A scratch golfer is a player whose Handicap Index is 0.0: the player for whom a Course Rating is set. A "plus" golfer is better still, with a handicap below zero. Published United States figures put scratch-or-better golfers at around 1.6 to 2 per cent of those who hold a handicap index, and well under 1 per cent of women who hold one. The share of all golfers is smaller still, because most golfers hold no index at all.
We do not issue handicaps, we are not affiliated with the USGA, The R&A, England Golf or any club, and nothing here is an official handicap. The figures below were read on 16 October 2026 from the pages listed. Where we could not verify a figure, we say so and leave it out.
What "scratch" means
Scratch means a handicap of 0.0 or better. Under the World Handicap System a handicap figure is based on your recent scores measured against the Course Rating and Slope Rating of the courses you played, so "scratch" describes how you score relative to the rated difficulty of a course, not a particular number of strokes. The Rules of Handicapping (2024 edition, USGA and The R&A) define a scratch player as one with a Handicap Index of 0.0, and a Course Rating as the difficulty of a course for the scratch player in normal conditions. A Handicap Index is the average of the lowest 8 of a player's most recent 20 score differentials, so it measures good rounds rather than typical ones: a scratch player's better rounds come in near the Course Rating, which need not be 72, and their average round is higher. Both news pages we read use "scratch or plus" and "0.0 or better" for the same group.
Note that a scratch index is not a fixed score. For each course and set of tees the index is converted into a Course Handicap using that course's Slope Rating and the difference between its Course Rating and par, so the strokes a scratch player gives or receives change from course to course. This is why scores only count from rated courses.
How rare: the United States
Two sources, both citing USGA data, give the United States picture.
| Figure | Value | Source and date |
|---|---|---|
| Golfers with a handicap index | about 3.4 million | Golf News Net, 12 December 2025, citing USGA data from the end of 2024 |
| Scratch or better (index 0.0 or lower) | about 60,000 | same |
| Share of golfers with an index | 1.6 per cent as stated by the article | same |
| Men who are scratch or better | 1.99 per cent | same |
| Women who are scratch or better | 0.75 per cent | same |
| Men, scratch or plus | 2.01 per cent | National Club Golfer, USGA figures to end of 2025 |
| Women, scratch or plus | 0.85 per cent | same |
| Men with an index from 0 to 4.9 | 8.23 per cent | same |
| Women with an index from 0 to 4.9 | 1.50 per cent | same |
Two cautions about these figures. First, the two articles differ slightly (1.99 against 2.01 per cent for men) probably because they read different years of USGA data. We give both rather than pick one. Second, the Golf News Net article states 60,000 as 1.6 per cent of 3.4 million, but 60,000 divided by 3.4 million is nearer 1.8 per cent. We report the article's own figure and note the difference. Either way the answer is the same: a small number of golfers in every hundred.
The same Golf News Net article says only about 13 per cent of American golfers have a recognised handicap index. If that is right, the scratch share of all golfers is far smaller than the share of indexed golfers. The article's own estimate is that scratch-or-better golfers are closer to the top 1 per cent of golfers than the top 2 per cent. That is the writer's estimate, not an official count.
Averages, for context
National Club Golfer (published December 2024, updated August 2026) gives the following averages. The article dates the USA figures to the USGA's end of 2025 membership.
- United States: average index 14.0 for men and 28.8 for women.
- United States, golfers who received a first handicap in 2025: 16.3 for men and 32.5 for women.
- England: 17.38 for men and 28.09 for women, with a combined club-member average of 18.62.
- England, iGolf subscribers (golfers without a club): 19.6.
The same article says fewer than 5 per cent of English men have a handicap of five or less. The article gives no date for the graph it uses for England, so treat it as approximate.
For comparison, a scratch player is about 14 handicap strokes better than the average American man (14.0) and about 17 better than the average English man (17.38), comparing the averages above with 0.0.
Rounds and hours: what we could and could not verify
You will find confident claims online about how many rounds a year a scratch golfer plays and how many hours a week they practise. We searched for a published survey of scratch players' rounds and practice hours and did not find a source we could verify, so this page gives no such figure.
One 2024 data study of 257 club golfers, from Golf Insider UK, is about club golfers in general and not scratch players. The study sample played about 1.68 rounds a week and practised about three hours a week. The page's own figures conflict in places, and its authors report that rounds played and practice hours were not significantly linked to improvement, while keeping regular playing statistics was: stat-keepers improved by 3.38 shots on average, against 1.38 for those who did not. We include it as a modest piece of evidence for recording your numbers, not as a description of scratch golf.
What this means for a keen golfer
If you are reading this because you want to know how far you are from scratch, the useful comparison is not the average golfer but your own last twenty scores against the course ratings. Our page on how to get a golf handicap lists the official routes. A realistic step on the way is to break 90, 80 or 100 with a strokes budget.
The honest summary is that scratch is rare, takes years and is measured by an official system that we do not run.
Rules and honest scoring
A handicap only means something if the scores behind it are true. Rule 3.3b makes the player responsible for the score on each hole, and Rule 1.3b says you apply the Rules and your own penalties. A scratch player is not a better player of the Rules, but the system relies on the same honesty at every level.
What Elected Golf does and does not do
Elected Golf is a club entered by a 28-day card. It is not open yet: nothing is charged and no card is asked for. We do not issue a handicap, and the Playing Record you keep in the Candidacy is unofficial. We are not affiliated with any club and cannot secure admission. The 28-day golf practice plan is free to read.