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A golfer accused of manipulating his handicap has denied he's a cheat and says he may take legal action to clear his name.
Andrew Prudhoe was expelled from Upper Hutt's Trentham Camp Golf Club over claims he posted a series of poor scores to raise his handicap and give him an unfair advantage in tournaments.
The club alleges Prudhoe entered more than 30 scorecards last November and December which added about five strokes to his handicap. The practice is known as "burgling", a big no-no.
On December 30, Prudhoe won a handicap division of the Te Marua Masters in Upper Hutt with a four-round total of 325.
His 16-handicap meant his adjusted total was 261 - 19 shots ahead of second.
Prudhoe won about $400 worth of prizes, including a golf bag and jacket, and bagged another $200 from winning the intermediate division of the Featherston Classic, held from January 2-4.
Prudhoe told the Herald on Sunday he had not altered any of his scores, which have since been removed from the internet-based NZ Dot Golf scoring system.
"I am not a cheat. I have never cheated," he said. "This is a travesty. I am just so disappointed ... so upset. I have spoken to my lawyer."
And Prudhoe objected to being labelled a "burglar".
He said he played poorly during November and December because he had taken lessons which altered his style.
Trentham Camp committee member and handicapper Bill Stratford said Prudhoe was expelled after a disciplinary hearing on January 8.
"He was asked to explain his actions and he could not give us a reason why [he did it].
"He started abusing, threatening the committee ... swearing at us. That was it. If he wasn't prepared to explain himself we couldn't do anything with him," he said.
Prudhoe admitted "insulting" the committee. "But they deserved to be insulted. They didn't give me a chance to put my point of view [across].
"Maybe I shouldn't have said Trentham was the worst club in the country. It all got a bit out of hand... they were calling me a liar. I am not."
Stratford said Prudhoe's membership was suspended and he was given a week to appeal.
"But he didn't take the matter up. His membership was cancelled."
Wellington Golf Association general manager Bruce Hicks refused to comment, however he emailed all golf clubs in the region alerting them of the termination of Prudhoe's membership.
The email said he had been expelled because he "deliberately and knowingly manipulated and posted erroneous scores to gain an unfair advantage in upcoming open tournaments".
