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In establishing handicaps for disabled golfers,
several issues manifest themselves immediately. As an example, consider
the discrepancy in Handicap Indices that could arise when a disabled
golfer establishes his handicap at a golf course with no bunkers
while another disabled golfer of equal ability establishes his handicap
at a golf course which is heavily bunkered. The solution to this
problem may necessitate determining a maximum number of unplayable
penalty strokes allowable during a stipulated round based on the
player's Handicap Index and the Hazard Rating of the golf course
which he is playing.
Another issue concerns the type of Handicap Index that the disabled
golfer should be given once the above modifications to the Rules
of Golf and the USGA Handicap System have been fully integrated
with one another - regular, provisional, local or some other restricted
designation which has yet to be determined? The answer will depend,
at least in part, on how closely the procedures used by disabled
golfers follow the Rules of Golf.
Prior to establishing permissible modifications to the Rules of
Golf for disabled golfers, it was not possible to address handicapping
issues because there was no foundation upon which to base the mathematical
calculations that are critical in attempting to achieve accurate
Handicap Indices. Having created a logical set of Rules modifications,
which have been agreed upon with the R&A in St. Andrews, Scotland,
discussions have now been initiated with members of the USGA Handicap
Research Team and the USGA Handicap Committee.
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