Handicapping a match without handicaps?

[Norm66]

A guy I play with is pretty consistently 10 strokes better than I am. I've got an un-official handicap of 21.3, but my buddy doesn't even have that. We're playing today and I'd like to maybe get some strokes and play an actual match just for fun. Would it be as simple as simply giving me strokes on the 10 hardest holes or am I missing something?

Thanks.

[WhiteSoxFan]

Yeah, if you think his handicap is 10 strokes better than yours, you get one stroke on the holes that the scorecard has identified as the 1-10 handicap holes.

Another "cheap 'n easy" way to estimate his handicap is to take his 2nd best round of the year. So, if his two best rounds are 86 and 88, he would be a 16.

[NM Golf]

Actually to be completely correct if he is a 16 handicap he would get a stroke on the 16 hardest holes. You, on the other hand, would get a stroke on every hole and 2 strokes on the 3 hardest holes.

People forget that, technically if a 18 plays a 10 handicap he gets 8 stokes more than the 10 handicap. But they do not come on the hardest holes because they both get a stroke on the 10 hardest holes. The additional pops come on the easiest 8 holes where the 10 handicap doesn't get a stroke.

Those of you out there remember that. Don't let people play off your handicap you are actually cheating yourself if you do.

[WhiteSoxFan]

Actually to be completely correct if he is a 16 handicap he would get a stroke on the 16 hardest holes. You, on the other hand, would get a stroke on every hole and 2 strokes on the 3 hardest holes.

Very interesting NM, never thought of it like that.

[Norm66]

Thanks guys! In our case, he consistently averages around 10 strokes less than me so I arbitrarily assign him a 10 handicap. That means we each get a stroke on the 10 hardest holes. Those will cancel out so that leaves 10 strokes I get on the holes listed 11-18 and 1 stroke on the first and second hardest. Does that sound right?

[wachesawgolfer]

[
Another "cheap 'n easy" way to estimate his handicap is to take his 2nd best round of the year. So, if his two best rounds are 86 and 88, he would be a 16.[/QUOTE]

That works only if your always on the same course. The ratings and slope can vary a lot on courses. One of the best courses in NJ has a slope of 156, while others course go down to the low 100s. Not apples to apples if the courses vary.

[WhiteSoxFan]

[

I totally agree, and it obviously is not a very accurate way to determine a handicap. Not even close. I read it somewhere, (I think here) and it is just an easy way for someone who has no clue whatsoever what their handicap is to VERY roughly ballpark what it might be.

[iacas]

People forget that, technically if a 18 plays a 10 handicap he gets 8 stokes more than the 10 handicap. But they do not come on the hardest holes because they both get a stroke on the 10 hardest holes. The additional pops come on the easiest 8 holes where the 10 handicap doesn't get a stroke.

That's a nice way to think about it, but it's wrong when you're playing a match against someone (as you've implied).

Read up at usga.org.

In a singles match, the lower-handicap player plays at scratch and the other player receives the full difference between their Course Handicaps. To illustrate, suppose that Uncle Snoopy and Woodstock play a match. From the middle tees, Uncle Snoopy has a Course Handicap of 13, while Woodstock's is 20. Uncle Snoopy plays at scratch; Woodstock receives seven strokes from Uncle Snoopy (20-13 = 7).

It later goes on to point out that Woodstock gets them on the holes rated 1-7.

This makes sense. If a 17 and an 18 play each other, the 18 doesn't get the stroke on the easiest ranked hole on the course. Obviously if you're playing a net stroke-play tournament, everyone gets their full handicap (or 90% depending on the tournament setup). This only applies when you're setting up strokes based on the lowest handicap.

[Norm66]

ok, so I did it backwards. I still won, but it had more to do with my buddy's bad back (he shot 40 on the front and 54 on the back when his back tightened up on him) than the strokes. Thanks guys.