Last Updated: Oct 31, 2023
Golf Scoring Terms: Handicap
Based on the score a golfer shoots and the assigned difficulty rating of the golf course they played, they will get a "handicap".
Written By: Zach Gollwitzer
Posted in: Golf Score Terms
Term Overview
A brief overview of the term including definition, usage, origins, helpful visuals.
Based on the score a golfer shoots and the assigned difficulty rating of the golf course they played, they will get a "handicap" which is an approximation for how good a golfer is.
My handicap is a 6 right now, but I hope to get it down to a 3 by the end of the year.
In golf, there are many governing organizations. The biggest one in the U.S. is called the USGA, short for "United States Golf Association".
The USGA runs a program called GHIN, short for "Golf Handicap Information Network" that is responsible for going to golf courses around the world and assigning a difficulty rating to each course.
Based on the score a golfer shoots and the assigned difficulty rating of the golf course they played, they will get a "handicap" which is an approximation for how good a golfer is.
Below are some common phrases associated with golf handicaps:
- "Scratch golfer" - on average, this golfer shoots scores near the "course rating" assigned to a golf course by the USGA.
- "Plus Handicap" - Counterintuitively, a "plus handicap" means a golfer is really good and generally shoots even par or better.
- "High handicapper" - a high handicapper is a golfer who has a handicap in the double digits and generally shoots high golf scores.
Don't worry if this is confusing, golf handicap is one of the most confusing golf terms.
About the author: Zach Gollwitzer
Hey, I‘m Zach, the founder of The DIY Golfer! I created this site while playing D1 collegiate golf with a simple mission—I wanted to learn the golf swing and get better at golf myself.
Fast forward a few years, and my “journal“, The DIY Golfer, has been viewed by millions of golfers worldwide looking to do the same with their games. my mission is to make golfers more consistent in just a few hours a week through advanced practice strategies and timeless, first-principle golf instruction.