Course rating is a core service that is provided to all golf clubs affiliated to Scottish Golf.
The course rating process determines the playing difficulty of a golf course for a scratch golfer under normal course and weather conditions.
The course rating is expressed within GB&I as a course rating and a slope rating which is provided for all sets of tees from which qualifying competitions are played from.
Course Rating is also the cornerstone of the World Handicap System.
A Course Rating represents the expected score for a scratch player (Handicap Index of 0.0) under normal playing conditions, while a Bogey Rating represents the expected score for a bogey player (Handicap Index 20.0 to 24.0). These two figures work together to calculate a Slope Rating, which is a measure of the relative difficulty of a golf course between the scratch player and all other players. In other words, the higher the Slope Rating of a golf course, the more strokes a higher-handicapped player will need to play that course on an equal basis to the scratch player.
The USGA Course Rating System is used to determine these values. The USGA Course Rating System is very objective in nature taking into account all the factors that affect the playing difficulty of a course. It requires numerous specific measurements to be taken on each hole of the golf course, which assists in the consistency of application by course rating teams.
The system is designed to differentiate playing difficulty of all courses relative to each other, which requires a consistent application by all our course rating teams.
The USGA Course Rating System takes account of the actual measured length of a golf course, factors that can affect the playing length and other challenges that influence the playing difficulty of each hole (obstacle factors).
The factors that can affect the effective playing length of a golf course are:
The ten obstacle factors that are used to determine the playing difficulty of a golf course are:
Find out more in the video below:
For all course rating enquiries: T: 01334466477, E: [email protected]