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This is where golfers with the lowest average Handicap Indexes live

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Where do golfers with the lowest average handicap indexes live? Thanks to data from the USGA, we now know.

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What’s the “golfiest” state in the country? Well, it’s tough to say.

This is the average handicap index among golfers in the United States
By: Zephyr Melton

California and Florida are bound to be high on the list with their beautiful weather and assortment of playing options, and New York and Pennsylvania probably deserve spots on the list as well with their rosters of classic courses and deep histories. However, while those states have plenty to offer golf-wise, none of them appear near the top of the list of states with the lowest average handicap indexes.

The USGA keeps careful track of Handicap Index figures from the entire country, and recently, they shared some of that data with us. One stat that jumped off the page? The states with the lowest average Handicap Indexes.

Lowest average Handicap Index (men and women)

Among the entire United States, the state with the lowest average Handicap Index is Mississippi at 11.8. According to the USGA, 8,527 golfers in the Magnolia State keep a Handicap Index — and it appears that a healthy dose of them can golf their ball.

Check out the entirety of the list below.

StateHandicap Index
Mississippi11.8
North Dakota12.5
Oklahoma12.7
Georgia13.2
Texas13.2
Kentucky13.3
Kansas13.4
Utah13.5
Iowa14.0
Tennessee14.1
Alabama14.2
Missouri14.4
Michigan14.4
Nebraska14.6
Washinton D.C.14.8
Ohio14.8
Louisiana15.0
Indiana15.0
Arkansas15.1
West Virginia15.1
Colorado15.3
North Carolina15.5
Virginia15.6
Pennsylvania15.8
Puerto Rico15.8
Illinois16.0
Minnesota16.2
Arizona16.3
Massachusetts16.5
New Jersey16.5
Hawaii16.5
Nevada16.6
South Carolina16.6
Maryland16.6
Wisconsin16.6
Oregon16.8
South Dakota16.8
Rhode Island16.8
California16.9
New Mexico17.0
New York17.1
Connecticut17.6
Alaska17.6
Maine17.8
New Hampshire17.9
Washington17.9
Montana18.7
Florida19.1
Wyoming19.1
Vermont19.4
Deleware21.6
Idaho21.6

Lowest average Handicap Index (men only)

Mississippi might take the title for the lowest average Handicap Index, but if we narrow our query to only include men, Oklahoma rises to the top of the list. According USGA data, the average Handicap Index among men in Oklahoma is 10.9, the lowest figure in the U.S.

Check out the entirety of the list below.

StateHandicap Index
Oklahoma10.9
Mississippi11.0
North Dakota11.8
Kansas12.1
Texas12.1
Arkansas12.4
Georgia12.5
Iowa12.6
Alabama12.6
Utah12.6
Tennessee12.7
Kentucky12.7
Missouri12.8
Michigan12.9
Indiana12.9
Nebraska12.9
Ohio13.3
West Virginia13.5
North Carolina13.7
Illinois13.8
Nevada13.9
Wisconsin13.9
Virginia13.9
Minnesota14.0
Colorado14.1
South Dakota14.1
Louisiana14.3
South Carolina14.3
Washington D.C.14.4
Pennsylvania14.5
Arizona14.5
Rhode Island14.6
New Mexico14.6
Massachusetts14.7
Hawaii14.9
Connecticut15.0
Oregon15.3
New York15.3
New Jersey15.4
Califonia15.6
Puerto Rico15.7
Maryland15.7
Washington15.7
Arkansas15.8
Montana15.9
Florida15.9
New Hampshire16.0
Maine16.0
Idaho16.5
Wyoming16.7
Vermont17.1
Deleware17.3

Lowest average Handicap Index (women only)

Now that we’ve sorted by men, let’s take a look at the ladies. According to the USGA, the state with the lowest average Handicap Index among women is Utah at 21.3. However, Utah doesn’t quite top the list as Puerto Rico (a territory) has a lower average Handicap Index among women at 18.7.

Check out the entirety of the list below.

StateHandicap Index
Puerto Rico18.7
Utah21.3
Mississippi22.0
North Dakota22.2
Georgia22.5
Kansas22.6
Texas23.5
Deleware23.6
Kentucky23.7
Hawaii23.9
Washington D.C.23.9
Arkansas24.6
Alabama24.8
Missouri24.9
Colorado25.3
Louisiana25.5
Nevada25.5
New Mexico25.9
Iowa26.7
Tennessee26.8
California26.9
Michigan26.9
Ohio27.0
Oregon27.2
Oklahoma27.3
Virginia27.3
Indiana27.5
Vermont27.6
Nebraska27.7
West Virginia27.7
Pennsylvania27.8
Alaska28.1
Wyoming28.4
North Carolina28.4
Montana28.4
Arizona28.6
Maine28.7
Florida28.8
New Hampshire28.9
Illinois29.0
South Carolina29.0
New Jersey29.1
Massachusetts29.2
Wisconsin29.2
South Dakota29.3
New York29.4
Washington30.0
Rhode Island30.2
Idaho30.2
Maryland30.4
Connecticut30.5
Minnesota30.9
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