Seven shots that is phenomenal
It sounds to me like it might be a slope rating issue. Having played on courses with slope ratings for about 17 years, first in the US and then in Asia, what I think that is getting missed is the notion of the "course handicap".
Following comments have the caveat that I don't know if the new Oz system is like the USGA "handicap Index" system, but it sounds like it is very close.
As noted by Jumbuk, Blackwood would appear to be regarded as being significantly more difficult (slope 128 ) than a "baseline" 113 Slope rated course. Thus, there is (or rather should be) a "course handicap" that gets applied when a score card is submitted. For example, if one has a handicap index of 18, and I play on a course that has a slope of 131, my "course handicap" is likely to be in the 21 to 22 range.
It could be argued (and I know plenty of people that take the following position) that a non index or slope adjusted handicap system is "self adjusting" in the sense that people who might play at what could be regarded at a more difficult course regularly for a handicap of say 10 are probably better players that play on an easier course for a handicap of 10 and when these two nominally 10 handicap players play against each other in competition it is likely that the person from the more "difficult" home course is likely to score a lower gross, particularly if both players are unfamiliar with the course they might be competing on.
If course hadnicaps are not being applied then I can understand why Jumbuk is not a happy camper.
What you call a course handicap is called a daily handicap here BillyBob, and yes, they are applied.
Slope is a pretty blunt instrument tho, and may not take into account the reasons why one course is harder than another one. It might be because of length (which I believe is one of the main reasons leading to a higher slope), or because it is a tight course, or with many hazards, etc.
Having said that, it does seem that quite a lot of the complaining that has gone on in this thread is from people who play the same course every week, in which case, slope, daily handicap and the DSR (daily slope rating) cannot be the reason they can't score 36 points - as those things cancel out every week.
I think people forget that even the pros don't shoot par every round...
The Slope system here is the same as in the US. When slope was introduced, everyone's handicap was "normalised/standardised" based on the slope of the courses they had played historically. The result is called your GA handicap and is what you would play off if you were playing a 113 rated course. This, in theory, means that GA handicaps are much more comparable than the two 10 handicappers in your example.
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