1. For each round played, figure out your handicap differential. To do this:
   1. Take the score and subtract the course rating from it. The course ratings can be found on the course websites or sometimes on your scorecard. If not, you can ask in the course pro shop.
   2. Get the course slope rating from the same sources as step one. Divide 113 (the USGA designated average slope rating) by your course slope rating.
   3. Multiply the result of step 1 times the result of step 2. This is your handicap differential for that round.
   4. Do this for all rounds played.
2. Use the chart below to determine how many of the differentials and which ones you should use to calculate your handicap. Note that you need at least 5 18-hole rounds in order to calculate a handicap.

3. Take the average of the number of differentials used, i.e., if you used 3, add all 3 together and divide the result by 3.

4. Multiply that result by 0.96. Drop all digits after 10ths. The result = your handicap index.

For example, if I have 5 rounds to work with, my course rating is 62 slope rating is 104, and my lowest score is 102 my calculation looks like this:

     102 – 62  = 40

     113/102 = 1.10

     40 x 1.10 = 44

     44 x .96 = 42.24

Therefore, my handicap index would be 42.24.

See larger image Sun Mountain MCB Cart Bag (Misc.)

In the previous post I recommended the Micro Cart – and the more I use it the more satisfied I am with it. I also mentioned that Sun Mountain has a bag that goes with the cart – I thought you might like to have a link to see the bag, too.

After struggling for some time trying to get my golf clubs, miscellaneous accessories, and awkward 3-wheel push cart in my small car, I found the perfect cart – the Sun Mountain Micro-cart. It is remarkably lightweight, folds up very small, is very easy to push, and has really nice features. In addition, it's four-wheel design makes it extremely stable, and I like the hand brake feature as opposed to the inconvenient foot brakes found on most three-wheelers. It comes in four colors as well. An added bonus is that you can get a cart bag that is made to fit. If you're tired of wrestling with clumsy carts that take up too much room, I can highly recommend this cart.

If you've got any trick shots (accidental or otherwise) add them to the comments – we'd love to hear about them!

1. If it were another guy, would you voluntarily step up and tell him what he's doing wrong?
2. Has she explicitly asked you for advice?
3. Has she just hit herself in the head with her golf club and you need to do something for her own safety?

If those things aren't true, then refrain. You'd be surprised how many guys find it necessary to help out the "little lady" whether she wants it or not. And, how much advice from guy to guy differs, making it all utterly confusing. Most likely she is or has taken lessons from a pro and doesn't need you to muck it up, no matter how good your intentions are.

1. These kinds of actions make people around you feel uncomfortable. It's just rude and self-centered to do this to the people who are playing with you or have paid good money to see you play.
2. Golf clubs are expensive. There are lots and lots of people out there who would like to have such a nice club as the one you are willing to toss away. It's just privileged behavior to do this – better to give the offending club to your caddy and have him or her donate it somewhere. There are good school programs for high school students learning to play golf that I'm sure would love to have them.
3. Tantrums are very childish and make you look bad. Mature people control these kinds of emotions in public at least.
4. Anger is bad for you and affects your physical health as well as produces stress that gets in the way of your game.

In the book I referred to in a previous post, Every Shot Must Have a Purpose, the authors have an entire chapter addressing this issue. This chapter, called "Anger Makes You Stupid" provides a lot of information about the negative effect anger has on your game, as well as some good advice on how to deal with it.

My advice: get your anger under control. You, and everyone around you, will have a better time on the course.

So I'm sitting here playing some armchair golf by watching the Farmers Insurance Open on the PGA Tour in Torrey Pines, CA. Ryan Palmer (no relationship to Arnold Palmer although many people assume he is) hit a ball into a Eucalyptus tree and it lodged in the branches. As Golfer Newbies we are more likely than most to hit our balls off the fairways and into the trees, so I looked up the rules related to golf balls in trees. There are three options related to your ball being in a tree:

1. You can climb the tree and play it where it lays, which then does not cost you a stroke, but is an unlikely scenario, although there have been cases on the PGA tour when this has indeed occurred.
2. If you can positively identify your ball, you can play the ball two club lengths from the spot on the ground directly under the ball in the tree and take a one stroke penalty.
3. If you can't play the ball in the tree and can't positively identify it as yours within five minutes, you have to take a penalty stroke and go back to the place the last stroke was played.

In this case, Ryan could not positively identify his ball, in part because there were several balls in the tree. So, he had to go back to the previous stroke location, which in this case was the tee. This did not do anything for his game today.

An interesting side note: the commentators said that one of these trees was cut down last week following damage from all the storms they had in California and they found 500! balls lodged in it. Amazing.