What's the "big deal" with keeping a Handicap?
Keeping a USGA Handicap is what makes you an "amateur golfer." Amateur Golfers maintain a USGA/AGA Handicap - throughout their life -  so they can enter tournaments that are run according to USGA Rules.
If you want to play in the Alabama State Junior Amateur, the USGA Junior Amateur, the Future Masters, you MUST have a USGA Handicap to enter.

How often should I post a score? Every round I play?
YES! Every round of 9-holes or 18-holes that you play.

Why? That's a lot!
Because it makes your Handicap more accurate.
Anyone can have a "low handicap" by just entering their lowest scores at their home-course. But it's really easy to figure out if a player can play as well as their handicap indicates: just look at their tournament scores! If their tournament scores are always a lot higher than their handicap - why? Maybe they need more tournament experience? Maybe they need to play on more types of golf courses? Are they posting all of their scores to their handicap?

What about a round with a hole that I scored a 14! Wouldn't that "mess up" my Handicap?
No, a "bad hole" will not cause a big change to your handicap. When you have a "bad hole" you would take into account Equitable Stroke Control.

What is Equitable Stroke Control?
Equitable Stroke Control (ESC) "adjusts" your score on a "bad hole" to better indicate what you would "normally" score on that hole. ESC Does Not Apply to Tournament Rounds. ESC is an adjustment of individual hole scores (for handicap purposes) in order to make handicaps more representative of a player's potential ability. ESC is applied after the round and is only used when the actual score or the most likely score exceeds a player’s maximum number. ESC sets a limit to the number of strokes a player can take on a hole depending on Course Handicap™. Apply ESC to all scores, including tournament scores. Below is the maximum number a player can take:

   
       
Please visit Section 4-3 of the USGA Handicap System
manual for further reference.

You do not have to worry with "ESC" until the player has a calculated Handicap - that is, you have entered (5) 18-hole Rounds and the 15th or the 1st of the month has passed and you now have a "Handicap Index Number"

This is when ESC comes into play. For NON-TOURNAMENT ROUNDS, you look at the ESC Chart and see where your Handicap Index falls - so if you are a 13.4 Handicap, your ESC is 7: this means that the maximum score you would take on a hole during a Non-Tournament Round is 7. Let's say you played 18-holes, shot an 81 and one all holes your highest score was a double-bogey - except for a hole where you had a score of 9. Your ESC Score to enter would be 79. We get 79 because we changed that 9 to a 7, because 7 is your ESC Maximum Score.

For Tournament Round, you always enter your total stroke score - it doesn't matter is you have an 11 on a hole. You always enter your total strokes for a Tournament Round.

The best "Rule" to follow when it comes to entering scores in your Handicap: Enter EVERY round you play. That way you don't have to "think about it" - you just enter every round. And always enter Tournament Rounds and make sure that you designate it as a Tournament Round when you enter the score.

Lastly, it's always good to "double-check" the score, golf course, etc BEFORE YOU CLICK ENTER - this helps cut down on entering a wrong number by mistake.

Please feel free to call me with questions.