Handicapped golfers (generally) cannot compete with elite golfers because they cannot, consistently hit the ball, as long or as straight, from the tee, fairway, rough or bunkers and arrive on greens in regulation.
They also don’t know how to shape the ball or play in bad weather conditions.
Handicapped golfers need extra strokes to overcome their challenges.
There is no reason a handicapped player could not have low putting numbers, as this area of the game is not as much about strength of body as it is strength of mind.
This is why watchMynumbers has built in functionality that assumes a handicapped golfer’s additional strokes should be attributed to the strokes off the Tee, Rough, Fairway, Fairway and Green Side Bunkers rather than putts on the green.
In this configuration, and as the golfer’s handicap gets bigger, it assumes the player is far less likely to reach a par three green with one stroke, reach a par four green with two strokes, or drive the green on par fours, and is more likely to require a minimum of four ball strikes to get onto par five greens.
If the handicap player is on a handicap of 10, the player can have 46 ball strikes, rather than 36 ball strikes in a round.
Ball Strikes 46
Putts 36
Total Gross Score 82
Less Handicap (10)
Total Nett Score 72
An alternative way of looking at your numbers is:
Ball strikes 46
Less Handicap (10)
Nett Strokes 36 which equals the traditional setup of the golf course
Add Putts 36
Total Nett Score 72
The third way of looking at your numbers is shown in the Summary report:
Gross Score 82
Less Putts (36)
Total Strokes 46
Less Handicap (10)
Nett Strokes 36
Less My Target (36)
Improvement Required 0
If your Nett Strokes number is close to 36 and your putting numbers are reasonable, you will return a good to great nett score.
If you have a high Net Strokes number and you manage to reduce your ball strike errors and/or reduce your total putts, you can also improve your score.