The handicap system is a method of leveling the playing field. If a golfer who shoots in the low 70s plays a golfer who shoots in the high 90s, we all know who's going to win. But by using handicaps, those players can play each other as if they are equal in ability.
Golf may not be the only sport in which a handicapping system exists and serves that purpose, but it is certainly among those in which such a system is so integral and in such wide use.
With the handicap system, no matter what your ability is, you can play any other golfer on any course and be competitive.
