At 06:28 PM 8/6/2007, TOM FLANAGAN wrote:
Of course this only applies if you're playing a 4-some
event.
That's why I was asking what the game was.
But still, within groups we have team bets,
Generally the high and low vs the 2 in the middle, or
something like that. Again, we try to match up total
handicap strokes.
OK, let's assume we're talking about 4-ball better ball match play.
Then matching up total (or average) handicap strokes seems like a
natural way to do it. You should be able to play level that way. But
experience (or a little thought) says that it's not, if there is more
than a few strokes difference within the foursome.
That's because, in a better-ball event, one golfer who is
substantially better than the others will dominate. For instance,
suppose you have two 15-hcp guys playing a 10 and a 20. The 10 is
enough better than both the members of the other team that his play
will completely dominate, and the 20 will only occasionally be "in
the hole". Even though the average of the two teams is the same, the
10-20 team will beat 15-15 a disproportionate fraction of the time.
I remember seeing an article (probably a decade ago) that made a lot
more sense. Match the average of the INVERSE of the handicaps. That
way, a lower handicap carries more weight than a higher handicap of
the same difference. Put another way:
Effective handicap = 1 / (1/A + 1/B)
where
A = handicap of the A-player
B = handicap of the B-player
Effective handicap = the handicap to use when comparing
teams for fairness.
For you electrical guys out there, it's the parallel resistance
formula. Tom is saying, if the handicap is a resistor, then matched
teams should have the same series resistance. The article would argue
(and I would agree) that it makes more sense for matched teams to
have the same parallel resistance.
If you want Tom's formula (match by average handicap) to make sense,
you should play a high-low game rather than simple best ball. In that
game, each player is always in the hole. The best scores of each team
is matched, AS IS THE WORST. For instance, suppose a hole goes:
Red: player A=4, player B=7
Blue: player A=5, player B=6
In simple best ball, Red wins the hole.
In hi-lo, Red gets a point (4 beats 5) and Blue gets a point (6 beats 7).
Hope this is more helpful than confusing.
Cheers!
DaveT
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