When the USGA, R&A and several other international governing bodies of golf introduced the World Handicap System in 2020, a major goal for the initiative was inclusivity. The minds behind all the math wanted more people around the world to have handicaps while ensuring those handicaps and entered scores were more valid.
Fast forward to 2023 — thanks in part to a major uptick in golf participation due to the COVID-19 pandemic — and it’s clear the World Handicap System has hit a bullseye in regards to increasing inclusivity.
The number of golfers with an active handicap in the U.S. has surged nearly 17 percent in recent years from 2,596,357 in 2020 to 3,026,528 in 2022, the USGA has reported. It was the first time the Golf Handicap Information Network (GHIN) has surpassed 3 million participants, as nearly 420,000 players established handicaps for the first time in 2022.
The USGA has accomplished these gains in several ways, said Steven Edmondson, the ruling body’s managing director of handicapping and course rating. He said the upticks are largely a reflection of the ease in obtaining a handicap, the relative simplicity of maintaining a handicap online, the speed with which a handicap is available and the increased inclusion of nine-hole rounds as many player’s work-from-home arrangements allow them to get out for a quick game.
And most importantly for all those new golfers since the pandemic took off in 2020, the USGA has stressed that any golfer is eligible to have a handicap. Handicaps used to max at 36.4 for men and 40.4 for women, but those caps have been raised to 54 for both men and women in a move to increase inclusivity for all golfers.
“One of the biggest myths … is that I’ve got to be a good player to have a handicap,” Edmondson said. New and frequently intimidated players might say they only need a handicap if they’re playing competitions, “and it’s just not true. Those are the things we’re trying to message about and overcome.”
In fact, the average handicaps for men and women have risen in recent years as more new players join the GHIN system. The overall average handicap for male players is 14.0, while the average for players who joined the system in 2022 was 15.6. For women, the average handicap is 27.9, while the average for players who joined in 2022 was 31.7. This higher average reflects that less-experienced players — many who picked up the sport since COVID — have joined the ranks of those who possess an official handicap. For the USGA, this is a good thing and a key reflection that its inclusivity goals are being achieved.
“We’re seeing that handicap indexes for new golfers are slightly higher, which is the right thing,” Edmondson said. “The handicap system is meant to equalize any of us regardless of our ability level. So we’re starting to see that uptick, which is very encouraging.”
After eight years of research into handicaps, the USGA in 2020 joined with the R&A and several other bodies to create one handicap system that simplified international play and standardized handicaps across the globe. Part of this was removing roadblocks for players who want a handicap but aren’t members of private clubs.
The USGA works with various golf associations to provide the opportunity to obtain a GHIN handicap. Golfers who are not members of a club can purchase a handicap through various state golf associations or other organizations for prices typically ranging from $40 to $50, Edmondson said, depending on the player’s location and various membership benefits offered as part of a handicap sales package. Players can then easily enter their scores via an app, allowing them access anywhere. That’s in contrast to years past, when players needed to join a club — a roadblock for many public-access players.
“We’re just trying to make it easy,” Edmondson said.
Players also used to need five 18-hole scores to establish a handicap, which could take months for many casual players. Now the system requires just 54 holes of any combination of nine-hole or 18-hole rounds. Handicap indexes are also calculated daily now instead of the old bi-weekly system.
“You’re seeing the number of golfers that are joining now, they’re establishing a handicap index within two or three days on average,” Edmondson said. “Because it is easy.”
Upcoming changes to how nine-hole scores are calculated also will be important, Edmondson said. In the past, players who frequently play nine-hole rounds had to play two of them, then their scores would be combined to create an 18-hole equivalent. Starting in 2024, the handicap system will use an algorithm to create an 18-hole equivalent for each nine-hole round, making each round count on its own. That’s a bonus for players trying to figure out how they did on any given day, Edmondson said.
The focus on nine-hole rounds is especially important as those loops have grown in frequency, particularly since the pandemic started and new players have had time to get out for just a few hours. For male players who registered for a handicap for the first time in 2022, 21.7 percent of their rounds were nine-hole loops, versus 13.9 percent for more experienced male players who already had established handicaps. That focus on nine-hole rounds is even more important for new women players. In 2022, 45.7 percent of the rounds played by women new to the handicap system were nine-hole loops, versus 28 percent for women who had established handicaps prior to 2022.
The focus on women is especially important as their ranks among the handicap system continue to swell. The total number of U.S. women to have official handicaps grew nearly 17 percent from 2020 to 2022, going from 517,554 to 603,304. Women continue to represent about 20 percent of all U.S. handicaps. Edmondson said he thinks there’s room for continued improvement on that front, but overall the USGA is excited to see their numbers grow in the handicap system.
“I think it’s all in our messaging in some of the programming that we’re trying to do,” Edmondson said. “ … I think we have to now start to uncover how to make sure that we continue an an uptick with women in the game.”
Another change to expect in 2024 will be the inclusion of more par-3 courses in the rating system. Edmondson said the current course rating system uses a benchmark of 4,800 minimum yards for inclusion in the handicapping system, and some executive course adjustments can get down to 3,000 yards. He said the USGA has a target of 1,500 yards for courses to be included in the system starting in 2024, potentially allowing the inclusion of handicaps at many more of the 600-plus par-3 courses in the U.S. while welcoming even more golfers who tend to play non-traditional layouts. Research is ongoing on how to adjust for the shorter courses.
“It works and we’re excited about this,” Edmondson said. “… I think that’s going to be a trend as we continue to look into the future, and we just want to be ready for them.”
If all this sounds like regulatory and statistical droning, just know that at its core the handicap system is important because it allows players to track their progress and compete against friends on a more-level playing game, which is one of the great things about golf.
“The rules of handicapping have been around for over 100 years, and it’s always had the same purpose,” Edmondson said. “And that is truly to provide greater enjoyment for the game of golf.”
All the tracking also allows for some fun stats from 2022, courtesy of the USGA:
75,560,694 rounds were posted for handicap purposes.
11,913,158 nine-hole rounds were posted in the handicapping system in 2022, up from 11,534,865 in 2021.
In all, nine-hole rounds made up 15 percent of total rounds entered into the handicapping system in 2022.
The most handicapping rounds played by a man in 2022 was 541 total, up from 528 in 2021.
A woman logged in 414 handicapping rounds in 2022, up from a high of 325 in 2021.
Florida had the most handicapping scores logged in 2022 with 10,022,137. The Sunshine State was followed by California at 9,027,345; Texas at 3,633,425; Arizona at 3,464,905; and North Carolina with 3,134,603.
