Scramble golf calculator
This scramble golf calculator works out the team handicap for a two, three or four-player scramble. A scramble only works as a competition if the team handicaps are fair, and that is where most charity days and society outings go wrong.
Four players: 25% + 20% + 15% + 10%
Of each course handicap, from the lowest handicap to the highest. Three players: 30/20/10. Two players: 35/15.Scramble golf calculator: enter your team
Choose the team size and enter each player's Handicap Index and the tees being played. You get the team handicap to take off the gross score.
What is a scramble in golf?
A scramble is a team format in which every player hits a shot, the team chooses the best one, and everyone plays the next shot from that spot. This repeats until the ball is holed, giving one team score per hole. Because the team always plays its best ball, a scramble handicap is much lower than the players' own handicaps.
How to use the scramble golf calculator
- Choose the team size: two, three or four players.
- Enter each player's Handicap Index.
- Enter the slope rating, course rating and par of the tees being played.
- Read the scramble team handicap and each player's share of it.
Scramble handicap formula
| Scramble team | Share of each course handicap |
|---|---|
| 4-person scramble | 25% / 20% / 15% / 10% |
| 3-person scramble | 30% / 20% / 10% |
| 2-person scramble | 35% / 15% |
The percentages run from the lowest handicap to the highest, and are the allowances recommended in Appendix C of the Rules of Handicapping. The committee running the day has the final say.
Scramble handicap calculation example
Four players have indexes of 8.4, 12.6, 23.4 and 31.2 on tees with a slope of 135, a course rating of 72.3 and a par of 72. Their course handicaps are 10.3, 15.4, 28.3 and 37.6. Taking 25%, 20%, 15% and 10% gives 2.58 + 3.07 + 4.24 + 3.76 = 13.65. The scramble team handicap is 14.
Ambrose scramble handicap
An older and simpler system, still popular at society days: add up the team's course handicaps and divide by eight for a four, six for a three, or four for a pair. The calculator shows the Ambrose figure alongside for comparison.
Scramble golf calculator FAQs
How do you calculate a scramble team handicap?
Convert each index to a course handicap, sort them from low to high, take the set percentage of each and add them up. The scramble golf calculator above does all four steps.
Do you use handicap index or course handicap in a scramble?
Course handicap. Each index is converted for the slope, course rating and par of the tees first, and left unrounded until the final step.
What is a Texas scramble handicap?
A Texas scramble adds one rule: a minimum number of tee shots, often four, must be used from every member of the team. The team handicap is worked out the same way.
What if the scramble team has a plus-handicap player?
Type the index with a plus sign. That player's share is taken off the team total, so a strong player lowers the team handicap.