Isadora Stapff
5 minutes
Snowbirds, it is that time of the year again: the winter is coming! So is the Off-Season.
If you have an Official USGA Handicap, we have some information about the Off-Season that takes place in some of the regions within the United States.
This will only be relevant to US Players that have an Official Handicap, so if you are from outside the United States or do not have a Handicap ID (e.g. GHIN#), then you can just skip this post. Or you can share it with your friends that would benefit from it.
The Off-Season, or Inactive Season, is a time period where the USGA, through their AGAs (Allied Golf Associations), determines if a round played is acceptable for handicapping or not. This takes place to minimize the effects of weather fluctuations and their impact on course conditions, and, therefore, on golfers Handicaps.
We know that many northern players will sometimes adventure themselves on frozen courses when the temperature allows them to, but those rounds would not count towards their Handicap. So if you are one of the ice-breakers, go ahead and play as much as you want during the winter months. Your Index will not be affected by the frost bites, low temperatures, or freezing winds. Just watch out for the cold and keep warm out there.
However, if you are one of the snowbirds that travel down to the warmer states during the winter months, then you have to be aware that rounds that you play on courses that do not have an inactive season will definitely count towards your Handicap.
This means that if you live in Boston for example, but you go down to Florida for vacations during winter and you play a few rounds, those scores will count towards your Handicap because in Florida the Golf Season is Year-Round, instead of in Massachusetts, where the Season is between April 1st and November 14th.
The important thing to remember is that the season depends on where you play at that particular moment and not on where your club (the one providing you with a Handicap) is established.
But just in case, check out the USGA Handicap Active and Inactive Season Schedule here.
Anyways, because we get to play Golf anytime we want (we are based in Florida), doesn’t mean we are not thinking of those Grinters who can’t get out to play whenever they want and so, here are ten ways to improve your golf game from home this Off-Season.
Remember to stay warm and keep working on that game so that when the season starts again, you don’t feel as rusty on the course.
Keep Grinting and Hit’em Straight!
