# New handicap.



## Jason.H (Nov 15, 2021)

Hi guys. I’ve recently started to play golf after 13 years away. I’ve done 3 cards marked by kind club members at my new club. Scores of 99, 93 and 89 and the course is a par 70. What would my handicap be based on these numbers?
Jason


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## IainP (Nov 15, 2021)

And you need to forget about par 😉😁


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## Jason.H (Nov 15, 2021)

Ok that is of no use to my insufficient brain cells


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## rulefan (Nov 15, 2021)

Jason.H said:



			Ok that is of no use to my insufficient brain cells
		
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You need the Course Rating, the Slope and your Gross Score (adjusted for net double bogeys) for each round in order to calculate your Differential. Then apply the following formula:

Score Differential = (113/Slope) x (Adjusted gross score - Course Rating - any Playing Conditions Calculation applying on the date played). _Rounded to 1 dec place_.

Then use the table in #2. The result is your Handicap Index

However you won't use that when playing. The formula for that is
Course Handicap = Handicap Index x (Slope/113) _[rounded to integer value]_


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## SammmeBee (Nov 15, 2021)

17ish


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## Jason.H (Nov 15, 2021)

Thanks for the replies I’ll find out in a day or two so will let you know.


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## Bdill93 (Nov 16, 2021)

Jason.H said:



			Thanks for the replies I’ll find out in a day or two so will let you know.
		
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Bare in mind the first handicap is your best score- 2 strokes - so it may seem low initially but it will balance out!


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## jim8flog (Nov 16, 2021)

Jason.H said:



			Hi guys. I’ve recently started to play golf after 13 years away. I’ve done 3 cards marked by kind club members at my new club. Scores of 99, 93 and 89 and the course is a par 70. What would my handicap be based on these numbers?
Jason
		
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 as already said.

Ignore the par it is totally irrelevant.  Compare the score against the course rating.


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## rulefan (Nov 16, 2021)

jim8flog said:



			Compare the score against the course rating.
		
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But that will not provide an Index. Slope has to be considered.


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## Deleted member 3432 (Nov 16, 2021)

I would wait and see what you are given. 

If you are returning to golf it may take a while to get your head round the crazy new world of course rating and slope never mind these complex calculations thrown at you.

Welcome back to the game.


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## bobmac (Nov 16, 2021)

Jason.H said:



			Hi guys. I’ve recently started to play golf after 13 years away. I’ve done 3 cards marked by kind club members at my new club. Scores of 99, 93 and 89 and the course is a par 70. What would my handicap be based on these numbers?
Jason
		
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Find out what the Standard Scratch Score is and subtract that from your best score.
So if the SSS is 69, take that off your 89 so your handicap will be 20.
Easy















What do you mean it's changed, what could be simpler?


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## rosecott (Nov 16, 2021)

bobmac said:



			Find out what the Standard Scratch Score is and subtract that from your best score.
So if the SSS is 69, take that off your 89 so your handicap will be 20.
Easy















What do you mean it's changed, what could be simpler?
		
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You know things have changed, Bob.

SSS went to an early grave and it's all Course Ratings and Score Differentials now.


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## rulefan (Nov 16, 2021)

bobmac said:



			Find out what the Standard Scratch Score is and subtract that from your best score.
So if the SSS is 69, take that off your 89 so your handicap will be 20.
Easy
		
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Not so simple but still pretty easy.
SSS a) was a whole number b) is now replaced by CR to 1 dec place.

Take the CR off the 89 to give XX (say). That will not be his handicap
Multiply the XX by 113/Slope and subtract 2.0 as Jason only has 3 scores. That will be his handicap (Index). (HI)

When playing on *any* course, take the HI and multiply by Slope/113. That will give the Course Handicap for that course specifically. That calculation is not normally needed as the information will be on a notice board near the 1st tee. Now that is easy.


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## wjemather (Nov 22, 2021)

bobmac said:



			Find out what the Standard Scratch Score is and subtract that from your best score.
So if the SSS is 69, take that off your 89 so your handicap will be 20.
Easy

What do you mean it's changed, what could be simpler?
		
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It wasn't that simple pre-WHS; and hadn't been for quite some time.

Even without considering double-bogey adjustments (can't remember exactly when these came in, maybe with Stableford adjustments in 1997?), CONGU UHS introduced a multiplier of 1.13/1.237 (with the result truncated) for initial handicap allotments in 2016.

As such, under the old CONGU UHS, the initial handicap allotted would have been 18.0 (assuming no db adjustments were needed).


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## jim8flog (Nov 22, 2021)

wjemather said:



			It wasn't that simple pre-WHS; and hadn't been for quite some time.

Even without considering double-bogey adjustments (can't remember exactly when these came in, maybe with Stableford adjustments in 1997?), CONGU UHS introduced a multiplier of 1.13/1.237 (with the result truncated) for initial handicap allotments in 2016.

As such, under the old CONGU UHS, the initial handicap allotted would have been 18.0 (assuming no db adjustments were needed).
		
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Even double bogey adjustments disappeared under the UHS before the WHS came in. DB adjustment went out when the Maximum handicap became 54. With DB the max new handicap would have been 36.


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## Swango1980 (Nov 22, 2021)

Jason, in a nutshell, if you told us the Course Rating and Slope of the course you played, then we could give you an answer as to what your Index may be (with the caveat of double par adjustments if you had any horrific holes). However, without those parameters from your course, we cannot tell you what Index you may have. Par is irrelevant, and the range of Course Ratings and Par are too high to be able to reasonably use guesswork.


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## BridgfordBlue (Nov 23, 2021)

Quick question, recently joined a club (my first for twenty five years since I was a teenager) and have asked the pro if there’s anyone that can mark a few cards for me so I can get a handicap. 

Currently I tend to score in the nineties. That does include the odd crazy hole where I score a stupidly high score. Was reading up on the whs and I think I’m right in saying the adjusted gross score limits it at 5 over for any individual hole until you get a handicap and then it’s two strokes plus handicap. 

Does that apply as soon as you put the first three cards in to get the first handicap or when you have got to submitting twenty cards?  Just curious, I don’t think it actually makes much difference but I can have rounds that are mainly bogeys and a few pars and then a random eight or two for example!


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## Swango1980 (Nov 23, 2021)

BridgfordBlue said:



			Quick question, recently joined a club (my first for twenty five years since I was a teenager) and have asked the pro if there’s anyone that can mark a few cards for me so I can get a handicap.

Currently I tend to score in the nineties. That does include the odd crazy hole where I score a stupidly high score. Was reading up on the whs and I think I’m right in saying the adjusted gross score limits it at 5 over for any individual hole until you get a handicap and then it’s two strokes plus handicap.

Does that apply as soon as you put the first three cards in to get the first handicap or when you have got to submitting twenty cards?  Just curious, I don’t think it actually makes much difference but I can have rounds that are mainly bogeys and a few pars and then a random eight or two for example!
		
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Once you have a handicap, any bad hole is rounded down to nett double bogey.


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## jim8flog (Nov 23, 2021)

BridgfordBlue said:



			Quick question, recently joined a club (my first for twenty five years since I was a teenager) and have asked the pro if there’s anyone that can mark a few cards for me so I can get a handicap.

Currently I tend to score in the nineties. That does include the odd crazy hole where I score a stupidly high score. Was reading up on the whs and I think I’m right in saying the adjusted gross score limits it at 5 over for any individual hole until you get a handicap and then it’s two strokes plus handicap.

*Does that apply as soon as you put the first three cards in to get the first handicap or when you have got to submitting twenty cards?*  Just curious, I don’t think it actually makes much difference but I can have rounds that are mainly bogeys and a few pars and then a random eight or two for example!
		
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You get your handicap after submitting 3 cards and once you have a handicap the score of handicap plus 2 strokes applies (as per swango normally known as nett double bogey i.e. the lowest score where you would get zero points in a stableford comp)

20 scores is when your handicap is based upon the best 8

until then see the table in post #2


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## BridgfordBlue (Nov 23, 2021)

Thanks both, thought that was the case. There’s part of me thinking surely it should be for the 20 to get a more accurate reflection of a starting handicap before adjustments are limited, but then I suppose that would be allowing those blow out holes to have too much influence.


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## Jason.H (Dec 12, 2021)

Hi sorry about this late update. My handicap is 16.3. Today I played in my 1st comp. I signed in to the computer at the club before the round and it said 16.3 handicap, but then said I have 17. Whilst I had a bad day I still scored 37 points (9 in the last 3 holes). The guys I played with named me Bandito. Having stopped playing in 2007 and not touching a golf club till begining of November I think I’ve done ok. I’m hoping to get back down to 5 by this time next year. Wish me luck.


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## Foxholer (Dec 12, 2021)

bobmac said:



			Find out what the Standard Scratch Score is and subtract that from your best score.
So if the SSS is 69, take that off your 89 so your handicap will be 20.
Easy

*What do you mean it's changed, what could be simpler?*

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Playing off scratch! (aka no handicap)!
But luddites still exist/harp back to 'the old ways'!
WHS is here to stay - even if the 'W' isn't quite appropriate! It works better than the old Congu system did imo.


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## SwingsitlikeHogan (Dec 12, 2021)

Jason.H said:



			Hi sorry about this late update. My handicap is 16.3. Today I played in my 1st comp. I signed in to the computer at the club before the round and it said 16.3 handicap, but then said I have 17. Whilst I had a bad day I still scored 37 points (9 in the last 3 holes). The guys I played with named me Bandito. Having stopped playing in 2007 and not touching a golf club till begining of November I think I’ve done ok. I’m hoping to get back down to 5 by this time next year. Wish me luck.
		
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37 pts isn’t bandit country…it’s pretty much playing to your ability.  Note that under the old system 37pts WAS verging upon bandit country…but not under WHS.


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## jim8flog (Dec 12, 2021)

Jason.H said:



			Hi sorry about this late update. My handicap is 16.3. Today I played in my 1st comp. I signed in to the computer at the club before the round and it said 16.3 handicap, but then said I have 17. Whilst I had a bad day I still scored 37 points (9 in the last 3 holes). The guys I played with named me Bandito. Having stopped playing in 2007 and not touching a golf club till begining of November I think I’ve done ok. I’m hoping to get back down to 5 by this time next year. Wish me luck.
		
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AS per SwingsitlikeHogan 37 points may even be playing to worse than your handicap.  Pre WHS 38 points was playing to your handicap off the yellows where I play and it is now 37 points.

You need to compare the rounded course rating to the par as gauge as to whether or not you played to handicap


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## Foxholer (Dec 12, 2021)

jim8flog said:



			AS per SwingsitlikeHogan 37 points may even be playing to worse than your handicap.  Pre WHS 38 points was playing to your handicap off the yellows where I play and it is now 37 points.

You need to compare the rounded course rating to the par as gauge as to whether or not you played to handicap
		
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The post you quoted would indicate that had already been done 16.3 off whichever tees at Slope/113 etc produced Playing Handicap of 17.
@Jason.H....Things, relating to handicaps, have changed considerably since the Congu system was replaced a couple of years ago by WHS - though it's still settling down for many folk!


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## Jason.H (Dec 19, 2021)

2nd comp  (stableford) I got 40 pts and handicap now 14.3


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## LincolnShep (Dec 20, 2021)

Jason.H said:



			2nd comp  (stableford) I got 40 pts and handicap now 14.3
		
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Well done, keep them coming.  As you enter more scores, your handicap will settle and the movements will get smaller.


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## Jason.H (Jan 4, 2022)

LincolnShep said:



			Well done, keep them coming.  As you enter more scores, your handicap will settle and the movements will get smaller.
		
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Thanks, my last 4 general play rounds have all been in the 70,s. The last was a 71 (par70] One pulled drive on a long par 4 but lucky to find it bounced out onto the fairway. I believe my new course to be quite forgiving compared to the club I was a member at in the 2000,s ie wider fairways and less hazards ect.  Maybe the course owes me as I repair a good few pitch marks on every green!


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## Jason.H (Jan 31, 2022)

Hi guys a little update. So having got my initial handicap of 16.3 in November, I have played 5 stablefords and now play of 8.5. I am so pleased with my progress and whilst I initially wanted to set my sights on a 5 handicap by the end of 2022 I’m hoping to be well below that.


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## Foxholer (Jan 31, 2022)

Jason.H said:



			Hi guys a little update. So having got my initial handicap of 16.3 in November, I have played 5 stablefords and now play of 8.5. I am so pleased with my progress and whilst I initially wanted to set my sights on a 5 handicap by the end of 2022 I’m hoping to be well below that.
		
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Great progress! Those guys were right to assign 'Bandito' to you!


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## Jason.H (Feb 1, 2022)

Maybe, another stable ford next Sunday to test myself.


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## LincolnShep (Feb 2, 2022)

Getting to single figures so quickly after a 13 year break is great work.  What was your handicap before you stopped playing?


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## Swango1980 (Feb 2, 2022)

LincolnShep said:



			Getting to single figures so quickly after a 13 year break is great work.  What was your handicap before you stopped playing?
		
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His real name is Anthony Kim


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## Jason.H (Feb 2, 2022)

LincolnShep said:



			Getting to single figures so quickly after a 13 year break is great work.  What was your handicap before you stopped playing?
		
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Hi when I stopped playing my handicap was around 7.5\8. I had been down to 5 at one point but I changed irons to TaylorMade RAC blades and I was never as good as i was with the mp 30 Mizuno. That’s one reason why  I bought Mizuno jpx921 forged in November when I started back.


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## Foxholer (Feb 2, 2022)

Jason.H said:



			Hi when I stopped playing my handicap was around 7.5\8. I had been down to 5 at one point but I changed irons to TaylorMade RAC blades and I was never as good as i was with the mp 30 Mizuno. That’s one reason why  I bought Mizuno jpx921 forged in November when I started back.
		
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MP30s rank as one of Mizuno's 'classic greats' imo. Also got me from mid-teens to 7. As it happens, I played TM RACs (perhapsa combo set) for a short time too, when I got the bug for blades, but they did require another level of strike quality so quickly moved on. Coin Forgeds were better, but they got moved to pay for some Miura CBs. Those days were fun, but can't afford to dabble like that now.
Well done on getting back down so quickly. Those PPs was right with their 'bandito' comment - at least for  short while!


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## Jason.H (Feb 2, 2022)

Yes you can’t be a bandit for long. My TaylorMade,s were coin forged and the slightest off centre hit would lose distance whereas with my Mizuno,s are quite forgiving. I can hit a few balls into a green and they will be within 5 yards distance wise with a 7 iron.


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## Jason.H (May 11, 2022)

I thought I,d update as I’ve been putting a lot of time into my golf and it’s finally coming together. Ive been regularly scoring mid 70,s (Par 70) during practice rounds. Midweek medal today off the white/back tees and put a decent round together. Start of play was HI 7.7 and scored 72, net 63. Really pleased with myself as I had a wobble on the back 9 but played sensibly where needed.  A  few good cards had gone from me so today makes it more rewarding.


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## Jason.H (Jun 6, 2022)

Was hoping for a 5 handicap by the end of the year but I’m already at 5.4. I notice it’s getting tougher. I know I’ll hit some walls from here onwards.


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## SwingsitlikeHogan (Jun 6, 2022)

Jason.H said:



			Was hoping for a 5 handicap by the end of the year but I’m already at 5.4. I notice it’s getting tougher. I know I’ll hit some walls from here onwards.
		
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6 months ago 16.3...today 5.4 - that's quite some going...top stuff 

(note - makes my attempts over the last 9 months to reduce my HI feel rather feeble as I've only got it down from 10.9 to 8.6 )


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## Jason.H (Jun 19, 2022)

SwingsitlikeHogan said:



			6 months ago 16.3...today 5.4 - that's quite some going...top stuff 

(note - makes my attempts over the last 9 months to reduce my HI feel rather feeble as I've only got it down from 10.9 to 8.6 )
		
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Thanks, and well done for knocking off over 2 shots. I’m at 5.0 now. Been trying to eek out a bit more distance which has made my scoring a bit more erratic. Nice to be hitting less club into greens but hit less fairways. New irons and wedges so far so good.


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