Help Centre

In late 2025 Golf Australia transitioned from the Golflink handicapping system to the DotGolf system. 

Under the Golflink system:

• The old 10-digit GOLFLink number was split into club ID (first 5 digits) and member number (last 5 digits).
• When you joined a new club, the system issued a new number, even though your playing history and handicap carried over.

However, under the current Golf Australia Connect / Golf ID system (post-2025):

• Your Golf ID is now permanent and unique to you, not tied to a club.
• You keep the same Golf ID when moving between clubs.
• All your handicap history, scores, and records remain linked to that Golf ID.
• You can now select which Club will be your home club (and thus manage your handicap), however this selection doesnt change your Golflink number. 

So essentially, the old statement about “getting a new GOLFLink number at a new club” no longer applies — your Golf ID now follows you for life, across all clubs.

Many people are surprised with how low their initial GA Handicap is. There are a few reasons for this:

• The system is calibrated for the handicap to sit at the low end of what a golfer is capable of - it is intended that a player only plays to or beats their handicap when they play well.
• Many golfers without an official handicap believe the handicap represents the scoring average but this is not the case. Statistically, an Australian golfer plays better than their handicap only once in every eight rounds.
• Initial handicap calculations are made from the adjusted hole scores from the best of the three submitted rounds with reference to the Scratch Rating of the course and multiplied by .93.
• The GA Handicap is referenced to the Slope Rating of a Course to generate the Daily Handicap that a golfer plays from in a competition. The formula is GA H/cap x Slope Rating / 113. Hence, on a course with a slope rating of 130, a player with a GA Handicap of 15.8 will play from a Daily Handicap of 18.

Each golf club has nominated competition days and you may be welcome to enter as a guest depending on the club's policy on accepting guests into their competitions.

You will need to ask the golf club if their competition days are open to guests generally and to Golfer Social Club Members specifically.

You may also seek to play in Open Tournaments and other Open events

Your monthly $10 monthly credit is automatically placed directly into your Crazy Golf Deals Account and apllied on checkout, when available.

It is to be used within 30 days and does not accrue. It can be used on any deal on crazygolfdeals.com.au including Golfer Tour events and Stay and Plays, as well as Golf Market.

If you're a Premium Member, you can find your special credits in your account under the category "Member Special Credits". These require you to copy and paste your voucher code on checkout.

Submitting a Conforming Social Score via the Golfer app is an easy process, when you start your round, just ensure your handicap information is correct and switch the toggle for a CSS.

1. Ensure you toggle the Handicap details and your GA Handicap and Golf ID number are correct.

2. Toggle the "Conforming social score" button

3. Read the notice and press "Proceed"

4. Press the "Save" button to continue and start your round

5. After your round, have your playing partner digitally sign your card and submit your round

Watch the help video here:

As part of our Handicap and Handicap+ memberships, you get the ability to upload what are called ‘conforming social scores’. Handicap members may upload a total of 10 social rounds per membership year, Handicap+ members have no restrictions on the number of rounds uploaded.

The steps to do this are below.

Note: under Golf Australia and World Handicapping System any rounds for handicapping need to be played with or accompanied by another player who holds an active Golf ID.

• Email support (membership@golfnetwork.com.au)
• Open your Golfer App
• Select a Club to start a round (App will bring up courses closest to your location)
• Ensure you toggle the Handicap details and your GA Handicap and Golf ID number are correct.

• Toggle the "Conforming social score" button
• Read the notice and press "Proceed"
• Press the "Save" button to continue and start your round
• All you need to do is enter your strokes taken, the system will then automatically calculate your Stableford score. If you haven’t scored Stableford before, simply see our support article on the topic. 

In late 2025 Golf Australia transitioned from the Golflink handicapping system to the DotGolf system. 

Under the Golflink system:

• The old 10-digit GOLFLink number was split into club ID (first 5 digits) and member number (last 5 digits).
• When you joined a new club, the system issued a new number, even though your playing history and handicap carried over.

However, under the current Golf Australia Connect / Golf ID system (post-2025):

• Your Golf ID is now permanent and unique to you, not tied to a club.
• You keep the same Golf ID when moving between clubs.
• All your handicap history, scores, and records remain linked to that Golf ID.
• You can now select which Club will be your home club (and thus manage your handicap), however this selection doesnt change your Golflink number. 

So essentially, the old statement about “getting a new GOLFLink number at a new club” no longer applies — your Golf ID now follows you for life, across all clubs.

Golf Australia uses the World Handicap System (WHS) to calculate your official GA Handicap. This global system ensures your handicap is fair, consistent, and recognised at every affiliated course in Australia and overseas.

When you enter your scores, whether in a competition or a social round with a marker, the WHS adjusts them for course difficulty and automatically updates your handicap. Your handicap travels with you, whether you’re playing at your local club or teeing up internationally.

This system gives every golfer, from beginner to low-marker, a fair shot in competitions. It responds quickly to improvements in your game, and because it’s a global system, your GA Handicap is trusted everywhere you play.

Golf Australia uses a few key steps to determine your handicap:

1. You play a round & submit your score
   Every valid 9- or 18-hole score goes into your scoring record.
2. Your Score Differential is created
   This adjusts your score based on the difficulty of the course you played.
   Score Differential = (Adjusted Gross Score – Course Rating) × 113 ÷ Slope Rating
3. Your best 8 rounds count
   Out of your most recent 20 rounds, the lowest 8 Score Differentials are averaged.
   This ensures your handicap reflects your true playing ability.
4. Caps protect your number
   The system includes controls to stop handicaps blowing out during a rough patch:
• Soft Cap: slows increases after your handicap rises 3 strokes above your best 12-month form
• Hard Cap: limits total upward movement to 5 strokes
5. Your handicap updates daily
   Once processed, your scores update your GA Handicap overnight so it always reflects your current level.

NOTE: When a player is gaining a handicap a sliding scale of score differentials is used (see table below). As a result of this your handicap will likely fluctuate quite a bit as you’re submitting your first 20 round.

A GA Handicap is the Golf Australia Handicap that is assigned to a golfer. This handicap is then referenced against The Slope Rating of a set of tees on a golf course to calculate the Daily Handicap that a golfer plays from in a competition.