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Handicap
What the heck does that mean?
Ever wonder about handicaps? I will attempt to remove the mystery from this word.
A Handicap is simply a way to level the playing field for golfers of different skill levels in order to compete.
It is meant to measure a players playing ability and modivate them to increase that ability. It can adjust a player's
score to that of a scratch golfer, that is a player with a handicap of zero.
Only licensed Golf Clubs can keep track of an official USGA Handicap Index®. They do this in order to keep the integrity
of the handicap system. You are not allowed to use a handicap in competition using any other form of handicap system.
That being said there are several websites out there that will calculate your handicap index for you so that you can have an
idea of what your handicap really is. You will find one such calculator below.
How to calculate your handicap
This is easier said than done. The calculation takes into account two numbers that you can find on your score card. These
two numbers are Rating and Slope. These numbers are assigned by the USGA® and measure the course as it is played by
scratch and bogey golfers. The rating number is based on a scratch golfer. The calculation is then weighted for non-scratch
golfers with the slope number.
Take your score for a particular round and subtract the rating for the tees that you play. Divide that number by the slope
and multiply by 113. This becomes your differential for that round of play.
Next your differential is averaged over the last several rounds of play, depending on the number of rounds you played, to
arrive at the adjusted differential. And to get you to play to your potential, this number is multiplied by 96%. Then
truncate any decimal from that number to get your current handicap.
You need a minimum of five rounds and you only calculate the last 20 rounds worth of differentials.
If you only played five rounds, the handicap number only looks at your lowest score within those five rounds. As you
record more scores, more differentials are averaged to get your handicap, up to 10 rounds.
Simple...No?
Example?
Today we played the white tees. You can see that the men's white tees has a rating of 64.6 and a slope of 107. We shot
an 84 today.
(84 - 64.6) / 107 * 113 = 20.5 (rounded)
This is the differential for this round. Repeat this for the last 20 rounds and average the lowest 10 rounds.
(20.5 + 21.3 + 18.4 + 19.7 + 17.2 + 18.9 +
19.5 + 22.4 + 20.7 + 20.6) / 10 = 19.92
19.92 * 0.96 = 19.1232
But wait don't answer yet. Next you need to truncate the decimal amount. So the final answer is a handicap of 19.
Favorite Course - Rating/Slope
Need to know your favorite coure's rating and slope? Just choose the state, city, club and course from the form below.
Too confusing?
Not to worry. Here is a calculator that will take all the headache away and give you a non-official handicap based on
the play you enter.
So I Have A Handicap ... Now What?
Since every course has a different rating and slope, you need to calculate your course handicap when playing different courses. This is
what they do when using your handicap in tournament play. You can also use this when playing against your friends.
The caluclation for a course handicap is as follows:
Handicap * Slope / 113 = Course Handicap
Using the example above we calculated a handicap of 19. I want to play from the white tees on the other course at this same club. That
course is a little more difficult with a slope of 110. Here's my calculation:
19 * 110 / 113 = 18.49
So my handicap for this course would be 18. Even though it is a harder course, my handicap is less because the handicap system is
designed to get you to improve your game and compete harder.
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