Each player's handicap is calculated automatically and updated at the end of every calendar month using the player's results over the previous twelve months.  We aggregate all of the percentage results achieved by a player in normal club pairs events over the previous twelve months.  The resultant total, divided by the number of sessions involved, gives us a mean average percentage.  This average, relative to a baseline of 50%, gives us the handicap for the ensuing month.  In some cases the handicap will be positive and in other cases it will be negative.

For each partnership playing in a handicap session the result is adjusted by the average of the two players' individual handicaps.  This is added or subtracted to their score for that particular session to produce the handicapped result.

Players who are achieving above average results should have a negative handicap effectively reducing their scores.  Less experienced players should have a positive handicap effectively increasing their scores.

In summary, handicaps are based on a rolling twelve month average which is updated monthly.  At the end of each calendar month an updated handicap is calculated which will then apply for the ensuing month.  The revised handicap will use the percentage scores from standard pairs events in the previous twelve months with the scores from the month just ended introduced into the calculation in place of the scores from thirteen months ago which fall out of the calculation.

  In most cases we anticipate that new players will start without any handicap and will effectively generate their own handicap by the beginning of their second month.  Any experienced players who join the club may be allocated a starting handicap taking into account that experience their grades in the National Grading Scheme and/or Masterpoint rank.

Results from non-standard events such as teaching or introductory sessions will be excluded from the handicap calculation.

Prior to 1st July 2014 we used a different system of handicapping