how good is a scratch golfer
What does it mean to be a scratch golfer?
A scratch golfer, according to the United States Golf Association Handicap Manual, is a player that can play to a Course Handicap of 0.0 on any rated golf course. In simpler terms, a scratch golfer is a player that will shoot around par or better for any course they play. Scratch golfers account for just under two percent of the golfing population.
How far can a scratch golfer hit?
A male scratch golfer, for rating purposes, can hit tee shots an average of 250 yards and can reach a 470-yard hole in two shots at sea level. A female scratch golfer, for rating purposes, can hit tee shots an average of 210 yards and can reach a 400-yard hole in two shots at sea level. What do those for rating purposes references mean?
How difficult is it to attain scratch level golf?
Attaining scratch level is very difficult. According to the US Golf Association, only 2% of golfers can attain a handicap of zero and below. This simply means that only two out of every 100 players are scratch golfers. Nevertheless, these statistics do not mean that you cannot achieve scratch level and be among the 2% of the best golf players.
What is the difference between a 0 handicap and a scratch golfer?
While a 0 handicap is likely what’s most commonly thought of when the term Scratch Golfer is used, the United States Golf Association (USGA) has a stricter definition. A scratch golfer is a player who can play to a Course Handicap of zero on any and all rated golf courses.
How Many Golfers are Good Enough to Be Called ‘Scratch’?
A ‘scratch golfer’ is one who can play to a zero course handicap - a very good golfer, in other words. Mark Runnacles/Getty Images
How many yards can a scratch golfer hit?
A male scratch golfer, for rating purposes, can hit tee shots an average of 250 yards and can reach a 470-yard hole in two shots at sea level.
Why is scratch golf important?
Those golfers have different playing abilities, hit the ball different distances, and therefore will face different challenges on the same golf course. So in this usage, "scratch golfer" is an important part of how a golf course gets rated. But golfers at large aren’t thinking about that meaning of the term. When golfers say "scratch golfer," it …
What is a scratch golfer?
In general usage of the term, a "scratch golfer" is a golfer who typically shoots at or better than par. When a golfer is referred to as a "scratch golfer," you can be sure of one thing: That person is a very good golfer.
What Is the Origin of the Term ‘Scratch’ Golfer?
The origin of the term scratch to describe a golfer that shoots par or better is a bit obscure. However, one solid explanation for the use of the term ‘scratch’ comes from running races. To make races more exciting, faster runners would be told to start behind the scratch, or line on the ground, while slower runners would start ahead of the scratch.
How Many Scratch Golfers Are There in the World?
According to the National Golf Foundation, there were 24.8 million people who played golf on a golf course in 2020. That means there are approximately 500,000 scratch golfers in the world.
What Is a Course Handicap?
A Course Handicap is the number of strokes a golfer needs to receive to play to par. The strokes received are reduced from the golfer’s final score for the round.
What does scratch mean in golf?
This means a scratch golfer is both a player that is considered the best type of golfer and one who does not need the assistance of handicap strokes to compete with other golfers.
How many yards can a female scratch hit?
The USGA Course Rating System assumes a “the male scratch golfer hits a 250 yard tee shot and can reach a 470 yard hole in two shots at sea level. The female scratch can hit 210 off the tee and reach a 400 yard hole in two.”
What is a scratch golfer?
In simpler terms, a scratch golfer is a player that will shoot around par or better for any course they play.
Why are scratch golfers the best golfers?
It’s because they spend many hours on the driving range practicing to master one of the most difficult sports to play.
How Common Are Scratch Golfers?
Using a 0 Handicap Index® as our definition for a scratch golfer, there are less than 35,000 men and around 3,000 women in the United States that meet the criteria according to the USGA’s Handicap Index® Statistics.
What would happen if the USGA definition cited above was used?
If using the USGA’s definition cited above, the number of scratch golfers would drop drastically.
What is a scratch golfer?
A " scratch golfer " is a player who can play to a Course Handicap of zero on any and all rated golf courses.
What is a handicap of 0 called?
Golfers with a handicap better than 0 are called " plus golfers ," as their Handicap Indexes’ have a plus sign (+) in front of the number. Unlike most golfers who subtract strokes from par, plus golfers add strokes in net competition. While a 0 handicap is likely what’s most commonly thought of when the term "Scratch Golfer" is used, …
What is the handicap of a scratch golfer?
According to the USGA’s definition, a golfer’s calculated handicap would need to be 0 on every rated course. If using this definition, scratch golfers would essentially be limited to golfers at the level of touring professionals.
What is a Scratch Golfer?
They define a scratch golfer as “a player who can play to a Course Handicap of zero on any rated golf courses .”
How many golfers are scratch?
That means that, of the approximately 2.4 million golfers in the U.S. who carry an official handicap index, fewer than 36,000 (or roughly 1.85%) are actually considered to be scratch or better. It takes a lot to get there. Joining that elite group is a real testament to someone’s skill, determination, work ethic, and commitment.
How many yards can a scratch golfer hit?
They go on to further clarify the term by adding that “ a male scratch golfer, for rating purposes, can hit tee shots an average of 250 yards and can reach a 470-yard hole in two shots at sea level. A female scratch golfer, for rating purposes, can hit tee shots an average 210 yards and can reach a 400-yard hole in two shots at sea level .”
How many feet do you hole in a golf chip?
It’s been shown that elite players will hole about 50-55% of their 5-7 footers. The conversion percentage goes up significantly if you’re closer (e.g., makes from 3 feet are close to 99%), but it also goes way down if they’re farther away. They will only hole about 40% of 10-footers. So the message is clear. Upgrading your chipping game so that you can consistently get within 5-7 feet (and preferably closer) is the recipe for saving strokes. If you want to be a scratch player, put in the time to make this a consistent strength of your game.
How many greens do you hit in a round?
Even elite players miss a fair number of greens during a round. In fact, you’d probably be surprised to learn that even the PGA pros only hit about 12 greens on average per round. Scratch golfers are not far behind, averaging about 11 greens in regulation. This obviously reveals that even the cream of the crop needs to get up and down to save par on fully one-third of the holes!
How many golfers are on the Grint application?
Reference: Data above collected and reported by 1) The Grint Application and Website working with My Golf Spy, analyzing 20,000 golfers with 400,000 reported 18-hole scores, 2) ShotByShot.com
How far away should you put your chips?
The key barometer of success is getting your chips to within 5-7 feet of the hole , on average . Obviously, closer is better, but you definitely don’t want to exceed that average. Why is that distance so critical?
What is the difference between a scratch golfer and a pro?
While the pro golfer will shoot between 4 to 6 shots better on average compared to a scratch golfer .
How many greens does a 25th ranked golfer miss?
The 25th ranked golfer in the scrambling category on the PGA Tour saves par 9% more frequently than your average scratch golfer. Assuming the golfer misses around 6 greens per 18 holes, this comes out to about .5 of a stroker per round. Not a major difference, but over the 4 rounds of a tournament, we are talking 2 total strokes.
How many times can you chip a golf ball in a scramble?
The scrambling stat is not surprising at all. I would have thought that one must be above 50% to become a scratch golfer. I have heard that PGA Tour players expect to chip a ball within a 3 foot circle – 7 out of 10 times. If a scratch golfer can do this 5 out of 10 times and then make one putt outside of 3 feet, they can easily average around 60% in scrambling.
How many yards does a scratch golfer give up?
251 yards vs 305 yards ia a major difference. The scratch golfer is giving up 54 yards on the par 5s and par 4s. This is a major gap when you start talking proximity to the pin on the PGA Tour from certain differences.
What is scratch golf?
A scratch golfer is any golfer that can play to the course rating on any and all courses that they encounter. This is more of an average over time on the best 50% of the rounds that the golfer plays. For example, if the course rating is 72 and the golfer shoots scores of 72, 74, 70, 68, 76, 72, 74, and 70. They would be considered right …
What is the number 25 on the golf tour?
The professional golfer ranked number 25 on tour hits 3% more greens in regulation when compared to the scratch golfer. When you consider the firmness of the greens and the difficulty in green complexes that are played on the tour, this number might be even larger if both the scratch golfer and the professional golfer played on the same course.
How many golfers can break 80?
When one considers that only 2% of golfers can even break 80 in golf, some might think that the scratch golfer is somewhat similar to a pro golfer.
What Does a Scratch Golfer Look Like?
I can tell you without a doubt that there is a huge misconception in regards to what scratch golf looks like. First off, they are not birdie machines. Scratch golfers are not firing at pins left and right, and draining putts from 20 feet all of the time.
What does it take to be a scratch golfer?
What Does it Take to Become a Scratch Golfer? Being a scratch golfer is defined as “a player who can play to a Course Handicap of zero on any and all rated golf courses.”. Most of us would associate it with having a handicap of zero. In plain words, scratch golf means that on a neutral golf course a player has the ability to shoot par on any given …
What is the difference between scratch golfers and the rest of the pack?
The difference between a scratch golfer and the rest of the pack is that they know they can recover from these mistakes. It is incredibly rare to see a golfer at this level make two disastrous mistakes in a row. That takes a combination of mental fortitude, course management skills, and of course physical talent.
How many people have a zero handicap?
Most will not reach scratch golf. According to the USGA, less than 2 percent of golfers have a handicap of zero or lower. That is because it is incredibly difficult, and it takes a great deal of time to accomplish this goal. For most people this is a very lofty goal, and that is OK; you can make an argument that many higher-handicap players enjoy the game more.
Why is expectation management important?
This goal might be unreasonable for you simply because you don’t have the time or experience to achieve it. You could put yourself through a lot of heartache simply because it is an unreasonable expectation.
How to be a good golfer?
You have to practice effectively, play a lot, fail, learn from your mistakes, adjust, and stay positive. It is a long, winding journey that is easier for some golfers, and much more difficult for others.
Is scratch golf a steady ship?
Tempers and negativity should have no part of your game. Remaining positive, and keeping your emotions at bay is critical. Scratch golf is a steady ship.
What is the BB series made of?
BB series is now made from stainless steel and has a new face milling that offers much better feel. The new Inovai 8.0 has a great, toned-down shape with the new Roll Control face for reducing hopping and skidding and producing forward roll.
What is a golf swing?
In contrast, the golf swing is just that – a swing of the club. You have total control over where the ball is going to be so that you can be quite precise in the relationship between your body and the ball and the target line. You can swing when you want to at the pace you find comfortable.
What is the first step in golf?
First the foundation , then the framing, roof, exterior walls, interior, paint, and trim. You can’t do one before the other. In golf, it all starts with the grip. If you do not hold the club properly, you’ll never accomplish a sound golf swing.
What does "from shoulder" mean?
From shoulder position; to coming up in the backswing; to take away idiosyncrasies this thanksgiving episode is sure to please .
How wide is a golf ball?
The ball is 1.68 inches in diameter, and the functional striking area on a golf club is about 1.5-inches wide. If you vary in your setup by even 3/4 inch, you have imposed a serious obstacle to success. If you do nothing else to improve your golf game, learn how to set up the same way every time.
What is the USGA course and slope rating system?
The USGA’s Course and Slope rating system does a sophisticated job of evaluating the relative difficulty of our golf courses. I joined my local course rating committee shortly after the new “Slope” system was added. My specific goal was to gain an understanding of how the system works so that I could effectively apply it in my analysis program.
Does Bettinardi have a putter line?
Bettinardi has new and updated putters for their BB and Inovai putter lines. I have been rolling a ton of putts (indoors, unfortunately) with both the BB-8W and the Inovai Rev 8.0 and they are really solid ( read our launch piece here ).
