i played 36 holes on a course a couple weeks ago and posted both rounds. is this considered bad form for handicap purposes? i played ok the first 18 and as you would expected played a lot better the next 18. i'm wondering if it's kind of a cheat because i just played the course, conditions were the same, putted on all the greens, and obviously gained a lot of other knowledge from my first round.

Nope. Not really a big deal.

Not only is it not a big deal, it's required for a valid handicap. All scores should be posted.

Alleluliah!

This is one of the most misurnderstood and abused points of handicapping.. People need to post EVERYTHING- partial scores, nine holes, using equitable stroke control, in order to get a real handicap...

Just curious, if it's a round where you know you aren't going to be able to do your best, like last weekend when I took my gf and her 7yo to the course and have to mix in keeping the kid entertained and arguing with the gf (j/k), do you have to post those rounds?

Yes.

Once a year I play in a 54 hole tournament, all the same day same course. Each round is posted as a tournament score.

It should be posted if it really amounted to "a round of golf". You are the ultimate judge. My wife is learning to play and we occasionally play 9 holes at a local muni that isn't crowded during the week. Assuming no one behind us there is enough other stuff going on (I don't necessarily play the same tees on every hole, many stops for instruction, if I want to hit a 7i approach I'll hit it regardless of my tee shot, I'll sometimes hit experimental shots off the tee - shots that I would never try in a real round, etc). Those don't get posted.

dave

ah, makes more sense from that perspective.

really? there are things such as practice rounds though. try multiple approach shots to work on something or different chips and putts around the green. certainly it's ok to do that. i don't do it personally because i feel like i miss out on a round.

however, there is a course i play that is not usga rated. i assume this is because they want to avoid fees associated w/ getting a rating. i play it but can't post my score.

I believe I've heard that if you decide to not post a round due to it being a practice round, then you must have declared the round as such prior to the beginning of the round. If you failed to do so, then you must post the score. Someone please correct me if this is incorrect.

Practicing on the course is a different question. I was answering the question about posting a score without being to perform at your best. The answer is yes, you would still post the score even if there was a condition that you determined would not allow you to play your best. Otherwise a person could come up with any reason not to post a score: "my cat died, had a fight with my wife, didn't have my lucky ball mark, it rained, playing an unfamiliar course" or whatever. I'm not saying you were going there. Just pointing out that there is no condition (that I am aware of) for not posting a score based on not being "able to do your best".

Now, onto this question about practicing on the course. That is certainly ok. I do it myself. You go out to the course to practice different things. Hit 3 tee shots, move the ball to the bunker, putt from different angles and often not even hole out. In this case you are not following the Rules of Golf (not in a bad way) so there would not be a score to post. To me it would be similar to playing in a 4 man scramble. You were on the golf course playing the game of golf, but there is certainly no score to post.

Sorry for the confusion.

i don't know if anything is written about that but i'd have to agree. it's tempting call your round a practice round if you fall apart in the middle of it but that would make the handicap system meaningless.

I generally play worse the second time through due to fatigue and being a little lackadaisical in the second round ... kudos to you for posting a better score

I'm not aware of any such wording in the USGA Handicap Manual (and am not sure where/'to who' you would make such a declaration.

When all is said and done there is a large degree of personal integrity required to make the system work. The only counter-balances are the T-score methodology, the public availability of posting records, and the power of the local Handicap Committee. It is far from perfect for sure. OTOH, I find that (in most cases) it is pretty darn good. Unfortunately it only takes 1 or 2 bad apples in a 50 person handicapped event to leave a bad taste in your mouth.

If I were playing in a serious tournament I would much prefer the UK system. If I were to just get paired with a couple of guys and wanted to create a fair competition, I prefer the US system (I would not even have a handicap in the UK as best as I understand things).

dave

Maybe I'm just rambling on about something I heard second-hand - sorry about that guys. Either way, I agree that it's more of a matter of personal integrity to not call rounds "practice rounds" after you triple the 12th hole.

Congrats to the OP for posting a lower score on the second 18 - I'm usually like mcmski - usually play worse the second round due to a bit of swing fatigue.