the difficulty of a green from a putting standpoint. Speed of the green and surface contouring are the main factors.
Psychology - A measurement of the cumulative effect of the other nine obstacles.
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Advance Notice for Course Changes
If your club is considering making course changes, we would kindly ask that you provide us with advance notice. This ensures that we can properly deal with any necessary arrangements and that the Course Rating™ teams are informed in a timely manner.
Our teams of Course Rating volunteers follow a yearly rating schedule with their main focus being the ten-year re-rating programme. For any course changes, here's what we need:-