Individual Games



Stroke / Medal Play

Just add 'em up! Medal Play is the most basic format for golf tournaments. Contestants simply play 18 holes and prizes go to players with the best gross scores and net scores. Use handicaps from 80-100% - preferably on the lower side to prevent sandbagging. Medal Play is the most serious and least forgiving tournament format (no gimmies!), so it's often used for club championships.
Low gross: no adjustment for handicap;
Low net: subtract your handicap, low score wins.

Match Play

Two players play head to head. Total strokes are not important. The object of this game is to win as many holes as possible. The player with the best hole score for each hole wins the hole, any tied holes are thrown out and are not counted. If Player A has won two holes, it is "2 Up." If Player B wins the next hole, player A is now "1 Up." The player who wins the most holes wins the match. The match ends when one player is ahead by more holes than the number of holes remaining.

Skins

Each hole is worth a set dollar amount (a skin). If a player scores the lowest score for the hole (w/o any ties), he/she wins that amount. If there is a tie for the best score for the hole, the money for that hole is carried over to the next hole. The player with the most money at the end of the round wins.

Selected Score

In this game, each golfer plays 36 holes. Each then arrives at a final score by combining the two rounds, selecting the best net score from each of the 18 holes. The winner is the player with the lowest total. This format is usually played with two-thirds or three-fourths handicap. Selected score is a fun, leisurely format to use over a weekend, although I've seen some fanatics pack it all into one day.

Bingo Bango Bongo

A "bingo" is awarded to the first player to hit onto the green (regardless of the # of strokes taken). A "bango" is awarded to the player who is closest to the pin once all players are on the green (again, regardless of the # of strokes taken). A "bongo" is awarded to the first player who putts the ball in the hole. If a player wins all three in one hole, he/she is given double points for the hole.

Snake & Mongoose

Snake = Bad - The last player to three-putt gets the snake until the next person three-putts to get it. Be sure to play in turn to avoid errors.
Mongoose = Good - The last player to make a putt longer than a flag length gets the snake until the next person three-putts to get it. Longer putts do not beat shorter ones that are outside the flagstick. It is the last one in. Again, be sure to play in turn.

After nine holes the holder of the Snake pays one "unit" to each player, the holder of the Mongoose collects one "unit" from each player. Start over on the back nine. Some players have a token like a string of beads to represent the Snake and Mongoose. Clip it to the bag of the holder. It is fun to give and to receive.

666

Match play with a new partner every six holes. Match play means that the score is kept based only on whether holes are won or lost with no consideration given to the winning margin on each hole.

Each six holes are a mini match.
Best and worst drives on #1 are partners for the first six holes
Best and worst drives on #7 are partners for the next six holes (excluding same pairing from the first).
Remaining pairs are partnered together for the final six holes
Players' net scores (after handicap) are generally used and the most popular format " Best Ball'. This means that each team's better net score on each hole is used against the opposing team's better score. A team which has won two holes and lost one hole is said to be "1 up".
Play best ball or team total, your choice.

Nassau

This is the most popular gambling game in golf today so you probably already know how it goes. You may want to read on for some possible variations to the basic "Nassau". If you don't know this game, the next time someone says, "2 - 2 - 2", they are referring to a two-dollar Nassau. A Nassau is really three games in one. The front nine being one, the back nine being the second and the entire 18 being the third. '2 - 2 - 2' would mean (in my circle of friends, anyway) a two dollar wager on the front nine, a two dollar wager on the back nine and a third, two dollar wager on the entire 18.

Pressing

The first variation that a lot of golfers use to add spice to their games is "The Press". Groups that allow "Pressing" give the team that is down on one of the wagers the option of starting a new wager from the time of the press, to the end of the original bet, for the same stakes as the original wager. For example, if a team is two holes down on the 7th Tee, they may choose to "Press" the front nine wager. This means a new wager is started on the 7th Tee for the same amount as the front nine wager and will also finish on the 9th hole (it will be a three-hole match). Both matches carry on until the ninth hole is over.

If your group doesn't already allow pressing you should set some guidelines for when pressing will be allowed. Here are some suggestions:

Presses allowed only on the 9th or 18th Tees.
Presses only allowed when a team has already won the original wager.
Presses only allowed when a team is down by at least two holes.
Pressing allowed any time a team that is down feels like it. This format requires some strategy as well as some courage.
Some hyper-aggressive groups allow pressing at any time and for any amount a team is losing. This format can result in a serious escalation of the stakes. If you're not familiar with exponential growth you should look it up before you agree to this last format with strangers!!!

Just so you know, there aren't any laws that require you to accept a press if you are ahead in a match but it is a widely held view that anyone who declines a press is 'UN-COOL'!!!

Optional Side Bets

Murphy

A player off the green (as wells as off the fringe) may declare a "Murphy", whereby he must get up-and-down to win units from each of the other players.

Scruffy

A player hitting an awful tee shot may call a "Scruffy," which lets him bet a unit against all the other players that he can make par (gross). The other players must agree to the bet. A player may call a Scruffy after a good tee shot as well. If it's a difficult hole, his opponents might still be wise to take the bet.

Garbage

"Garbage" is the common term to describe a collection of side bets popular with golfers otherwise playing, for example, Skins, or a Nassau. Some examples:
Arnies
Won by scoring par and never once touching the fairway. Also called "Seves".


Barkies
Hitting a tree and still making par. Leaves don't count: everyone must hear good, solid wood. The rare "Double Barkie", worth two points, involves hitting two trees and still making par. Also called "Woodies" and "Seves".


Sandies
Getting up-and-down from a bunker. Fairway bunkers are included.


Splashies
Making par after hitting into the water (whether the ball was lost or not).