Toro has become the latest industry name to support the English Golf Union through the sponsorship of the EGU’s Course Rating Manual.
The EGU Course Rating Manual has been designed to ensure the accuracy and consistency of Standard Scratch Score (SSS) rating for courses throughout England and thereby maintain the correct relationship of handicaps between clubs. SSS is a measure of the playing difficulty of a golf course taking into account the severity and placement of hazards, the topography of greens and fairways and other factors relating to the layout of the course.
The EGU system of course rating was first introduced in 1993 and has seen two updates since then. The content of the new rating manual is the result of a major review of the system revisiting procedures used and validating these, along with new procedures that have been introduced, on-course.
The chance of subjectivity when rating courses has, as a result of this validation plus the use of more precise descriptions, tables and images, been significantly reduced.
Jeff Anguige, Toro Commercial sales manager commented, “Toro has over eighty years of history with the golf industry. Innovation and quality are at the heart of what we do and we believe these features are also reflected in the EGU rating manual. Therefore it was an easy decision for us to support this project.”
As established courses are required to be re-rated at least every ten years and new courses every three years until they reach maturity, it is expected that all courses in England, over 1,900 in total, will be rated under the EGU’s new system within the next five to ten years.
Lynne Fraser, marketing and pr manager for the EGU added, “In addition to its promotion and development initiatives, the EGU undertakes a wide range of administrative work to support the day to day management of the game. It is only with the support of partners such as Toro that we are able to continue to advance and implement these important activities.”
EGU County representatives undertake the course rating assessments before these are finally approved by assessors at national level.
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