A golf handicap is a numerical measure of a golfer’s potential that is used to enable players of varying abilities to compete against one another. Better players are those with the lowest handicaps. A golfer with zero handicap is also called Scratch Golfer.
Historically, rules relating to handicaps have varied from country to country with many different systems in force around the world. Because of incompatibilities and difficulties in translating between systems, the sport’s governing bodies, the USGA and The R&A, working with the various existing handicapping authorities, devised a new World Handicap System (WHS) which is in the process of being introduced globally throughout 2020.
A WHS handicap is calculated with a specific arithmetic formula that approximates how many strokes above or below par a player might be able to play, based on the eight best scores of their last twenty rounds.The calculation has several variables: the player’s scores from their most recent rounds, and the course and slope ratings from those rounds.
Put in simple words, the handicap index, which many refer to as a handicap is the calculation of the best 8 scores of the last 20 full rounds played, the scores for each round are adjusted for unusual scores on holes depending on the ability of the golfer and the difficulty of the hole (each course rates the difficulty of each hole based on tee location) a high score can be lowered or adjusted for handicap calculations. The lowest 8 adjusted scores (as measured by subtracting the adjusted score from the rating of the course) are averaged and become the index, this average is the handicap index.
To get the course handicap you would use the slope rating to adjust your index for the difficulty of the course being played, all courses have a slope or difficulty rating (most between 100–130) the index is based on a rating of 113, a harder course ( a higher slope rating) would allow a higher handicap and a lower rating (less than 113) would allow lower course handicap.
Having a handicap in Golf is a requirement for competitive golf, for casual rounds of Golf there is no need to have a handicap and the game can be enjoyed socially. To get assigned an official handicap, the golfer generally completes three rounds, with an assigned marker, which are done as an assessment in order to determine the average playing ability of the golfer.
