Visit a good professional. Most golf courses have resident golf professionals who can help you improve your game. If you are constantly struggling with multiple areas in your game and have no idea how to improve it, then help from these golf professionals can prove to be very beneficial. You can go to the golf course a couple of times a week and practice different parts of your game under the guidance of the pro. If you have time available, go to the driving range first and then practice putting on the greens. Once you are aware of your most pressing weaknesses, spend the majority of your practice time in that particular area. But you can’t neglect the rest of your game.

Spend time reading golf magazines. If you aren’t able to (or don’t want to) spend money on golf professionals and driving range balls then you can spend time reading different golf magazines to reduce your handicap over the space of six months or so. These magazines provide tips on various different areas ranging from driving to putting. You can find these magazines at your local bookstore or at the local library.

Practice shots within 120 yards. The shots inside 120 yards are critical to achieving a good golf score. If you’re going to improve your handicap, you have to master these short distance shots. You should also practice wedge shots from different distances. Spend time on the practice greens. Don’t forget, sand shots from the bunker can make or break your game. You can pray to never hit into the bunker, but you should practice being able to hit out of them.

Make good use of the latest equipment. Using high-quality up-to-date golf equipment can also play a role in lowering your golf handicap. Today’s technologically advanced balls and clubs can reliably increase your yardage on every shot. As a general rule of thumb, you should consider getting new clubs every five years.

Slow down your swing. Stop trying so hard to swing the club and concentrate on making it effortless. It’s important to let the club do most of the work. Trying to force distance out of the club almost always leads to bad swings and poor results. A slower backswing can also make a big difference in how you contact the ball. This will naturally increase your club head speed, ultimately leading to an improved golf handicap.

The lower your handicap, the better golfer you are considered to be. You can calculate your golf handicap with the help of index calculators. Some of these are even available for free. But a majority of players prefer to have an understanding of the inner workings of handicap calculation and stay away from using an index calculator. Let’s take a look at the steps for coming up with a rough handicap.

Step One: Calculate your Differential

First, take your adjusted gross score and subtract the course rating, which should be displayed on your scorecard. The adjusted gross score is your final 18 hole score which is adjusted to include conceded strokes, unfinished holes, penalties and holes which were not played. The derived course rating is presented in the form of a decimal number (e.g., 71.5). The rating represents the playing difficulty of a course in normal weather conditions. If you played from the yellow tees or the white tees then use the corresponding course rating number for those. The result you get at this point is known as the differential.

Step Two: Find your Adjusted Differential

Divide your calculated differential by the slope of the tees from which you played and then multiply the answer by 113. This resulting figure is known as the adjusted differential. The slope rating is the USGA’s way of telling how difficult a particular course or hole is compared to the average course and hole at an average golf course.

Step Three: Calculate Your Handicap Index

For this step, you need to have at least 12 adjusted differentials to work from. Find the lowest 10 of your last 20 adjusted differentials. Add them up and multiply the sum by 96 percent (96%). Take the answer you get, divide it by 10 and then round to the nearest whole number. This (finally) is your handicap index.

What Does It Mean?

If you want to be a competitive golfer, then your golf handicap should be as close to zero as possible. Suppose you have a handicap of 25 on a normal day, then a pro golfer will clobber you by around 25 strokes. But don’t let a high handicap discourage you. Let it motivate you to improve your game.

By the way, a zero handicap means you have earned the right to be called a scratch golfer.