Skip to content
PlainPar

About Plain Par

Golf answers you can check

Plain Par explains golf for everyday US players: what the rules say when a ball is lost or in a penalty area, how par and the common formats are scored, how the World Handicap System turns your scores into a handicap, what each club is for, and how to look after your gear. Every answer starts short and then shows where it comes from, so you can check it on the course or in the rule book.

Owner and editor

Erdi Doğan

Erdi Doğan owns and edits Plain Par and is responsible for everything published on it. Guides and tools are drafted with AI assistance; every rule, formula and number is checked against the cited source before it goes live. Plain Par is not a golf instructor or a rules official, and does not claim to be.

LinkedInX (Twitter)

Where the answers come from

  • The Rules of Golf, written jointly by the USGA and The R&A. Rules pages cite the rule number (for example Rule 18.2 for out of bounds) so you can read the official wording.
  • The USGA Rules of Handicapping for everything about the World Handicap System: Score Differentials, the Handicap Index, Course Handicap and net double bogey.
  • Measured data for distances and specs, such as Trackman's PGA Tour averages, and manufacturers' own pages for lofts, grips and care instructions.

How a page is made

  1. We collect the primary sources first: the rule, the handicap rule or the data page.
  2. The page is drafted with AI assistance from those sources.
  3. Every rule number, formula and figure is checked against its source. Anything that cannot be traced is cut.
  4. Tools are tested against hand calculations before they go live.

What we do not do

  • We do not invent rounds we played, lessons we gave or expert personas.
  • We do not accept payment from equipment brands. Brand names appear only when their data is the source.
  • We are not affiliated with the USGA, The R&A or the PGA. Your club's committee and local rules have the final word on the course.
  • Fitness pages are general guidance, not medical advice.

Corrections

Found something that does not match the rule book or its source? Please tell us. We fix errors and update the date on the page when we do.