Understanding Handicaps

Many people don't understand the basics of handicaps so let's explain. The USGA Handicap System Manual is the best source for full information on this topic, but here's the basics.

Your handicap is posted as two numbers, your handicap index and the course handicap. The handicap index is a measurement of a player’s potential ability on a course of standard playing difficulty. It is expressed as a number taken to one decimal place.

A Course Handicap is the number of handicap strokes a player receives from a specific set of tees at the course being played to adjust his scoring ability to the level of scratch or 0-handicap golf. A Course Handicap is determined by applying the player’s USGA Handicap Index to a Course Handicap Table or Course Handicap Formula. A player’s Course Handicap is expressed as a whole number of strokes.

So if your handicap is posted as 12.9 / 14 it means that your handicap index is 12.9 and when you play Sheridan's White Tees which have a slope rating of 119 you get 14 handicap strokes. If you play a course with a much higher slope rating, your course handicap might be higher than it is at Sheridan.

You can determine your Course Handicap for any course you play using theUSGA's Course Handicap Calculator