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Simply having a Handicap Index isn't the same as using it. If you’re just posting scores and never looking back, you’re missing out on the strategic edge that the system was actually built to give you.
Here are nine ways to tap into the full potential of your Handicap Index:
1 – Understanding How Your Handicap Index Reflects Your Skill
There's a common assumption that your Handicap Index just generally measures how many strokes over par you’re likely to shoot. What it's actually measuring is your playing potential. When it's calculated, your Handicap Index only considers your 8 best rounds (by Score Differential) of your previous 20, meaning that it reflects a number based on your most recent “best” golf, and not what you should expect every time you tee it up.
2 – Know Your Target Score for Each Round
Every round you play yields a different Target Score because every round you play is different. From the yardage, to weather, to course conditions, to the actual course itself – your Target Score is calculated on all these factors (and more).
There's no math required on your part. Just enter the course and set of tees you're playing from when keeping score using the GHIN app (or use the Handicap Calculator tool) and you’ll be provided with an accurate Target Score just for you and your ability.
3 – Use Stroke Allocation to Change Your Approach/Mindset
Par represents a potential target for a given hole, but it doesn't necessarily represent your target. It makes sense for scratch golfers to chase birdies and settle for pars, but most golfers are, statistically, closer to playing bogey golf than scratch. When you have an extra stroke on a hole, start thinking of those bogeys as pars and pars as birdies and suddenly your round looks a lot better. Keep this mindset going into each hole and you might even find your scores improving because you're playing smarter.
4 – Take Advantage of Net Double Bogey
The World Handicap System™ has a procedure in place which states that when posting your score for handicap purposes, the highest score you can post on any hole is Net Double Bogey which is equal to double bogey plus any handicap strokes you receive based on your Course Handicap. If you post anything higher than a Net Double Bogey, you're unintentionally inflating your scores in GHIN.
5 – Track Your Stats
When you use the GHIN app during your round, you can do so much more than just keep score. Using the hole-by-hole scoring option will automatically implement the Net Double Bogey feature and you can track stats like fairways hit, greens in regulation, and putts for each hole. You can even keep scores for your partners and compete in a match utilizing your Course Handicaps. If you're serious about getting better, this is a good way to monitor what's working and what needs practice.
6 – Just Say “No” to the Vanity Handicap
Your Handicap Index can only be as honest as you. If you’re just posting your best scores and omitting the bad ones, you’re keeping a number that sounds good to say but hurts you on the course and doesn’t reflect your actual skill level. This results in not getting strokes where you can (and should) and hinders your ability to compete equitably.
7 – Get Your Playing Partners on the Same System
The World Handicap System is the only official way to keep an accurate, peer reviewed Handicap Index sanctioned by an official governing body of golf (USGA). Competing against playing partners who use a different system, or no system at all, is akin to playing the same game by two different rules. You will always be on authoritative, equitable ground when you measure your game (and theirs) by the WHS.
8 – Participate in the All-New “GHIN Challenges”
GHIN Challenges is a fun, free, and competitive way to measure your Handicap Index progress against anyone else participating in Southern California. Simply play a round at a participating facility, post your score in the GHIN app, and see how your net scores measure up on the leaderboard against other players also trying to lower theirs. This is a virtual competition played on real golf courses for real prizes, and it all it takes is doing what you’re already – posting scores.
9 – Embrace Fair Competition
Having a Handicap Index means you’re able to compete against anyone, anywhere. It doesn’t mean you have to be of a certain skill level or take the game any more seriously than you’re comfortable with. It levels the playing field and allows you to enter net tournaments, play in GHIN Challenges, or have a fair match against others in your group. Competitive golf isn’t just for elite players. It’s for anyone with a Handicap Index and it changes how you play and experience the game.
Haven't become a member yet and want to tap into these benefits? Join the SCGA here.
