Golf ScoutCourse rating and slope rating explained
Course rating is the score a scratch golfer is expected to shoot from a set of tees, such as 71.2. Slope rating, from 55 to 155 with 113 as standard, says how much harder those tees play for a bogey golfer than for a scratch golfer. Together they turn your Handicap Index into strokes on the day, and turn your score into a score differential.
Course rating: the scratch golfer's score
The R&A defines course rating as an indication of how difficult a course is for a scratch player (Handicap Index 0.0) in normal course and weather conditions. In practice it's the score a scratch golfer would expect to shoot on a good day, written to one decimal place, such as 71.2. Every set of tees has its own rating, so the whites and yellows at the same club will differ.
Course rating isn't par. A par-72 course with a rating of 74.5 is harder than par suggests for a good player; one rated 68.4 is easier.
Slope rating: how much harder it is for everyone else
Slope rating measures the relative difficulty of the tees for golfers who aren't scratch. Raters also work out a bogey rating: the expected score of a bogey player, which the rules put at a Handicap Index of about 20 for men and 24 for women. The gap between bogey rating and course rating sets the slope. The USGA gives the sum: bogey rating minus course rating, multiplied by 5.381 for men or 4.240 for women.
Slope runs from 55 to 155, and 113 is standard. A high slope means the course punishes the higher handicapper much more than the scratch player: think forced carries, thick rough and narrow fairways. A low slope means the difficulty is fairly even across abilities.
How courses are rated
Ratings come from your national body: England Golf, Scottish Golf, Wales Golf or Golf Ireland in Britain and Ireland. Under the Rules of Handicapping, raters measure each hole and adjust it to an effective playing length for roll, wind, elevation change, altitude, doglegs and forced lay-ups. They then score ten obstacle factors for both the scratch and the bogey golfer:
- topography, fairway width and green target;
- recoverability and rough, bunkers, crossing obstacles and lateral obstacles;
- trees, the green surface, and psychology (how intimidating it all is).
The USGA says each obstacle is scored from 0 to 10, and that raters assume a scratch golfer's tee shot goes about 250 yards at sea level. Courses are rated when new, re-rated within five years, and then at least every ten years or after permanent changes.
What the numbers do to your handicap
Both numbers feed the two sums at the heart of the World Handicap System:
- Course handicap = Handicap Index × slope ÷ 113 + (course rating − par). This is how many strokes you get from those tees. Our guide to course handicap and Handicap Index goes through it.
- Score differential = 113 ÷ slope × (adjusted gross score − course rating − PCC). This is how a round goes on your record. See score differentials explained.
Here are three example sets of tees, the course handicap for three Handicap Indexes, and the differential a score of 90 would earn:
| Tees | Rating | Slope | Index 5 | Index 15 | Index 25 | 90 scores |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short, open parkland | 68.4 | 112 | 3 | 13 | 23 | 21.8 |
| Average club course | 71.2 | 128 | 5 | 16 | 28 | 16.6 |
| Long championship tees | 74.5 | 140 | 9 | 21 | 33 | 12.5 |
Example ratings. The real ones are on each club's scorecard and usually on a board by the first tee.
The same 90 is a much better round off the championship tees, and the differential reflects it. Notice too that slope matters more the higher your index: from the easiest tees to the hardest, the 5 handicapper gains 6 strokes and the 25 handicapper 10.
Is a higher slope always a harder course?
No. The USGA points out that slope only describes difficulty relative to the course rating, so it isn't comparable on its own. Compare tees rated 70.0 with a slope of 125 against tees rated 67.0 with a slope of 135, both par 72. A golfer off 20 gets 20 strokes on the first and 19 on the second, even though the second has the higher slope, because its course rating is so much lower. To compare courses, look at the course rating first.
Is slope about hills?
No. Slope rating has nothing to do with how hilly a course is. Elevation change is one of the things raters allow for in a hole's effective length, but "slope" is just the name for how steeply difficulty rises with handicap.
Where to find a course's rating and slope
Check the scorecard, the board by the first tee, or your national body's app, which can also work out your course handicap for any set of tees. If you just want the number of strokes, put the rating, slope and par into the handicap calculator.
Related guides
- How do I check my golf handicap?
- How many rounds do you need for a handicap?
- Do 9-hole scores count for your handicap?
Sources
Golf Scout scans a course's scorecard for its par, stroke index, yardages, rating and slope, and uses them for your handicap estimate. Get Golf Scout on the App Store, free for iPhone and Apple Watch.