Common Terms

Tour

This is your group of friends that play golf each year.  You get together, have fun, throw a little shade here and there, be a little competitive maybe... You may call it something, like "The Noosa Classic" because your first outing happened to be in Noosa, Qld, Australia (a lovely part of the world, I must say).  You may call it "The Sandbelt Hackers", because you love to play [badly] around the prestigeous sandbelt courses in Victoria, Australia.  Your tour has an Honourboard, listing the winner of each yearly competition.  It is from this Honourboard that you navigate back through the years, reminiscing, or to this year's Comp, to score, etc.

 

Comp

This is the yearly (or monthly, whatever you want) gettogether for your group, playing a round or three (or more) of golf.  A usual scenario is that your touring group play once a year.  So, "2023" would be a competion. This is how the Honorboard looks, and clicking on the Comp/Year will dive right into the details of that Comp:

 

  The Noosa Classic

      Honour Board

2022    Alistair McNee

2021    Alistair McNee

2020    Alistair McNee

2019    Graydon Atthow

2018    Alistair McNee

2017    Luke Chapman

 

Course

A golf course, naturally.  Only basic information is needed, like its address, and contact details.

 

Round

This is a round of golf.  It consists of a Course, linked to a Comp.  The details you need for a Round are more extensive, but you just get them from a card supplied by the golf course.  You will need the slope rating and all pars and indexes for each hole.  Choose the mens' tee SCR, slope, indexes and pars and the ladies' tee SCR, slope, indexes and pars.  They do change for the Course - some on a weekly basis - due to maintenance, development, weather and other factors.  So, it is best to create this Round closer to when you are due to play it.  You can create multiple rounds (for the same or multiple courses), you just say which order they are in.  You can set up a Comp, Courses and Rounds months in advance of the actual play - it is just wise to revisit the SCRs, slopes, pars and indexes closer to the action. And if, for example, you have men on your tour, then it is not necessary to complete the men's tee SCR, slope, indexes and pars... and same for the ladies.

 

Player

Your tour adminsitrator (like the person who created your Tour) can add as many people as they like to your Tour.  There are certain levels of access that are set per person, and those are:

Visitor: can do just that - visit, watch, see the results, see the photos or other content posted.  A Visitor cannot post content, nor score, nor administer the tour, nor get involved in the Calcutta, etc. 

Player: can access the full, scoring site.  This includes being part of the [entirely optional] Calcutta, and post content like photos, text, videos, and YouTube links. They cannot administer the tour.

Adminstrator: similar access to Player, but can also add/edit/delete things like Comps, Rounds, Courses, Players, Content, Calcutta administration - the lot. It is a self-service system, with no intended reliance on GolfScore.Pro.

Tour Operator: administrative rights, intended to set up your Comps for you - which Courses you will play, and when. They could also set up players for your tour, and probably pay for your Comp on your behalf.

 

Each player administers their own password.  GolfScore Pro uses state of the art encryption and security methods, to keep this entire solution secure.  So, when a player is added to the Tour by an administrator, that player receives an email with specific instructions on next steps.  If that player already exists in GolfScore Pro against some other Tour, they are merely notified they have been added to another one!  When they login next, they will be asked which Tour they want to access.  Simple.

 

Password changes are absolutely possible.  They can be changed in two ways:

a) By the user.  At the login screen, the user can enter their email address and click on "Forgot password".  They will be sent an email with a special link just for them.

b) By the administrator.  An admininstrator can initiate a password change, too.  This emails the user, with a special link for that user to change it.

 

A player can even change their email address.  The administrator can change a user's email address via their Admin section - and the result is that the user is sent two emails.  They recieve an email detailing the change of address (from this to that) to both the original email address they had in the system, and to the new email address (entered by the administrator).

 

Comp Players

From the people added to your Tour, not every one of them may play each year.  You may have a ring-in or two one year that may never play again (or NOT be invited back - you know who we mean). So, you link your players to a Comp, but it is wise to do so when it is close to start.  Why?  Because you stipulate their starting handicap for the Comp when you link them to that Comp.  You want this to be accurate, as handicaps do change.

 

Handicaps (starting, playing and adjustments)

Being golfers, a handicap is not a new concept.  Just say you have a starting (or base) handicap of 18, you get a shot every hole.  But, other factors effect what your playing handicap is for a course on a given day.  Those factors are a) Slope and b) Scratch Rating (SCR).  In GolfScore Pro, if you choose to use them, there are also Ajustments!  Yay!  More on that later.

 

The calculation (at the time of writing) to determine your playing handicap is:

((Starting Handicap * Slope / 113) + (Scratch Rating - Par))  * 0.93

 

Take this example: I have a handicap of 18, and I am about to play a Par 72 course, pretty tough with a Slope rating of 140, and a Scratch Rating of 74.  This means I would be playing off THIS handicap for the round:

((18 * 140 /113) + (74 - 72)) * 0.93   

or

(22.3 + 2) * 0.93

=

22.6

 

Rounded, this means I will be playing off 23 that day.  Well, it IS a tough course!  But, don't be put off, GolfScore Pro calculates this all FOR you.  This is information only, people.  Further, this is just the starting and playing handicaps explained.  What are adjustments?

 

Adjustments are completely optional, but can be a bit of fun for your tour group.  You have the ability to set adjustments for the winner, runner up, and third, as well as third-last, second-last and last for any given round.  For example, a touring group of 12 may elect to have THESE adjustment settings:

1st:             -3

2nd:            -2

3rd:             -1

3rd Last:    1

2nd Last:   2

Last:           3

 

For example, if you win on the first day, well, you lose three shots for the second day.  If you came last on day 1, you get a bit of a helping hand - you are given 3 more shots for day 2. Nice.  Well, you DID stuff up day 1.  Plus, these adjustments are CUMULATIVE.  For example, in a three-round competition, if you placed first on both days 1 and 2, you can not only give yourself a pat on the back for being an awesome golfer, you can start day three with 6 less shots.

 

As previously mentioned, it is not a complusory concept - up to you to use at your convenience.  You may disregard the concept and make them all zero.  Or for example, you may want to set only a winner/loser adjustment, like so:

1st:             -1

2nd:            0

3rd:             0

3rd Last:    0

2nd Last:   0

Last:           1

 

As mentioned, this is set when configuring a Comp.

 

Open the Round

This is an important time. This is when you have chosen all your players for the Comp, including their accurate starting handicaps.  You have set the courses you will play, in order, and configured their men's and ladies (whichever is appropriate) Pars, Indexes, Slope and SCR rating. You are ready to go!  Your adminsitrator (the one with higher permmissions) will see a button to Open the Round. This is only visible for the first Round in a Comp.  They simply click on that button.  A few things happen:

a) Comp Payment.  You will be prompted to pay for the comp, at $10 per linked Player (regardless of the number of rounds).  You are not charged for Visitors.  If you have a tour operator working for you on your Tour, then they will have already paid for your Comp in advance most likely, and you will not see this step.

b) Playing handicaps are calculated for Day 1.

c) Background scoring is set up.

d) You will see a LIVE SCORING link appear above the Round's Leaderboard.

 

To start scoring, you simply click on the little edit/scoring button that looks like a pencil.  Everyone scores, just like a regular round of golf with a scorecard.  You mark someone's 'card' and also your own.  More on that in its own section.  But, before you get to scoring, you choose who you're playing with, and if you want to have a little wager.

 

Playing Group

You can only have up to 4 people walking down the fairway in your group, right?  Well, that's your Playing Group.  When you go to start scoring a round, GolfScore Pro will ask you who you're playing with.  You choose up to three others, if they have not yet been chosen by someone else. This is also an easy process, because it takes just the one person to select your playing group.  If someone in your playing group has already selected they are playing with you, you will not be asked that question - it knows which group you are in!

 

Side Competition

It is commonplace to have a little wager within your Playing Group. Also known as a side bet. There are two such wagers set up within GolfScore Pro, and they are entirely optional.  They cost nothing - they are just a way to show who won which holes in a matchplay style, so you don't have to dig through the cards to find out who owes who the cash!  These are the two wager styles:

Nassau: this is a traditional 5-5-5 style wager.  You and your playing partner vs the other pair.  It is about who 'wins' via Matchplay the front 9, the back 9, and then the entire match.  You may have $5 on the front, $5 on the back and $10 for the match, as an example.  You could agree on $10, $10, $20.  Denominations are up to you, and is not recorded anywhere in GolfScore Pro.  GolfScore Pro will simply show you in live scoring terms via a traditional "+" which playing team wins which hole, and aggregates the results for the front 9, back 9, and the match.

Sixes: you choose to play with one of your playing group for the first 6 holes, a different player for the second 6 holes, and the remaining player for the last 6 holes. GolfScore Pro shows the matchplay results for those three different groupings, all conveniently shown with a traditional "+" for the hole winner, and aggregated for each set of 6 holes.

 

Playing Partner

Choosing to have a side bet is entirely optional, and GolfScore Pro does not handle actual betting.  It just displays who won which holes.  So, if you choose not to have a side bet, you will not be asked who your playing partner is.  In the case where you have chosen a side bet, then you will be asked. All it takes is one person out of the group of you to make these choices - then, the system will not need to ask everyone the same question!

Nassau: you will be asked which ONE of your playing group you are playing with, regarding the side-bet. "You and WHO, vs the other two, for the full round".

Sixes: you will be asked who you will be partnered with on a) the first 6 holes, b) second 6 holes, and then c) the last 6 holes.

 

Scoring

Once you have clicked on the little LIVE SCORING edit button (that looks like a pencil), and have chosen who you're playing with and any side-betting - you are passed to hole-by-hole scoring.  The name of the Course is at the top of the screen, you can see the Hole number, its par, index, and navigation buttons to move forward to the next hole, back to the previous one, or straight to the 1st or 18th.  This is all pretty simple, but let's look at the more interesting areas.

 

The Green Balls

If you see a green ball to the left of someone's name, they have a shot on the hole.  Do you see two green balls?  Well, that's because they get two shots.  No green balls at all?  They don't get a shot on that hole.  For those fortunate enough to be a lower than scratch marker, then they will see a ball with a big red cross through it if they are on a hole where they LOSE a shot.  Yep - tough stuff being THAT good.

 

The Default Score

The number of strokes default to Par for the hole.  This scoring experience is meant to be easy - you only click on the "-" or "+" buttons if you (or the person you are marking) do better or worse than Par.  The Stableford score adjusts automatically, based on the player's playing handicap for that day.

 

Why is the score in red?

If you see a score that's red, it means that the score has not yet been set in the system.  So, if you have just scored Hole 1 and pressed ">" to go to Hole 2 - the default score of Par for all those you are marking will be in red for Hole 2.  Not yet saved to the system.  If you navigate back to Hole 1, the scores you saved for Hole 1 will appear, but they are just normal - black.  They are the scores you set for the hole.  Now, if you change any of them, like realised a mistake, and adjusted your score with a "+", then the score will turn red - meaning it is about to be set it in the system.  It really doesn't effect how you score - it just gives you a little feedback about what you are changing and when, if it is important to you.

 

The Big P

This is for Pickup.  If someone has had too many (shots) for the hole, they may just pick their ball up and move on.  Go grab the flag for everyone else.  No points for you!  This will set their score to the hole at 10, with 0 Stableford points.

 

Tracking some stats?

For the comp, it is possible to enable tracking two stats: Fairways Hit, and Greens in Regulation. If you chose to track Fairways Hit, you will see a checkbox when scoring for "Fairway?".   If you chose to track Greens in Regulation, you will see a checkbox when scoring for "GIR?".  These stats show up on the round (and comp) Leaderboards, next to the stableford points.

 

Navigation

You click on the chevrons (to the left and right of the Hole Number) to move forward or backwards scoring holes.   

>    next hole

<    previous hole

>>  the 18th

<<  the 1st 

 

When you click on any of these chevrons, the first thing that happens is that you will SAVE the scores on-screen.  For example, you are on Hole 5, which is a Par 3, and both you and the person you are scoring bogeyed that hole.  You would click on the "+" next to the person's score you're marking, and also the "+" next to your score.  You both have a "4" as the number of shots.  Clicking on ">" saves those scores, and moves on to the next hole, showing you Par for that next hole, for both the person you're marking and yourself.

 

If you wanted to go back to the Round's scores page, you can by just selecting the large, black back-arrow at the top-left of screen, in the green bar.  Coming back into the LIVE SCORING section will bring you straight back to the hole you were on when you left.

 

When you are done, you are on the 18th hole, you have set the shots... going to the next hole ">" exits you from LIVE SCORING, and sends you back to the Round's page - where you will see everyone's scorecard, including your own, and any results from side bets from your touring group.  The Leaderboard is also dynamic, so you can see the round's ranking at any time.

 

Scoring Discrepancies

What if a score you marked yourself doesn't match whomever marked YOUR scores?  When you see the list of screcards for the round, your scores will always be at the top of the list - for ease of use.  If there are discrepancies for any hole, you will see a "Self Scoring" line above your marked scores, indicating what you marked yourself, and differences are highlighted yellow.  You will need to agree who marked which hole wrongly, and that person goes into LIVE SCORING to amend it. If there are no differences in marking, you will not see a "Self Scoring" line above your marked scorecard.

 

If anyone's scores are out in this way, the administrator will also see a "Scoring's Out" section, telling them whose scores need closer examination and rectification.  Only when all players' marked scrores and self scores match can the round be closed.

 

Score One

Administrators have the ability to select a player and just mark their scores directly - slam them in.  This persist's a player's scores when either they were missed when card marking selection was done, or someone doesn't have a phone and marked a physical card during the Round - many reasons.  An administrator can take their physical card (if all agreed on their score) and enter those directly into LIVE SCORING.  

 

Close the Round

This is also an important step, and one only available to your tour administrator.  When all scores match, this button is visible and the round can be closed.  What heppens next is:

a) All rankings for the round is set,

b) Each player is sent a round summary email,

c) The next round's playing handicaps are calculated,

d) The next round is officially opened (or the Comp is closed - if this was the last round).

 

The importance of this function is because of Playing Handicaps - their calculation for the next Round.  Playing handicaps for the next round are based on ranking on this day just closed, in the form of Handicap Adjustments (and previous days, cumulatively), as well as the next Course's Slope and SCR.  Let's run through an example here.  

 

I started this Comp with a handicap of 18.  I played Round 1, and won it!  Yay for me, but woe is my playing handicap for day 2, because I know our Comp is configured so that I lose three points for winning a Round.  Those 3 points are deducated after the Slope/SCR calculation is made.  Such as:

Starting Handicap:  18

Slope for Day 2:       140

SCR-Par for Day 2:   2

(((18 * 140 /113) + (2)) * 0.93) + adjustments

or

((22.3 + 2) * 0.93) - 3  = 19.6      (rounded to 20)

 

Closing the last Round?

When you finally close the last round, all the rankings are persisted, the Calcutta winners displayed, and the Winner etched into your tour's Honourboard.

 

The Calcutta

This has its own section, as there are some explanations needed here.  

 

What is it?

It is a term taken from horse racing -  an auction taken for the proposed winners of a race - or this case, a Comp.  After the first Round of a Comp is closed, the Calcutta is open.  An administrator can then, player by player, take details on who bid on whom to take out the Comp.  Yes, betting is involved, but GolfScore Pro only HELPS you handle it.  It enables you to track all its elements, including who owes what to the kitty, and the breakdown of 1st, 2nd and 3rd winnings.  That kitty will then be distrubuted to the person or group that bid on the eventual winner of the tour, the runner up and the player who came third.

 

Is it compulsory?

No. Totally up to you, Comp by Comp. When an administrator sets up your Comp, there are fields to say what percentage of the Calcutta Kitty you want to distribute for 1st, 2nd and 3rd.  You can ignore these fields/settings if you don't want a Calcutta.  

 

How does it work?

After the first Round in a Comp, an administrator can now use the facility to select one Player at a time, for auction. This can be done randomly, alphabetically, or from the results of Day 1 Leaderboard (bottom-up, is commonplace). Totally up to you. The process usually starts over drinks and full belly of a delicious dinner with friends.

 

When they select a player to be auctioned, the administrator sees everyone ELSE's names with checkboxes, and a Total Amount field.  For example, Betty and Frank are currently the highest bidder on Fred to win the Comp, with $50.  Gus, Dave and Jane really think Fred is playing well this year and could take the whole thing out, and decide to bid $60 between the three of them.  No-one's prepared to go higher (either themselves or a group bid), so the administrator chooses Gus, Dave and Jane - and enters $60 as the bid.  Save, move on to the next player to auction.  It is that simple.  Go through each player.

 

Where do I see who bid on who?

When you then visit any round in the Comp, you will see a Calcutta section (if you have opted for it), with each player listed, and also who successfuly bid on them.

 

Who now owes what?

Generally, all those who have bid on a player or players will pass their cash into a Kitty.  In poker terms, the Pot.  It is held until the Comp is complete, and the top three placings are identified and Kitty distributed to the successful bidders.  Where that Kitty is and who holds it is immaterial - you can sort that out - but knowing who owes what can be complicated.  What if the same person put $10 on themselves, went in thirds on two other players, and then halves in another player.  Yep - it gets complicated.  But not with GolfScore Pro.  The administrator has a section visible to them that outlines the total owed per bidder.  That same section allows entering the receipt of cash (partial or total), with the system telling them if they are sorted or still owe money to the Kitty.  Very, very handy... I can say from experience.

 

Close the Calcutta

After all these shenanigans, the auction is done, cash is starting to come in to the Kitty, you close the auction.  The administrator sees a button on the Round 1 page (at the bottom) for "Close the Calcutta".

 

Content

All people in your Tour can view images, text, videos and YourTube links added to any Comp or Round.  Players and Administrators can add or remove that content too.  As mentioned, there are two levels this content can be loaded to - the Comp itself (eg, 2022), or any Round (eg, Day 3 of of 2022).  The content is shown towards the bottom of the page, under scorecards, side-bets and Calcutta details. 

 

Someone fell into the lake on the 16th trying to chop their ball out of the rough?  Take a photo and post it to that Round.  Or better - a video.  Priceless.

 

Text

People may want to outline instructions on how to get to the shared accommodation, or put into words how much they love being on Tour with such a grand group of people, or go into fine detail what they are planning to cook for dinner on Day 1.  Well, it's easy to do just that.

 

Image

You can upload an image from your phone or PC as well.  Set a title for the image, select the image and upload it.  There IS a size limit on the image, so choose a "medium" size for the photo, if given the option on your device.

 

Video

Same thing as for an image - set a name for the video, choose the video and upload it.

 

YouTube

When you post a video to YouTube, you are given a unique string of characters that identifies your video.  When you are uploading it to GolfScore Pro, you call it what you want, paste in that YouTube code, and hit the upload button.  That simple.

 

Content Administration

An administrator can choose to remove this content from a Comp or Round.  What actually happens is that it is quarantined in the background - made invisible.  At any time, an administrator can also reinstate that content or truly delete it - gone forever more.

 

Still have unanswered questions?

Please head to our Contacts page, and ask us anything.  We'll hope to have an answer to you, pronto.