How to compute your handicap-index for B.A.G.S.' competition

Know Your INDEX -- And How To Compute It!
1. By Differentials. A handicap differential is the difference betweeen the adjusted gross score and the MGA/USGA Course Rating, multiplying the difference by 113, dividing the results figure by the MGA/USGA Slope Rating and rounding off to the nearest tenth. The following is an example for a course with a 71.5 Course Rating and a 130 Slope Rating.

The value 113 in the above formula is the national standard for Slope Ratings and is used to weigh differentials.

2. INDEX Formula. Lowest 10 of Last 20 Differentials. The INDEX is computed from the lowest 10 of the player's last 20 rounds as follows:

* Bonus for Excellence is the incentive that is built into the USGA Handicap System for players to improve their golf games. It is the term used to describe the small percentage below perfect equity that is used to calculate Handicap Indexes (96%). As his Handicap Index improves (gets lower), the player has a slightly better chance of placing high or winning a handicap event.

If you have fewer than 20 differentials available:

Equitable Stroke Control
Equitable Stroke Control (ESC) is a procedure whereby abnormally high individual hole scores are adjusted downward prior to the score being posted. ESC sets a maximum number that a golfer can post on any hole, depending on the golfer's Course Handicap (not his Handicap Index). Effective Feb. 1, 1998, individual hole scores will be adjusted for handicap purposes per the following table:

Course rating and slope

Scratch Golfer:

is one whose proficiency is such that the better half of his scores will equal the equivalent of what the better half of the United States Amateur Championship field scores. This golfer can really hit it.

Bogey Golfer:

is one with a USGA Handicap Index of 17.5 to 22.4  She (21.5 to 26.4). He (she) can hit tee shots an average of 200 (150) yards and can reach a 370 (280) yard hole in two shots. This golfer hits it more than once to get it to the hole.

Course Rating:

the USGA's mark that indicates the evaluation of the playing difficulty of a course for scratch golfers. It is based on yardage and other obstacles to the extent that they affect the scoring difficulty of the scratch golfer. Example: 68.5

Bogey Rating:

the one number every golfer worse than a scratch should check before deciding which tees to play. This rating is the evaluation of the playing difficulty of a course for the bogey golfer. It is based on yardage, effective playing length and other obstacles to the extent that affect the scoring ability of the bogey golfer. To figure out this number, other than from looking at this database, the bogey golfer should take the Slope Rating, divide it by the set factor (5.381 for men, and 4.24 for women) and add that to the Course Rating. The result is a target score for the bogey player, and is a truer yardstick of the challenge that lies ahead for the particular set of tees. Example: 96.3 -( which predicts the bogey golfer's average of his ten best (out of twenty) scores would be approximately 96.3 from this particular set of tees).

Slope Rating:

the USGA's mark that indicates the measurement of the relative difficulty for the Bogey Golfer compared to the Course Rating. Slope Rating is computed from the difference between the Bogey Rating and the Course Rating. The lowest Slope Rating is 55 and the highest is 155. Example: 125