The Grand National is a new event for 2018 with a new format, named after the great annual steeplechase horse race in the UK.
There are four 18-hole rounds, two at Merion and two at Pinehurst, and the rounds are played individually. Regular club handicaps apply for Round 1, and players accumulate Grand National points based on how well they did in each round.
The GN points awarded are based on the regular Classic tournaments points array, that is 30 points to the winner, 20 to the second place, 10 to third place, 5 to fourth. And then 4 points each to places 5 to 8, 3 points for places 9 and 10 and 2 points to any other finisher.
However, just as in the horse race itself there are hurdles to be negotiated.....! The player that finishes in first place in Round 1 will have 3 strokes added to their handicap for Round 2, the second place player gets two additional strokes and the third place gets a single stroke added. All other players keep the same handicap. The same pattern repeats through all subsequent rounds, but the total number of additional strokes that can be added to a player's handicap throughout the competition is capped at three, meaning if the same player wins the first two rounds then their handicap does not keep increasing. And if the player was second Round 1 goes on to win Round 2 they will only have a single stroke added to their handicap as they already picked up two extra strokes at the end of Round 1. The handicap increases do not reset but stay in place for all subsequent rounds until the competition is finished.
The player who has accumulated the most points at the end of the final round is the Champion! The points that have been won during the competition are only related to this competition, they are not Ryder Cup or Golden Knight points, but Ryder and GK points will be awarded to each player based on their final position, in the usual way. Oh, and the handicap increases within this tournament do not carry over into any other tournament, they are just hurdles to overcome within the Grand National itself.
There are four 18-hole rounds, two at Merion and two at Pinehurst, and the rounds are played individually. Regular club handicaps apply for Round 1, and players accumulate Grand National points based on how well they did in each round.
The GN points awarded are based on the regular Classic tournaments points array, that is 30 points to the winner, 20 to the second place, 10 to third place, 5 to fourth. And then 4 points each to places 5 to 8, 3 points for places 9 and 10 and 2 points to any other finisher.
However, just as in the horse race itself there are hurdles to be negotiated.....! The player that finishes in first place in Round 1 will have 3 strokes added to their handicap for Round 2, the second place player gets two additional strokes and the third place gets a single stroke added. All other players keep the same handicap. The same pattern repeats through all subsequent rounds, but the total number of additional strokes that can be added to a player's handicap throughout the competition is capped at three, meaning if the same player wins the first two rounds then their handicap does not keep increasing. And if the player was second Round 1 goes on to win Round 2 they will only have a single stroke added to their handicap as they already picked up two extra strokes at the end of Round 1. The handicap increases do not reset but stay in place for all subsequent rounds until the competition is finished.
The player who has accumulated the most points at the end of the final round is the Champion! The points that have been won during the competition are only related to this competition, they are not Ryder Cup or Golden Knight points, but Ryder and GK points will be awarded to each player based on their final position, in the usual way. Oh, and the handicap increases within this tournament do not carry over into any other tournament, they are just hurdles to overcome within the Grand National itself.