How Golf Scoring Works

Introducing Data Evolution presented by Fortinet, a series focusing on the crucial role technology, data and connectivity play in different aspects of delivering a DP World Tour tournament. The final episode of the series tells the story of the important role played by the Scoring Services team at every event on the DP World Tour.

The episode documents the journey of the scoring data, from the collection of the scoring data on the course, to the OVSS (On-Venue Scoring System) and then the distribution to a wide variety of destinations such as, the manual and automated leaderboards around the venue, the website and app, the scoring software utilised by media and broadcast for graphics and commentary as well as the Tournament TV feed shown in hospitality and player areas at the venue.

We spent time with the DP World Tour’s Chief Technology Officer Michael Cole and Head of Scoring Services Lee Wilkinson as they discussed the operation ahead of the season-ending DP World Tour Championship.

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We live in a world now of real time expectations the information these days is available within the Split Second our scoring services are really the jewel in our crown of Data we are what I would call it the primary source of information Tommy 36 33 69 300 score and provides the real goto for many of our fans whether they’re on course or around the [Applause] World we are official scoring so we cover all shots all players all day the crucial thing I always like to say about what we do is that we give content next to the Scots and to to what you see on the television people don’t always realize

It until it’s missing when you see a shot being played it’s important that you understand what it’s for whether it to be make a birdie to lead the tournament win the tournament lose the tournament in essence our scoring Services is comprised of two elements the on venue results and the field

Software the on venue results really provides the critical distribution of the data field software is more about the administration of our tournament we have IMG Arena who we work with at almost all DP World Tour events they do data collection on the golf course that’s every shot ball positioning Li

Distances to the pin Etc and then we distribute that to lots of platforms to the OnCourse leaderboards to the players to see themselves as well as the OnCourse public as well as to the website and apps and to other things like torment television on Site 171 scoring Services provide us with what is likely the foundation of almost all of our data so we would connect them at the start of every tournament and we’re looking for the basic tournament information the basic course information then all the players all the matches who’s playing with who all their tea

Times we bring all that information in and that forms the start of our database from there we’re receiving all of their shot data and all of their scoring data we’re then using that for comment information screens for broadcast and the TV graphics on five Brad Brian haton on one

Two next broadcast is not always live they have to control what they show so they take our data but then they also manage the timing of how that’s displayed we’ve got a number of software Solutions which are taking those kind of three key data sources and that software

Is presenting that to users who are a part of that TV production who are saying you this piece of data is important or this piece of data perhaps this birdie for a player you know they’re not in contention they’re not near the top of leader board so we’re

Not interested in it they’re looking at these screens and they’re managing what dat is maybe being held back or what is going straight into the production can you take out B at two pleas getting the accuracy of our scoring system is critical to the authenticity of the game

Itself we still don’t have generally 100% accuracy we run at 99.9 you know because there’s always things that happen generally it’s around a ruling that might take a few minutes to resolve with the referee and then when something might get changed but that is all in vom’s unofficial data the scoring is

Only official when the players enter the recording area hello my voice good they sign their card both as a marker and as a player and that’s then verified into the scoring system that’s when the scores actually become official in the night in the Night Never as part of that process the recorder

Will take their card they will actually then type that into a computer system that computer system already has our information in it so if there is any discrepancy between the two it’s flagged for the player to see it Sparks a conversation are you sure you filled

Your card in right most of the time they have but it’s also an opportunity for them to spot actually the marker has made a mistake and that can avoid a disqualification because it can still be changed while we’re in that area oh good yeah yeah F you going go my

Friend you are safe than You the week you’ll see on the The Encore screens we have added shop data cuz you don’t always see how somebody’s got to the green now you can see whether that is a put for a birdie or whether it’s a put for a par because you might

Not have known what happened off the tea we control all the feeds that go out to the display screens around the course and we can control them as a whole or we can control them individually the information is real time and some of the leaderboards they each have bespoke

Content so that statistical information is relevant to that hole so that the spectators at that Loc a know exactly what’s going on it’s something that we’re constantly working on to improve that spectator experience and that spectator Information to watch another DP world to video click here and to subscribe click here