Course Handicap vs Handicap Index
These two numbers are easy to confuse, but they do different jobs. Your Handicap Index is a portable measure of your ability that travels with you between courses. Your Course Handicap is the number of strokes you actually receive on a specific tee on a specific day. Here is how they relate, the WHS formula that converts one into the other, and a worked example.
Open the Course Handicap calculatorWant the number now? The Course Handicap calculator takes your Handicap Index plus the tee’s Slope Rating, Course Rating and Par, and returns the whole-number Course Handicap using the formula below.
Handicap Index: portable and course-independent
Your Handicap Index is a single decimal number — for example 10.1 — that represents your demonstrated playing ability under the World Handicap System (WHS), governed jointly by the USGA and The R&A. It is deliberately course-independent: it is not tied to any one tee or venue. That is what makes it portable. You can carry the same Index to any WHS course in the world, and it means the same thing everywhere. But precisely because it is abstract, you cannot use an Index directly to work out how many shots you get in today’s round — you first have to translate it for the course in front of you.
Course Handicap: strokes on this tee, today
Your Course Handicap is that translation. It is a whole number that tells you how many strokes you receive when playing a specific set of tees, taking into account how hard those tees are relative to par. A player with an Index of 10.1 might have a Course Handicap of 11 from one set of tees and 13 from a longer, harder set at the same club. The Course Handicap is what you actually apply hole by hole (before any format-specific allowance) to turn your gross score into a net score.
The conversion formula
The WHS converts an Index into a Course Handicap like this:
The result is rounded to the nearest whole number. The
(Slope Rating / 113) term stretches or shrinks your Index according to how much harder
the tee is than a standard course for a bogey golfer, and the (Course Rating − Par)
term adjusts for the gap between the scratch expectation and par.
The (Course Rating − Par) term is part of the current WHS formula. It was
not in earlier versions of the Course Handicap calculation, which used only
Index × (Slope / 113). If you learned the older formula, or you are comparing against
an old chart, your Course Handicap may look different by a stroke or two even though your Index has
not changed. Always use the current formula with the Course Rating and Par for the tee you are
playing.
Playing Handicap: the last step for some formats
For many competition formats there is one further step. A Playing Handicap applies a handicap allowance to your Course Handicap:
The allowance varies by format — singles stroke play, four-ball, foursomes and other formats each have their own recommended percentage. The Playing Handicap is what actually applies in that competition, so two players with the same Course Handicap can receive different strokes depending on the format they are playing.
Worked example
Suppose your Handicap Index is 10.1, and you are playing a tee with a Slope Rating of 128, a Course Rating of 71.2, and a Par of 72:
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Handicap Index | 10.1 |
| Slope Rating | 128 |
| Course Rating | 71.2 |
| Par | 72 |
- Slope term:
10.1 × (128 / 113) = 11.44. - Rating-to-par term:
71.2 − 72 = −0.8. - Add them:
11.44 + (−0.8) = 10.64. - Round to the nearest whole number: Course Handicap 11.
So an Index of 10.1 becomes a Course Handicap of 11 from these tees. From a longer set with a higher Slope and Course Rating, the same Index would produce a higher number.
Frequently asked questions
Which number do I give when someone asks my handicap?
Usually your Handicap Index, because it is the portable figure that means the same thing everywhere. Your Course Handicap only makes sense once a specific tee is named.
Why is my Course Handicap different at each course?
Because the Slope Rating, Course Rating and Par differ between tees and venues. The formula adjusts your Index for the difficulty of the tee you are playing, so the whole number changes.
Is Course Handicap the same as Playing Handicap?
Not always. The Playing Handicap applies a format-specific handicap allowance to your Course Handicap, so in many competitions the two differ.
Related tools and reading
Course Handicap calculator
Convert your Handicap Index into a Course Handicap for any tee’s Slope, Rating and Par.
ReadHow is a golf handicap calculated?
Where the Handicap Index comes from before you convert it into a Course Handicap.
Sources
- USGA & The R&A, Rules of Handicapping — Rule 6.1 (Course Handicap calculation) and Rule 6.2 (Playing Handicap and allowances). Checked 23 Aug 2026.
- USGA, Course Rating and Slope Rating System. Checked 23 Aug 2026.