Although there are enjoyable pairs and team formats in golf, the sport is inherently a solitary one. It’s you with sticks and a ball versus the golf course or an opponent on the golf course. Whether ...

This essay (split into two parts) is a follow-up to a recent article that detailed my first time shooting an even par round. My first even-par round occurred in July of 2022, giving me a whole ...

In the golf equipment world, drivers are the stars of the show. Everyone wants to hit the ball farther and straighter, and with exotic materials like titanium, carbon fiber and tungsten used to make ...

There’s an adage in journalism that says if both sides of a complicated issue are unhappy with a story, that must mean it was fair. This might best summarize the World Handicap System as well. There ...

Welcome to Play Smart, a regular GOLF.com game-improvement column that will help you play smarter, better golf. Look, I’m not going to stand up here on a soapbox and profess that every golfer who ...

I just started playing and am not sure what a Handicap Index is. A Handicap Index® is a portable number that measures your demonstrated ability; for example, 15.2. The maximum Handicap Index is 54.0 ...

Developed by The R&A and USGA, the World Handicap System (WHS) represents a major shift in handicapping that has united six handicapping bodies across the globe under one standardised system. WHS ...

The Long Game tracks the Handicap Index progress of four Golf Digest editors of different abilities throughout the 2024 golf season. Catch up on last month’s story. A month into this season-long ...

The 25-handicap was sweating. The 25-handicap was playing her club tournament, yes. But the 25-handicap was a 25-handicap playing her club tournament, and the 25-handicap darn near needed a towel to ...

Can I still post a score if I don’t finish my round? Sometimes a round doesn’t go the distance – whether it’s due to weather, fading daylight or a four-ball match that wraps up early. However, you can ...

Educational campaign launched in Great Britain and Ireland as clubs are urged to call out offenders Golfers who “manipulate” handicaps through the use of general play scores within the World Handicap ...

Would allowing ‘society handicaps’ ease the World Handicap System tension? Tom Irwin got on his soapbox in an episode of The ...