Your handicap
Stableford score
Scorecard
Type par and stroke index (SI) from your card, then your gross strokes. Leave a hole empty or type 0 if you picked up: it scores 0 points.
| Hole | Par | SI | Strokes | Shots | Net | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||||||
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| 18 | ||||||
| Total |
A Stableford calculator does the sums you’d normally do in the bar with a pencil. You play off 19, the 5th is a par 4 with stroke index 1, and you take a 5. You get two shots there, so that’s a net 3: a net birdie, worth 3 points. This free calculator does it for all 18 holes from your handicap index and the course’s slope and rating, so you can check the card before you sign it.
How Stableford scoring works
Every hole is scored against net par, which is par plus the shots your handicap gives you on that hole.
| Net score on the hole | Points |
|---|---|
| Net double bogey or worse (or no score) | 0 |
| Net bogey | 1 |
| Net par | 2 |
| Net birdie | 3 |
| Net eagle | 4 |
| Net albatross | 5 |
So 36 points means you played exactly to your handicap. That’s the number to beat in a club medal Stableford, and the one the calculator compares you against.
The good bit about the format is the blow-up hole. Take a 9 on a par 4 and you score 0, the same as an 8 or a 7. Pick up, write a line through the box and move on. In stroke play that 9 would wreck your round.
Where your shots go
Stroke index ranks the holes from hardest (1) to easiest (18), and it’s printed on every card. With a playing handicap of 19 you get one shot on every hole, plus a second on SI 1. On 26 you get one everywhere and a second on SI 1 to 8. Play off 7 and you only get shots on SI 1 to 7.
Plus handicaps work the other way. A +2 gives two shots back, on SI 18 and 17, so you need to beat par on those holes just to score 2 points.
From index to playing handicap
Under the World Handicap System your index isn’t what you play off. First it becomes a course handicap: index × slope ÷ 113, plus the course rating minus par. An 18.4 index on a 125 slope with a 71.2 rating and par 72 gives 19.55, so 20. Then the competition’s allowance is applied. For individual Stableford it’s usually 95%, which makes 19.
Already know your playing handicap from the board in the clubhouse? Type it in the box and the calculator uses that instead. To work your index out from your recent scores, use the course handicap calculator.
Using the scorecard
- Par and SI come pre-filled with a sample 72. Change them to match your course: the numbers are on the back of the card.
- Type your gross strokes. Leave a hole blank, or put 0, if you picked up.
- The dots in the Shots column are the strokes you receive on that hole.
- Print gives you a clean copy for the scorer.
If the stroke index column has a number twice, you’ll see a warning, because shots go wrong when SI isn’t 1 to 18 once each.
Betting on the golf this weekend instead? The golf each way calculator works out returns with the extra places.