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Course Handicap

Course Handicap

Course Handicap

An index of the number of strokes a player should subtract or add from his golf score so that golfers of different skill levels can play the same course comparably. The course handicap is calculated based on the difficulty of the course and the skill of the golfer.

The difficulty of the course is expressed in an average score that high performing golfers — scratch golfers — would be expected to achieve on the course. The course handicap also takes into account the slope rating — an indication of how difficult the course is for bogey players, those who tend to score one stroke above par on a given hole. The slope rating was added in the 1980s, and is seen as a refinement to the course handicap calculation (Kelley, about.com).

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Course Handicap

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