Handicaps

[dale]

Anyone know what the highest handicap is that a person can have ? Shouldn't they just make you quit at a certain point ? Can you be like a 50.....(if you are- I need you as a team-mate).

[iacas]

Well, the highest the USGA really cares to distinguish is "40+" as quoted at the bottom of this article .

Perhaps they simply rely on the fact that most golfers who are 40+ probably don't bother to keep track of their handicap?

Most of the tournaments I've seen prohibit handicaps of more than a certain number (three entry forms I have handy say 18, 27, and 36 actually, on the spot). Their thinking may be that if someone gets three strokes on a hole, and they hit a few "lucky" shots, it would be awfully easy for that person to net an eagle or something too easily.

Plus, you know, obvious sandbagging.

[Mr_Slice]

I sure hope there isn't a limit, Dale. I'm in the +35 range right now and if I ever shoot under 100 I think I'll die of a heart attack. To me it's actually more fun just to have a way of tracking your progress on different courses you play via websites like Yahoo's Handicap Tracker than it is to worry about how good or, more appropriately, how bad I am.

[Nosevi]

Over here in the UK the girls can't have a handicap over 36, guys the maximum is 28. If you don't make that you don't get a handicap, so can't be in competitions etc.

Bit daft imo, you're as good as you are and everyone should just have a handicap that reflects their ability whatever that may be. There again our handicap system is pretty daft anyway and the fact that things like this seem to be there merely to encourage elitism and keep what the powers that be see as the 'riff raff' off the course has stopped surprising me now.

[DaveP043]

http://www.usga.org/handicapfaq/handicap_answer.asp?FAQidx=5

Max Handicap Index for men is 36.4, for women is 40.4.

[disaster]

In Germany you can actually be as bad as -54 ;)