You have now entered… The Transition Zone.

I’ve named our new Course Rating Blog, “The Transition Zone” for several reasons.  First, this department is undergoing numerous changes; hence, we are in a transitional stage. Second, Transition Zone is one of the more interesting but difficult concepts to grasp in the USGA Course Rating System™ manual.

As far as the Course Rating department is concerned, education is a priority. One of our goals is to use this blog to help you learn more about course rating and how it affects each individual and their Handicap Index. Remember, the result of our work (Course Rating and Slope Rating) is a necessary component of the USGA Handicap System.™ 

Course Rating is probably one of the most misunderstood concepts in golf. Some are confused to thinking it is a subjective evaluation of a course (like you might find from magazines such as Golf Digest and GolfWeek). Invariably, golfers and golf professionals alike often question the resulting numbers that are generated through the system’s objective measurement of length and obstacles golfer encounter as they play the game. Keep in mind that we evaluate all courses on a uniform set of assumptions (which we will cover in future blog posts). 

When it comes to course rating terminology, sometimes just the definitions can be as confusing as reading instructions to build a nice “simple” piece of European furniture.   Most definitions for the USGA Course Rating System are between two and three sentences, but Transition Zone takes up about a page and a half of the manual.  This seems to be as good a place to start as any.  So, here we go!  I promise not to go into too much confusing detail. 

The easiest way to explain the concept of Transition Zone is to remember one of the final scenes in the movie “Tin Cup.” Remember the 18th hole of the U.S. Open when Kevin Costner repeatedly attempts to make the long shot, while the layup would be the smarter move?  In course rating, we have to take both shots into account because they are both possible. Trust me, it gets more complicated from there!

The Transition Zone Blog is where I will  explain the different obstacles used in Course Rating, discuss interesting facts that I have found through rating the 30+ courses this year and answer your questions about USGA Course Rating™ and Slope Rating®

By the way, if you have an interest in volunteering to be a part of the OGA Course Rating team, click here and fill out our volunteer application.