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Do you feel your handicap accurately reflects your ability?

I think we have to remember that a HC (as most know) is ones potential and that's where the difference is. I think a handicap is a tad more accurate (or reasonable) for the better and more consistent player as he would (generally speaking) play with a closer spread in his scores from round to round. In those cases I think its a better reflection of ones ability. But with the higher cap player, the higher the spread generally speaking in round to round scoring so then the HC would (for him) tend to seem a tad lower then he may deserve or feel like he deserves. In those cases (such as myself) I think it reflects better daily ability than what the player is. But again its all because its based on potential so it really only reflects his potential and not his daily ability. So I think its a bit more fitting on the better players vs the lessor abled ones.
 
rollin said:
I think we have to remember that a HC (as most know) is ones potential and that's where the difference is. I think a handicap is a tad more accurate (or reasonable) for the better and more consistent player as he would (generally speaking) play with a closer spread in his scores from round to round. In those cases I think its a better reflection of ones ability. But with the higher cap player, the higher the spread generally speaking in round to round scoring so then the HC would (for him) tend to seem a tad lower then he may deserve or feel like he deserves. In those cases (such as myself) I think it reflects better ability than what the player is. But again its all because its based on potential.
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I think this is a great point. For someone like me who only gets to play half the year it is it is always interesting. I basically feel like a 13-15 player at the start of the season and can be a 9 or 10 at the end of the year.
 
This is a great question, and my answer is that I'm really not sure. The local muni I regularly play is 6200 yards and a 124 slope. I usually shoot high 90's. Sometime I play a different nearby course, its 6600 yards from the mid tees and 137 slope. I still shoot mid to high 90's. If I played that course more often, my handicap would be lower, and I don't know my ability is really any different
 
I think my handicap has been a good indication of how bad I have been playing lately
 
Howzat said:
Curious as to everyone's thoughts on this. I hear a lot of people say things on the internet like "I am a mid/higher handicapper but have players irons because my iron game isn't the issue". Do you feel you handicap is a decent indicator of your ability.
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My handicap does what it's supposed to do, it reflects my potential.

What holds you back from a lower index? Can you really be a high handicap golfer but have the iron play of a scratch golfer?
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No. I don't care who you are, you cannot play irons like a scratch player and have a bogey or higher handicap.
 
I guess because i am always striving to be better i feel my HC is too low i am at an 8.9 but feel as though it should be a 12
 
Fourputt said:
My handicap does what it's supposed to do, it reflects my potential.

No. I don't care who you are, you cannot play irons like a scratch player and have a bogey or higher handicap.
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This pretty much says it for me. Unless you manipulate your scores, my handicap is how I play. And if you had the iron play of a scratch player, you'd throw the devil woods in the trunk and be a low single digit.
I think a lot of people confuse "I hit one of 5 shots like a scratch player" with having the iron play of a scratch. Consistency counts.
 
My short game and putting is what is holding me back from scratch.

currently a 2.8 index
 
It is golf and most golfers are inconsistent. I don't really know what my handicap would be? I normally score in the low to mid 80s so i thought i was around a 10.but Just this weekend I was -1 on the front and +8 on the back so what is my potential who knows lol

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I would say it is pretty accurate for the home course. I am trying to get more travel courses in--both for experience and improving the game for any style of course.
 
Ability? Interesting. My handicap represents my limited time to practice and play. My ability, somewhere under all this fleshyness is the remnants of a very athletic youth - can I get back there? Don't know, I'm working on it though.
 
I would say it accurately depicts my game, I try and stay away from the course closest to me because I believe it plays pretty easy and when I post a good score from there it lowers my handicap more than it should. That being said I am working on having a good traveling handicap and the best score I have posted this year was in the second hardest course I have played which made me extremely happy.
 
Wow.... Several questions.

Yes. Humility. Yes.
 
jmatt said:
This pretty much says it for me. Unless you manipulate your scores, my handicap is how I play.
.
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But "Jmatt" your handicap is not how you play and that's what I meant earlier. It is how your capable of playing on your best rounds. Its your potential. And it should be because that's what makes it fair when one person has to give another person strokes. "How you play" round in and round out is not truly reflected in your cap especially for the lessor ability and less consistent player. In a sense one can argue its actually a bit exaggerated. But with that said its all we have to go on so it is what it is.
 
A player who shoots 80 twenty times in a row will have the same handicap as a player who shoots 80 ten times, and 100 ten times. Therefore a handicap isn't necessarily a pure reflection of ones game.

My cap is way lower than it should be. I have the long game of a 20 handicap, the short game of a 4, and a home course I like with a high rating/slope.
 
Martsy said:
This is a great question, and my answer is that I'm really not sure. The local muni I regularly play is 6200 yards and a 124 slope. I usually shoot high 90's. Sometime I play a different nearby course, its 6600 yards from the mid tees and 137 slope. I still shoot mid to high 90's. If I played that course more often, my handicap would be lower, and I don't know my ability is really any different
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There a couple things with this imo. Firstly I know what you mean about different courses and/or different tees. I can shoot very similar at my locals from whites or blues. And that is because it just depends what areas within ones game one struggles and that may not be a distance struggle but may be from any other parts. That's also why tee it forward shouldn't imo be based strongly on handicap but that's another topic all together:)
But also the course rating system itself is certainly not without flaw. Its not perfect at all but its all we got.
 
Great question! Thanks.

I'm convinced that handicap certainly doesn't measure potential, and it is basically designed to give parity to golf on different levels of amateur club play. It reflects the results of my overall efforts for a measured time/# of rounds. As I trend toward a 17 hdcap, I can have a bad day a shoot high 90s or a good day a shoot high 70s. Thus, I have a handicap because it's required for my club tourneys, but I am more interested in my average trending scores. Right now that's in the low 80s. Some day I would like it to be in the high to mid 70's. And.... I'd love to shoot my age before I reach my 80s and 90s.
 
#Cookie said:
My handicap is currently at 11.8 and accurately reflects me for stroke play. I'll have a slew of pars, 5 bogies and then 3 or 4 doubles on stupid blowup holes.

IF I can get off the tee at a 60% or higher clip, I should be at a 9 or so because irons and short game are solid.

But I have the potential to shoot 77 or 88 right now so my handicap speaks the truth at this time.
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I am the opposite. I am a 77% fairways a round. Short game is letting me down. It is very frustrating seeing most greens from the fairway and bogeying most. Doubles are a plague. I, too should be single digit handicap.

it is my goal this year to be 9 or better.

Cookie, we need to enter scrambles together
 
I feel like I could be lower, but different facets of my game show up at different times and I lack the consistency of low handicappers. There's always a reason I shoot poorly, and it's rarely the same reason, but until I get rid of most of the reasons, I'm not going to see the handicap I want to see.
 
I feel like my handicap is just now getting back to where it represents who I am. I have always felt I was the best 3 handicap on the planet that was very consistent and just had that round or two that kept the handicap up. This spring I have had it moving in the right direction and feel it is a true representation of my game right now


Proud Member of #TeamParadise
 
I feel my cap is pretty fair as a representation of my potential. I consider there to be 4 main parts of the game: driving, iron shots, pitching, and putting. On any given day if I've got 2 of those going I"m likely to shoot around my cap number. Days where I've got all 4 going I can threaten par, and days with none I can threaten 90 easily. I'd say 1 of 3 rounds I've got at least half my game going pretty well, so I score well enough to keep my cap where it is. Though if you were to take my average of my last 20 and not just the best 10 of 20, I bet my factor would go up by at least 5 strokes.
 
I think it accurately reflects my game at this point. I think I'm capable and have the potential for a lower handicap if I had a little more time and focus to put into my game.
 
Put simply...yup. Just not able to put an entire game together for a full round.
 
My handicap is 4.9 right now, lowest it's ever been. I think my handicap accurate indicates my potential, not necessarily my overall ability per say. These last couple seasons I have been able to shoot my handicap much more frequently than ever before, that indicates that I'm a legit 5 'cap in my opinion.

What is holding me back from going even lower is a more consistent short game, when I'm on I can go low (close to scratch) but when I'm off my wedges/putter isn't always there to bail me out.... Sometimes absolutely but not always.
 
mine has been consistently dropping as I work on different parts of my game. The one thing that hasn't improved at all though, is the fact that frustration and a lack of self-confidence will ruin even my best rounds. My HCP accurately reflects what my score is likely to be at the end of the round, but not necessarily the shots I can hit or the equipment I can play. If I can ever figure out how to get out of my own way, I might be halfway decent at this frustrating game.
 
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