Why have the majority of Irish clubs decided not to alter WHS allowances?

20 August 2025

Golf clubs in Ireland have had the power to alter the Playing Allowance for competitions since the start of April. But Golf Ireland has revealed many have opted not to change

Many Irish golf clubs have shunned the chance to tweak World Handicap System allowances as part of a pilot scheme that could come to Great Britain next year.

Since April, clubs in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland have been able to choose their own handicap allowances for competitions.

Golf Ireland is currently piloting measures agreed by Golf GB&I, the body that replaced CONGU in administering the WHS in the four home nations.

They gave clubs new powers over how they implemented the Playing Handicap in singles competitions and fourball stroke play, Stableford, and V-Par events.

Designed to provide equity within competitions, allowances included 95% for individual stroke play and Stableford events.

But the pilot gave clubs a number of options. In singles competitions, they could keep the current allowance, reduce it to 90% or 85%, or increase it to 100%. That effectively removed the Playing Handicap.

In fourballs, the allowance of 85% could be retained, or it could be reduced to 80% or increased to 90%.

Releasing the results of preliminary feedback, though, Golf Ireland revealed 59.6% of clubs who responded “did not make any changes to the previously mandated handicap allowances”.

Of those, nearly half said that was because they believed the “allowances were about right”.

A total of 104 clubs, around a quarter of Ireland’s registered courses, responded to a return form issued by the governing body in its Club Newsletter in May.

Clubs could give multiple answers and also revealed a multitude of reasons for their decisions.

The main findings

Golf Ireland revealed 40.4% of clubs who responded did make changes to “at least some formats/competitions”
83.3% of clubs made changes to “make their competitions fairer for lower handicappers”
71.4% said they would “definitely continue with the changes”. 26.2% said they were open to doing so.
76.2% said they had done so after analysing scores in their competitions
50% said they had made changes after consulting their members, while 50% said they had “made the decision as a Committee which they felt was best”.

Golf Ireland added that 59.6% of clubs “did not make changes to the previously mandated handicap allowances”.
46.8% said that was because they felt the “allowances were about right”.
43.6% said there was “no issue with the previously mandated allowances”
24.2% believed members “had enough to cope with in terms of changes following the 2024 changes to the Rules of Handicapping as well as the switchover to CR-Par“
20% wanted more information before making a change,
19.4% decided to wait for the results of the pilot

Golf Ireland said it planned to send out a post-season survey to clubs and golfers and added: “The above results have been shared with our partners in GB&I Golf – England Golf, Scottish Golf and Wales Golf – in advance of a potential full rollout of this change across GB&I in 2026.

“A final decision on GB&I-wide rollout of this change will be made ahead of the 2026 season.”

By GCMA Content Team

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