Riddle me this. When is a handicap not a handicap? Answer: when it’s calculated under the World Handicap System (WHS). Confused? Yes, me too. But bear with me.

I imagine all of us assumed the introduction of WHS would mean everyone, worldwide, would be using the same system. That, after all, was the basis on which it was sold to golfers. But, picture the scene: on a visit to Greece, my WHS of 12.2 would translate to 13 shots on the slope index. So, in theory, I could play against a German, a Swede and an American and we would all know how many shots we receive.

However, imagine my surprise when, having sent my cards back to my UK-based club, I discovered my 13 shots should, actually, have been 16. Naturally, my first reaction was that this was erroneous. But, having checked with my club’s general manager, he confirmed it was correct. According to England Golf, which follows the old CONGU rules, I receive THREE extra shots. And this is where the issue lies – with the old CONGU members of England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland.

Following discussions with The R&A I’ve been able to establish there are two ways to calculate course handicaps and which may lead to anomalies. Within the WHS national associations can choose between different procedural options, to support their local golfing cultures.

In Rule 6.1a of the Rules of Handicapping, there is a discretionary option of whether to include the ‘course rating – par’ adjustment within the course handicap calculation, or not. Within European Golf Association (EGA) countries, which includes Greece, the course handicap calculation includes the ‘course rating – par’ adjustment.

So, my course handicap would be calculated as (Handicap Index x Slope Rating / 113) + (Course Rating – Par). Therefore, the CONGU countries – and others, apparently, including South Korea, Vietnam and several in South America – calculate handicaps in a different way, because they do not use the CR-Par adjustment.

A spokesman for The R&A explained: “The reason for having some discretion within the system is that we did not want the WHS to force change to the way the game is played in different countries and different cultures. We needed to give discretion to national associations over which formats of play would be acceptable for handicapping purposes in their country – competition, general play, match play, stroke play, fourball etc. This is all a choice.”

These discrepancies can be huge; I know of one golfer at a club in Northern Ireland with a 7.7 WHS who may encounter a four-shot difference across the two systems. The official WHS handbook – jointly published by the USGA and The R&A – claims: “Developed by The R&A and USGA in close co-ordination with existing handicapping authorities, the WHS provides golfers with a consistent measure of playing ability, with handicaps calculated in the same way wherever they are in the world.”

This, patently, is not so. Why, when the opportunity arose did we not all restart with the same system in 2020? Now, I’m more confused than ever, and I work in the industry. How is your casual golfer supposed to understand it?

One of the overriding principles of WHS was that we were encouraged to send cards in from wherever we played around the world, yet how can we do so with any confidence if there is no consistency?