Course Rating™ vs. Bogey Rating™ vs. Slope Rating®
Every golfer with a Handicap Index can tell you what their number is and most know how to figure out how many strokes they get on a certain day by calculating their Course Handicap and Playing Handicap.
Most know there are ratings for each tee set on a golf course, but do you know what each number means? Well, they are the foundation of the World Handicap System, and without them, you wouldn't be able to compare yourself to other golfers and use your Handicap Index equitably at courses around the world.
Golf courses often display two numbers on their scorecards, but there is a third that is important as well, and a good measuring stick for most golfers. The Course Rating™ and Slope Rating® are the first two numbers, and the third is the Bogey Rating™.
These numbers are established through the Course Rating System, which allows NebGolf staff and volunteers to evaluate courses around the state. The ratings are determined by assessing the effective length of the golf course and the obstacles and challenges that face scratch and bogey players in their respective landing zones around the course.
The Course Rating represents the score a scratch player, with a Handicap Index of 0.0, should achieve on a golf course under normal course and weather conditions. For example, a Course Rating of 71.8 would equate to a scratch player’s expected score of 72 on a good round.
The Bogey Rating is the same representation for a Bogey Golfer, a player with a Handicap Index of approximately 20.0 for men and approximately 24.0 for women. This number is not often displayed, but you can find it through a search of the USGA's National Course Rating Database.
The comparison of those two numbers (Course Rating and Bogey Rating) is how we get the Slope Rating. Playing length and obstacles impact higher-handicap players more than lower-handicap players, and Slope Rating measures the relative difficulty of a golf course for players who are not scratch players compared to those who are scratch players. A course of standard difficulty has a Slope Rating of 113. The lowest Slope Rating is 55 and the highest is 155.
Generally, the longer the golf course, the higher all three ratings will be. However, the scratch and bogey golfers are evaluated separately, so things like forced layups, forced carries and obstacles only in certain landing zones, affect those numbers differently.
Currently, the highest Course and Slope Ratings in Nebraska belong to The Club at Indian Creek's Black Bird/Gray Hawk routing. The Champ tees check in at 76.7/150 for men. The highest active rating for women is the Blue tees at Champions Run, which are 79.3/147. Typically, a course's longest set of tees is not rated for women, unless requested.
The World Handicap System also now allows par-3 and shorter courses to receive these ratings, as long as they measure 1,500 yards for 18 holes (750 for 9 holes). Several of these courses around the state will be issued ratings in 2025.
Want to learn more about the World Handicap System? Check out our resource center at the button below.
About NebGolf
The Nebraska Golf Association (NebGolf), founded in 1966, is comprised of all members of public and private clubs and/or municipal or regional golf associations which utilize an approved handicap service recognized by the USGA and provided by NebGolf. Our mission is to uphold and promote the game of golf and its values to all golfers in Nebraska. Among the duties of the Association include governance of member clubs and service as their handicapping and course rating authority, conduct of state golf championships, local USGA qualifying & other notable competitions, promotion of junior golf, presentation of worthwhile educational programs and support of allied golf organizations in Nebraska. The Nebraska Golf Association is an Allied Golf Association of the USGA and carries out core services including Handicap Administration and Oversight, Course Rating, Rules of Golf and Rules of Amateur Status, Tournaments and USGA Championship Qualifiers and USGA Initiatives and Community Programs.
