Here’s a subject that I should know alot about. The golf handicap system is a scoring system that is a measure of the ability of a golfer based on the tees for a certain golf course, created to allow golfers of different skill levels to compete with each other on more or less even ground. It is used to calculate a net score from the number of strokes actually played in a certain game, in order to equalize the scores of players with different degrees of skill when a specific set of calculations is applied. The higher the golf handicap number of a player, the poorer his or her performance is as compared to those with lower handicap ratings, which allows for the system to compensate for one player’s lack of skill. For example, I have a handicap around 24 which allows me to compete on even footing with my cousin, Kevin who has a handicap around 16 or his brother Tom who is a 7 handicap.
The golf handicap system is limited only to golf clubs and golf associations, and is not applied in professional golf.
In order to calculate the golf handicap of a certain player, there are some terms one needs to understand: namely, course rating, slope rating and adjusted gross score. The course rating is the score that a par golfer, also called a “scratch” golfer, would get ona specific golf course. Slope rating is a number between 55 and 155, and is usually expressed as a ratio as opposed to an actual golf score. This is the degree of difficulty of the course for a bogey golfer (one with a handicap of 18, the number of holes in a standard golf course), with the average course playing at a slope rating of about 113, with a higher number making for a more difficult course. Third, and possibly the most important of these values in calculating the golf handicap of a certain individual, is the adjusted gross score. The adjusted gross score is a system that prevents a few bad holes from pulling down the whole golf game, consequently the handicap of a person. A hole that took 10 strokes, for example, could be whittled down to at most 7 strokes, in order to maintain a modicum of equality for all golfers in the match. The specifics of the adjusted gross score system are better outlined under the heading “Equitable Stroke Control,” which is maintained by governing bodies in golf.
Nowadays, in this age of much technological advancement, calculating your handicap is much easier. Surfing the Internet yields a variety of computing software that can calculate and re-calculate your handicap for you every time, so that you will be able to monitor and track your progress as you improve on your golf game.
Understanding these terms (course rating, slope rating, adjusted gross score) is important for any casual golfer. These, after all, will determine your golf handicap, likewise your skill level. And it is these numbers that will allow you to track how you improve as you play more golf.
