This article is intended for users of the following products with a Handicap Service Provider Integration enabled, including WHS and GHIN:
Note: If you are interested in allowing golfers to register for the Master Roster using their Handicap Provider ID Number, check out our article on Master Roster Registration.
Q: We have enabled event registration and would like to allow the registrant to look up golfers using their Handicap Service Provider ID Number. Can we enable this?
A: Yes, but the setup looks different depending on your Handicap Service Provider. Note: Unlike WHS, GHIN does not use one shared set of options — the checkbox(es) you'll see depend on whether the event's registration is set up for Members or for Guests/Non-Members. See the sections below for each provider.
WHS Registration
In the Registration Center (Event/League > Registration Center), under the Registration Setup tab, WHS accounts have a dedicated "WHS Registration" section with two options (as shown below):
Allow golfers to register by Membership Number/CDH Number/Golf ID: Enables registrants to look up players using their WHS Membership Number during registration. This option is available for both member registration and non-member/guest registration. Note: The language used may vary depending on your Handicap Service Provider — for example, Member Number might be CDH Number or Golf ID instead.
Allow players to manually enter Guest details: Note: This option appears only if the checkbox above is checked. It allows registrants to enter guest details manually instead of looking them up in WHS.
GHIN Registration
For GHIN accounts, there is no single dedicated section — the option shown in Registration Setup depends on how the event's registration is configured:
If Member registration is enabled (i.e., the event allows registered members to sign up): you'll see "Allow players to search other eligible golfers by the GHIN number, or last name and state, in the registration form" (TM Association accounts only). This lets a member who is registering themselves search for another golfer — by GHIN Number, or by last name and state — and add them to the registration. This lookup checks the Master Roster first, then GHIN: if the golfer is found on the Master Roster, their data loads from there; otherwise it's pulled from GHIN.
If Guest/Non-Member registration is enabled (i.e., the event allows guests to register without a member): you'll instead see two checkboxes: "Allow Guests to register by GHIN number" and, once that's checked, "Allow players to manually enter Guest details." Note: On accounts that use non-member terminology, these relabel automatically to "Allow Non-Members to register by GHIN number" and "Allow players to manually enter Non-Member details." This lets a guest/non-member register themselves directly using their own GHIN Number, with no member or Master Roster involved.
Guest Lookup
If guest/non-member registration is enabled with the option above checked, golfers can search for guests (non-members) as team members by looking them up through your Handicap Service Provider, or entering them manually if that option is enabled:
WHS: Registrants must first select the region (England, Wales, Scotland, or Ireland), then enter the membership number. The system searches the WHS Handicap Service Provider database for the corresponding member.
GHIN: Registrants enter the GHIN Number directly — no region selection is required, since GHIN uses a single unified database. Registrants use the "Search" button to look up the golfer, then "Add" to add them to the team.
If found, the guest's details are displayed using the available fields for your Handicap Service Provider. Any fields populated from the provider are uneditable, except for blank fields.
Manually Enter Guest Details: If manual entry is enabled and selected, the registrant must complete the guest form. Note: For GHIN, switching between provider lookup and manual entry resets the guest slot.
Member Lookup (WHS)
If member registration is enabled, golfers can search for existing members as team members via the Master Roster or WHS database:
Lookup by Last Name and First Name: Users input the member's Last Name (required) and First Name (optional). The system searches the Master Roster for matching entries, and the registrant selects one to add to the team. WHS and non-WHS fields are automatically populated with the selected member's data.
Lookup by Membership Number: Registrants enter the member's WHS Membership Number. The Master Roster is searched for the corresponding member; if found, their details are displayed using the available fields from the Master Roster and WHS.
For the GHIN equivalent, see "Allow players to search other eligible golfers by the GHIN number..." under GHIN Registration above.
Provider vs. Non-Provider Fields (Guest Lookup)
Provider Fields: These originate from your Handicap Service Provider and are generally uneditable in guest and member forms.
Exceptions don't apply if those fields are key fields that are not selected in the Registration Center Member/Non-Member form.
Exceptions are made for blank fields from the provider, allowing users to manually enter and complete registration.
Key WHS Fields (Displayed by Default): First Name, Last Name, Membership Number, Handicap Index, Gender.
Key GHIN Fields (Always Populated): First Name, Last Name, Email, GHIN Number, and handicap-related fields.
These serve as confirmation for a successful team member lookup and are generally uneditable (unless exceptional circumstances apply).
Other Fields (Displayed if Selected in Registration Center): Remaining provider fields will only be displayed if chosen in the Registration Center (within the Member/Non-Member forms). For GHIN, this includes fields such as Gender, Date of Birth, Affiliation, City, State, Address 1, Address 2, and Zip/Postal Code.
Non-Provider Fields: Custom fields (not retrieved from your Handicap Service Provider) remain editable.
For members, custom fields with values from the Master Roster profile are automatically populated in the member form.
Additional Features:
Partial Matches (Member Search by Name): Both the Last Name and First Name fields support partial matching searches. Registrants only need to enter at least the first three letters of their name to display matching golfers in the search results table.
Handling Non-Existing Golfers: An error message is displayed if the search results do not find a member/guest (invalid Membership Number/GHIN Number or Last Name-First Name combination).