Welcome to Jefferson Park Men's Golf Club. The following is information that you will need to know before you are eligible to play in our Events.
You MUST have a valid USGA Handicap or a temporary USGA Handicap to play in our JPMGC Events unless expressly advertised as an Open to the Public event.
You must join the club and be paid in full at least ten days prior to playing in any JPMGC Member Events. This allows us time to process your application and have a GHIN number assigned to you. Your "GHIN" number is your system ID number and you will use this number when you post your scores.
In order to establish a temporary Handicap, you must post at least 5 acceptable scores by the "transmission" date prior to the Event. You will use your temporary handicap until you post 20 scores.
Please go to the following web sites for more information on how you establish a Handicap:
USGA Handicap Page
WSGA Get a Handicap page
If you played rounds this winter in an area that has a year round active season then you can post those scores during Washington inactive season. You will need to know the date you played, course name, the course & slope rating from the tees that you played. So save your scorecards. These scores will not be factored into you handicap until the first Washington revision date.
Once you have established a handicap then you must adjust your scores before you post them in accordance with "Equitable Stroke Control" (ESC). More information about ESC can be found on the USGA or WSGA websites.
If you have more questions about Handicaps contact us at jpmgc@jpmgc.net. Welcome to JPMGC and we look forward to seeing you out on the course.
FAQ
Q. If I play in February can I start recording my scores for my GHIN handicap?
A. Accumulating scores for for your handicap through GHIN can seem complicated at first. Different state and regional handicap authorities maintain different active and inactive posting periods. Handicap bodies maintain inactive periods to ensure that severe playing conditions do not inappropriately impact a player’s GHIN. You can see the active/inactive period as posted
HERE by the USGA.
Keep in mind the posting season applies to where the round is played and not where the player is registered. So if you play a round in Washington state in February it would not be allowed for posting. But if you played a round in Hawaii or Alabama or one of the year round posting areas then it would perfectly appropriate to post that score. We have many snow birds who travel to Arizona or Southern California and post those rounds throughout the year.
The active posting season for Washington is March 1 - November 14.
Q. If I play a round of golf at another course like Jackson Park can I submit my score to my GHIN handicap.
A. During an active posting season for the course you are playing you can and should post every round you play. So while you can’t post a round played at Jackson Park or West Seattle or Seattle Golf Club in February, you would be expected to post rounds played at these and other places in Washington between March 1st and November 14th.
Q. Once I have played 20 rounds of golf at Jefferson Park and other courses and established my GHIN handiap will it be accepted at other courses around the country?
A. You can be sure that GHIN will accept rounds played at Jefferson Park or any other WSGA sanctioned golf course with an approved course rating and slope. As you consider where you will be playing you want to be sure and look up the course on the GHIN application. If you can’t find it on GHIN then it is unlikely that scores from that course would be allowed for posting. A perfect example of this is Interbay. While Interbay is a great place to hone your skills and is likely in better shape than any of the other City of Seattle properties scores at Interbay are not valid for posting.
Q. If I play at least 14 holes before dusk (for instance), can I still record my score as 18 holes for my GHIN handicap?
A. Partial rounds that meet USGA requirements are 100% valid for posting as long as you adjust your score appropriately. For more information on partial rounds (14 holes to post an 18-hole score / 7 holes to post a 9-hole score) and how to adjust scores for posting please consult USGA rule 3.2
HERE.