Having an accurate scoring record is important in connection with the calculation and issuance of a Handicap Index®. Sometimes, a little assistance is needed, whether it is understanding why a number has gone up or down, fixing a mistake made while posting or needing to know what to do when you become injured.

Because a Handicap Index is issued by your club, your first point of contact should be the club. Most often the Handicap Committee or Handicap Chair makes it known who to contact, so look for that kind of information in regard to your club. The SCGA can provide contact information if needed. Reaching out to the club contact gives you the best chance of resolution, especially if it is in regard to an error in the record itself. Only your club is empowered to make score corrections, change Handicap Index values, etc. If you have any questions about this process, contact us at handicap@scga.org.

Regarding score corrections, any element that is inaccurate should be corrected. It is easy to touch the wrong button and the difference between an 88 and 98 can be significant in the calculation. Yet errors in choosing or entering the wrong tee or the wrong course can have an impact as well and the correct date is meaningful in keeping scores in the correct order and/or confirming that you posted a score for date x.

Timing of a correction is also important. For example, if on April 5 you notice that a score from March 28 was incorrect and you ask your club Handicap Committee to make the correction, your April 1 Handicap Index does not magically get recalculated. That value was calculated and stored on April 1. So if you desire for the Handicap Index to be updated so that your April 1 value is correct, you need to have your club Handicap Committee contact the SCGA. This can be important for an upcoming competition. If we change the earlier example and on April 5 you noticed an April 2 score had something inaccurate, because that score has not yet been used in a revision calculation, correcting the score will make it so that the April 15 revision is correct, as that is the first time that the April 2 score will have been considered for a calculation.

Timing part two. It is important that you reach out to your club committee as soon as possible upon noticing an error in your scoring record. If you wait until May to notify your club about a previous December scoring error, retroactive corrections to Handicap Index values are no longer available at that time. You really need to notify your club quickly if you desire the correction to have an impact on your Handicap Index. Short and simple – the sooner the better.

If you become injured and this impacts your scoring ability, the club Handicap Committee is again the place to go. It has oversight in these situations.

One last note. If you look at your scoring record and don’t see a score that you have posted relatively recently (hint: since the last revision date) make sure to choose the “Recent Scores” tab. The display defaults to “Revision Scores,” which will not include scores posted after the most recent revision date.

We know that there is some complexity in the USGA Handicap System and we will do our best to help in understanding the nuances, yet most actions require the club that provides your Handicap Index to engage with you.