Golf metrics

Your handicap index is not a mystery the federation computes in a back room. It is a short formula you can run by hand. Here is the WHS math, step by step, with the numbers worked out.

Three apps. Three approaches to golf analytics. Arccos requires sensors. Shot Scope requires a watch. golfity requires nothing but your phone. Here is what each one actually delivers.

Sensor systems like Arccos and Shot Scope are useful, but you can build a serious analytics picture with nothing but a scorecard, a phone, and a few seconds per hole.

You sit between beginner and advanced, using analytics tools built around tour pros. Here is what your strokes gained should actually look like, and what your numbers tell you to do next.

Strokes gained against a PGA Tour pro tells you the size of the mountain. Strokes gained against a 10 handicap tells you which step to take next. Here is when the smaller benchmark is the better one.

Most strokes gained tools only compare you to the PGA Tour. That number is honest but rarely useful. Here is when to use it, when to use an amateur baseline, and why a single app should give you both.