When are you not considered high handicap

[Dent]

I consider anything under 15 not high.

[$2 Nassau]

Just curious, but if someone says "not sure his exact index, but he's a mid handicapper." What does that mean exactly?

I guess this is how I would group them, if I had to:

Low Handicapper: Single digits, 9.9 or less
Mid Handicapper: 10.0 - 20.0
High Handicapper: 20.1 +

Your thoughts?

[jaragon126]

I agree with you.

[FlopShotArtist]

I agree with you, but there really is no way to do that. 10 to 20 is a HUGE difference.

[DJYoshi]

Just curious, but if someone says "not sure his exact index, but he's a mid handicapper." What does that mean exactly?

unfortunately, at around 10's we're still viewed as mid-level

0-5 low 6 - 15 - mid 15+ is high at least that's what a lot of people feel. i know i don't shoot as well as a lot of low handi's and a 3-way split is too broad so i'd say 1 - 5 - low 6 - 9 - low mid 10 - 15 - mid 16 - 19 - mid/high 20+ - high

[bcp]

I didn't read all the posts in this thread, but my opinion is:
low <10
mid 10-17
high 18+

[ERC7.5]

unfortunately, at around 10's we're still viewed as mid-level

DJ...I took a look at your HDCP and noticed that you've missed some folks! Including yourself!

How about this: 1 - 5 - low 5 - 10 - low mid 10 - 15 - mid 15 - 20 - mid/high 20+ - high j/k

[sonicblue]

Someone at a 6 is still shooting in the 70s quite a bit, if not most of the time. That would not be the same as someone shooting 90. IMHO at least.

Remember, your handicap is a measure of your POTENTIAL. It's the average of the best 10 of your last 20 rounds, so roughly 5 rounds are at or better than your index, and 15 are at or worse. If the handicap used MEDIAN instead of average, that would be exactly true; as it is, you really need the anti-handicap to get a better feel for the distribution.

As a ballpark, say it's a par 72 and rated 72 as well, with average slope of 113 (which is a somewhat easy course). A 6 handicap would shoot 78 only 25% of the time. EDIT: IMO, you need several levels to describe the full gamut. The quality of the lower levels are separated by just a few strokes (an 8, 5 and 2 are all very different people - depending on anti-handicaps). To answer the question, though, I think the easiest distinction is simply to say an 18 or over is high. I thnk that qualifies as "high." Below that, you're at least contending that the person could play at least one hole straight up against a scratch player.

[Norm3333]

I don't consider myself to be a "low-handicapper", but I do shoot in the low 80s and touch the high 70s about every 4th round. So, not sure how to classify myself. If I had a <5 handicap I would proclaim myself to be a low-handicapper, but not at 9.7.

However, there are some great points about the spread. I would not consider myself in the same level as someone that shoots 90. But, someone else would say we were both mid-handicappers.

Love the conversation though.

[Slim 11]

I would say that a low handicap is under 10, because then you can say things like, "I'm a single digit handicap."
1-3 is bordering on scratch, so I would almost take that out of the equation.
10-15 is mid handicap, slightly below the actual average handicap.
Since tha average golf score (all golfers, not just us serious people who keep stats and handicaps) is over 100, I would give 16-20 handicappers a mid/high designation. 20+ is high.
The past year I have varied between 12 and 14 but I play with a guy over 20 that still manages to take me on some days, he has a good round and I have a mid to bad one.

[sabram]

I guess this is how I would group them, if I had to: Low Handicapper: Single digits, 9.9 or less Mid Handicapper: 10.0 - 20.0 High Handicapper: 20.1 + Your thoughts?

I didn't read all the posts in this thread, but my opinion is: low <10 mid 10-17 high 18+

I think these two posts have it right.

I also think you have to base it on handicap rather than typical scores. I play on a prettyy tough course where players who score in the 90's are pretty decent and are able to shoot in the 80's on other courses.