There are a number of golf courses which just don't have a rating or slope, Have you ever played one that doesn't?
Ever play a course that didn't have a course rating or slope?
Pretty sure I have
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- #3
The offenders are quite elite. Augusta National doesn't have rating or slope.
Sure. Lots of smaller courses, 9 hole, older ones, etc aren't rated. I'm actually a little surprised how many of the 'tournament' (similar to executive, but not quite) courses here are rated. Most of them are.
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Those that fit the not rated are the very bottom and very top of the food chain. Bottom because they just don't care and top because they know what it would be and are not amenable to being compared to other courses which would have similar ratings/slopes.
Yeah, there's an 18 hole course near me that won't let me put my score in the handicap system for that reason.
I'm guessing there are others but one for sure. Gentz Homestead a 9 holer in Michigan's U.P. that I've played several times when up on vacation. Nice conditions, very friendly staff, an interesting and challenging layout. Bonus is it's cheap to play. I've never found a course rating for it but I'd guess it would be rated higher than some of the other courses I play.
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We used to play a private course a guy had built on his property that didn't have a slope/course rating. It was a short 9-holer but you had to use Cayman balls, so you could hit the entire bag on the yardage of what would otherwise be an executive course. Walking only, $5 a day for all you could play, you left it in a coffee can at the sign-in shack near the first tee.
This was my experience. It's a private 18 hole course. Not private as in it has a roster of members but private as in the owner and his friends/family would play it. Story goes they had it rated and didn't like the results and hence didn't accept them.
wristcock
Well-known member
I either like the course or I don't -- and that determines where I play -- slope and rating mean nothing to me
Typically those are courses that are not members of the USGA, RCGA, etc.
My previous home course was not rated until about 7 years ago.
The little muni nine whole course I used to live on didn't have a rating. My great uncle built it in the 60s and gave it to the village. Short, easy and fun!
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I feel like I had heard this before. Maybe I read something about how they handicap their club events somewhere or something. Do you have any insight on what they do when they have member handicapped events?
I believe they keep a handicap for their members. Just wouldn't be USGA official ;-)
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- #19
Specific to Augusta What I have read is that the membership knows quite specifically what the course rating and slope is but prefers not to share it. They can handicap their member play quite easily.
A few others I am aware of are the Ohopee Match Play, The courses at Sand Hill and the match play course at PGA National. There are others but ones mentioned I recall. Anyway the reason for no rating/slope is that the courses have massive tee boxes and the idea behind match play courses is that winner of previous hole gets to choose where the group tees off on next hole. Next hole could be a par 4 of 265 or 475 depending on tee box choosen. Hence can't pin down rating/slope.
Probably.
I don't really remember taking note of rating/slope at any course. I also know I've never made a decision to play a course based on rating/slope.
I don't really remember taking note of rating/slope at any course. I also know I've never made a decision to play a course based on rating/slope.
Same. However, it definitely informs my decision on which tees I'll play.
Since I don't really keep a handicap, I take less note of the rating and slope. I usually pick the tees based on the length of the longest par 4s. I do usually choose based on stated length. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Yeah, slope is less of the deciding factor. Rating is usually what I'll look at. When the rating is close to the par number, that is usually the right length for me.
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Often when I would travel in the past. I would pull up I believe golfcourse.com, or something similar. I could plug in a slope rating and have a list come back. Having no knowledge of the area that list would be a good starting point. I would usually use 135 and see what the list was and choose from that based on additional factors.
Probably- Just don't notice it most of the time. As one or two mentioned- If I like it, I like it. When we take our buddy trips, I pick courses based on what it looks like, not too much "condo golf" if I can help it since they are generally sprayers and could go wild left or right. Not a lot of big forced carries, a bit more open, and what yardages from the tee boxes look like. I don't carry a number, so it isn't important. And yes, I've seen shorter courses with big slope/ratings and 'monster' lengths with relatively benign numbers.
I (we) play for fun, If I want to beat myself up on vacation, I'll book a trip to a boxing camp.
I (we) play for fun, If I want to beat myself up on vacation, I'll book a trip to a boxing camp.