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About Us

The Council of National Unions (CONGU), known as the British Golf Unions Joint Advisory Committee until 1960, came into existence at a conference held in York on 14th February 1924. The conference was convened by the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews as a means of enabling the representatives of the Golf Unions of Great Britain and Ireland to formulate a definitive system of fixing Scratch Scores and to arrive at a uniform system of handicapping based on Scratch Scores.

The Consultative Committee was appointed to receive and consider schemes for fixing the Scratch Scores and adjustments to handicaps throughout Great Britain and Ireland. The Standard Scratch Score and Handicapping Scheme was prepared by the Council in 1925 and has been in operation throughout Great Britain and Ireland since the 1st March 1926.

On the 21st March 1960 the name was changed to the Council of National Golf Unions (CONGU) comprising representatives of The English Golf Union, The Golfing Union of Ireland, The Scottish Golf Union, The Welsh Golfing Union and The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews 

A major change to the Scheme took place in 1983 with the introduction of the concept of the 'buffer zone'. The 1989 revision introduced the concept of the 'Competition Scratch Score' (CSS) to adjust the Standard Scratch Score (SSS) to take into account variations in playing conditions e.g. wind on any competition day. With the introduction of the CSS the winter period, four consecutive months of reduction only competitions, was ended.

In 1993 the individual Unions were given discretion to use the USGA Course Rating System. The GUI, SGU and the WGU have since used it to rate their courses. The EGU opted to develop their own Course Rating system which they have continued to use. Handicap allowances for Match Play, previously included in the appendixes to the Rules of Golf, were now recommended by CONGU. Unions were given discretion to make the recommendations mandatory, which the GUI and SGU did. The variable buffer zone of one, two, three or four strokes, depending on handicap category was also added in the 1993 revision.

In the 1997 revision the Stableford Points Alternative (Clause 19.8) was introduced to deal with scores which were adversely affected by one or more particularly bad holes. Initially Unions were given discretion to apply this change but in 2001 it became mandatory.

In 2000/2001 discussions began between CONGU and the Ladies Golf Union (LGU), who were reviewing their own system. From these discussions the Unified Handicap System (UHS) emerged. It was passed by CONGU in September 2003 and by the LGU in January 2004. The joint system for men and ladies became effective from 1st February 2004.

The constitution of CONGU was amended in 2004 to reflect the joint system. The CONGU Council then consisted of two representatives of the Eight Unions/ Associations in Great Britain and Ireland. The eight were: English Golf Union, English Ladies' Golf Association, Golfing Union of Ireland, Irish Ladies' Golf Union, Scottish Golf Union, Scottish Ladies' Golfing Association, Welsh Golfing Union, and Welsh Ladies' Golf Union. The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews and The Ladies Golf Union have one representative each on Council.

In 2007/2008 the Welsh Golfing and the Welsh Ladies Golf Union amalgamated to form the Golf Union of Wales. The English Ladies' Golf Association became incorporated as the English Women's Golf Association. These changes have been incorporated into the CONGU Constitution and also CONGU itself became a Company Limited by guarantee in 2007.

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