Handicapping facts for kids
Handicapping in sports and games is a way to make competitions fair for everyone. It means giving an advantage to players who are less experienced or less skilled, or a disadvantage to those who are very good. This helps everyone have a chance to win, keeping the game exciting and fair.
The word "handicap" also describes the different methods used to figure out these advantages. Many sports use handicapping, including Go, shogi, chess, croquet, golf, bowling, polo, basketball, and even track and field races. You'll often see handicap races in clubs, like swimming, cycling, or sailing, where people of all skill levels compete together.
The person who sets these handicaps for a game or race is called the handicapper.
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What "Handicap" Means
The word handicap comes from an old phrase, "hand-in-cap." This was a system where people would put money or bets into a neutral person's cap to agree on fair values when trading items.
Making Competitions Fair
In sports, handicapping helps balance the playing field. There are a few main ways this works:
Adjusting Results
Sometimes, the final result of a race is adjusted. For example, in some car or yacht races, the fastest vehicle might not be the winner after handicaps are applied. Their actual time might be adjusted based on their vehicle's type or power, so a slower vehicle could win if it performed better than expected for its type.
Staggered Starts
Another way is to have different starting times or positions. This is common in "pursuit" style races. Imagine a running or cycling race:
- Before the main race, everyone does a time trial to see how fast they are.
- In the actual race, the slowest person starts first.
- The fastest person starts last.
- The goal is for everyone to finish the race at about the same time, making it a really close and exciting finish! The winner is the person who performs best compared to their own expected time.
This can also involve physical starting positions, like in greyhound racing where dogs start from different traps, or in human foot races like the Stawell Gift.
In some car races, teams might have to stop in the pit area for a certain amount of time based on their drivers' skill. This gives less skilled drivers a better chance. It's different from adding extra weight to a car, because the cars still perform normally on the track.
Handicaps in Specific Sports
Horse Racing
In horse racing, a handicap race means that horses carry different amounts of weight. A very good horse will carry more weight to make it harder for them to win against slower horses. The handicapper's goal is to make it so all the horses finish the race at the same time!
When people bet on these races, the challenge is to figure out which horse can still win even with its extra weight.
Golf
Golf handicapping lets players of different skill levels compete fairly. A golf handicap is a number that shows how good a golfer is. The lower the handicap, the better the player. This system allows a beginner to play against an experienced golfer and still have a fun, competitive game.
Chess
In chess, handicaps can be given in several ways:
- The stronger player might start without one of their pieces.
- The weaker player might get extra moves at the beginning.
- The weaker player might get more time on the chess clock.
Go
In the board game Go, the weaker player gets an advantage by placing a certain number of stones on the board before the stronger player even starts.
Shogi
Shogi, which is like Japanese chess, also uses handicaps. The stronger player removes one or more of their pieces from the board before the game begins.
Polo
In polo, every player gets an individual handicap. This number estimates how valuable a player is to their team. It considers their riding skills, teamwork, knowledge of the game, and their horses. The difference in handicaps between two teams helps decide how many goals the better team needs to score to win.
Polo handicaps are usually numbers, like from 0 to 10 in Argentina, or -2 to 10 in England.
Sailing
Handicaps in sailing races have changed a lot over time and vary by country. They are often based on how capable a boat is or how experienced the crew is. Today, sailing handicaps usually adjust the time it takes a boat to finish the race.
Cycling
Handicapping in cycling is common in Australia and New Zealand, especially in track and road races.
- In track cycling, handicaps are often based on distance.
- In road cycling, staggered starts are common for amateur events. Riders are grouped into "bunches" based on their past results, with the slower groups starting first. Prizes are given for the first to finish, but also for the fastest overall time.
See also
In Spanish: Hándicap para niños
- Political handicapping
- Bookmaker
- Handicap race (disambiguation)
- Match fixing
- Point shaving
- Sports betting
- Tipster
- Handicap principle
