Strokes Gained is the most important statistic in modern golf — and most amateur golfers have never used it. Developed by Columbia professor Mark Broadie and adopted by the PGA Tour, it answers the one question that traditional stats can’t: where are you actually losing the most strokes?
The Problem with Traditional Golf Stats
Traditional stats like fairways hit, greens in regulation, and putts per round are useful but misleading. A golfer with 32 putts per round sounds average — but if most of those putts were from inside 10 feet after missing greens, their putting is actually terrible. Traditional stats don’t account for difficulty.
Strokes Gained fixes this by measuring every shot against a benchmark: how many strokes does a golfer at your level typically take from this position to hole out?
The 5 Strokes Gained Categories
- SG: Off the Tee — How your tee shots compare (distance, accuracy, penalties)
- SG: Approach — How your iron play compares (GIR, proximity)
- SG: Around the Green — Chipping, pitching, bunker play
- SG: Putting — Performance on the green
- SG: Tee to Green — Combined OTT + Approach + ATG (the non-putting game)
A positive number means you’re gaining strokes vs. the benchmark (better than average). Negative means you’re losing strokes. The bigger the negative number, the more that area is hurting your score.
The Biggest Surprise for Most Golfers
When amateurs first see their Strokes Gained breakdown, the most common reaction is: “I thought my putting was the problem, but it’s actually my approach play.” This is backed by research — approach shots account for the largest scoring gap between handicap levels, not putting.
The average 15-handicapper loses about 5.8 strokes per round on approach shots vs. Tour average, but only 1.7 strokes on putting. Most practice time goes to putting and driving. The data says it should go to iron play and short game.
Calculate Your Strokes Gained — Free
Our free Strokes Gained Calculator lets you enter your round stats and see your SG breakdown across all categories, with a visual chart and plain-English interpretation. No Arccos subscription required.
For a quicker (but less precise) assessment, try the Find Your Real Weakness tool — it takes just 2 minutes and uses dropdown inputs instead of exact numbers.
Once you know where you’re losing strokes, find an instructor who can help you fix the right things.