USGA Local Handicap Administration and WHS Statistics

Allied Golf Association (AGA)

AGAs, in collaboration with the USGA, provide many services and support for players, golf clubs, and other stakeholders in their territories. This includes:

  • Handicap administration in support of the World Handicap System,
  • Ensuring completion of the club authorization assessment,
  • Providing educational opportunities to meet club authorization requirements,
  • Providing oversight of the USGA/AGA GC,
  • Providing Course Rating services,
  • Administering the Rules of Golf and the Rules of Amateur Status,
  • Recruiting and training volunteers,
  • Conducting AGA championships and USGA Championship qualifiers, and
  • Developing community initiatives and promoting those community initiatives.

The AGA is the body under which your golf club sits and should be consulted as needed for guidance.

USGA Centralized Computation Service

The USGA issues a Handicap Index for all players within the United States and performs all calculations exclusively within its Centralized Computation Service. All players with a Handicap Index within the United States are a part of the centralized service and can be accessed for peer review purposes by the Handicap Committee. Each player is assigned a unique Handicap ID that can be used to access their scoring record as well as verification by others involved in peer review.

A player who belongs to more than one golf club within the USGA Centralized Computation Service must register as a multi-member with a single scoring record. If it is determined a player has multiple profiles within the centralized service, the Handicap Committee should contact its AGA to have the scoring records merged.

Handicap ID

The Handicap ID refers to the unique identification number assigned to each individual player in the USGA Centralized Computation Service. The Handicap ID should be used by the player when entering a competition for Handicap Index verification. The club official can use this number to search the USGA Centralized Computation Service to manage the player’s membership or verify the Handicap Index. It should be the primary identifier for the player with the descriptor referenced with secondary emphasis. Example: Handicap ID (MGA#).

Score Frequency/Probability Table

The following table depicts odds of a player shooting a net score differential based on their Handicap Index. It is a helpful resource to the Handicap Committee during their review of a player.

A net score differential is the score differential minus the player's Handicap Index.

Net Score Differential Less Than 0.0 0.0-4.9 5.0-9.9 10.0-14.9 15.0-19.9 20.0-24.9 25.0-29.9 30.0-34.9 35.0-39.9
3 1.8 1.8 1.9 2.0 2.1 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4
2 2.4 2.5 2.5 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 2.9
1 3.6 3.6 3.6 3.6 3.5 3.5 3.5 3.5 3.5
0 5.9 5.5 5.3 5.2 5.1 5.0 5.0 4.8 4.6
-1 11.1 9.7 8.9 8.2 7.7 7.4 7.1 6.6 6.0
-2 23.0 18.5 16.1 13.8 12.4 11.3 10.5 9.4 8.2
-3 53.5 38.5 31.2 24.7 21.1 18.0 16.0 13.7 11.3
-4 139.8 87.1 64.7 46.9 37.3 29.8 25.1 20.4 16.1
-5 376.5 210.9 140.1 93.3 68.6 51.2 40.4 31.0 23.1
-6 986.8 535.7 317.4 191.5 130.5 89.9 66.5 47.9 33.6
-7 2247.9 1282.2 704.6 391.4 251.2 161.8 110.5 74.5 48.8
-8 6362.8 3361.9 1580.6 743.0 451.2 265.7 170.1 109.3 67.1
-9 13861.8 8202.6 3609.9 1362.7 828.0 449.0 264.2 159.8 94.0
-10 22831.3 15812.0 7186.6 2204.6 1431.9 715.9 398.0 226.6 127.7
-11 32344.3 28561.4 13166.4 3153.5 2202.2 1061.6 559.8 299.6 164.5
-12 58219.8 44968.9 21133.7 4085.7 3157.2 1476.7 748.1 380.5 205.1

Note 1: For competitions, the recommended allowance applied to the Course Handicap for the format of play and field size/makeup creates equity in formats where players/teams may have a better chance of shooting lower scores.

Note 2: There is an insufficient volume of scoring data for Handicap ranges above 40.0 to provide a statistically meaningful comparison, therefore omitted from this table.

 

WHS Statistics

Statistics are available on USGA.org, including the average Handicap Index as well as Handicap Index distribution charts for all players. Click here to view the stats page.