Best Net Two Ball vs. the Field

The best ball score of each two-person team is compared against the other teams’ best ball scores. This tournament can produce a winner every day of the trip and also be held as a cumulative multi-day contest.

Best Ball of the Foursome

A simple stroke-play event where the best (net) ball for each hole becomes the foursome’s recorded score and the total is compared to the best 18 hole score posted by the other foursomes.

Match Scorecards Across Foursomes

Similar to above, but with a match play format. The lowest net score, hole by hole, of your foursome is compared against the low net score of the other foursomes. You can match cards for one low ball, or sum the low net two balls and compare that total against the other cards. Another variation is to count the single best ball for the par threes, sum the best two best balls for the par fours, and sum the best 3 balls for the par fives, then match against the other cards (sometimes called Cha-Cha-Cha).

Skins and Pot Skins

You’ve played this a million times: The player who records the lowest score on a hole wins a skin. “Two tie, all tie”; that is, in the event of a tie score, the skin is “carried over” to the next hole(s) and all players are eligible to win once again. This process continues until there is a solo winner for the hole. Some groups require that to win a skin you must score a par or better on the hole. Full handicaps are typically used, sometimes with an arbitrary maximum (e.g., 18 or 24), and in some instances full handicaps are not used on the Par 3’s.

In a good-sized group, you will want to play Pot Skins: every player puts in a predetermined amount, and when the round is completed, the captain goes through the scorecards. Any player winning a hole outright against all comers wins a skin. After determining the total number of skins, divide the pot by that number and pay off the winner(s).

1-2-3 Best Ball Against the Field

Each player in a foursome plays their own ball. On the first hole, the low ball is the team score. On the second hole, the sum of the two low balls is the team score. On the third hole, the three best balls of the foursome become the team score. On the fourth hole, the process begins repeating throughout the 18 hole round. The aggregate team score is compared with the team scores of the other foursomes to determine the winner.

Stableford and Aggregate Stableford

Stableford is an individual point system game invented by Dr. Frank Stableford (life member at Wallasey Golf Club, just down the road from Hoylake and a classic UK links in its own right) in 1931.

This is the game played on the PGA Tour for many years at the International tournament at Castle Pines. The point system used at the tournament was:

• Double Eagle: 8 points
• Eagle: 5 points
• Birdie: 2 points
• Par: 0 points
• Bogey: -1 point
• Double Bogey or Worse: -3 points

Of course, you can set up the points as you wish, and opt for net scores. Another common scoring system (modified Stableford) is one point for bogey, two for par, four points for birdie and eight for eagle.

Although traditional Stableford is an individual game, aggregate Stableford is a good trip format with two person teams choosing their best ball to earn their points, or, alternatively, summing the total points per twosome or per foursome and comparing to the other teams in the field to determine the winner(s).

Foursomes or Alternate Shot

Popular in GB&I, alternate shot can be a really fun format for your late afternoon rounds, or perhaps on your travel days. Foursomes is a competition format in which teams are comprised of two players each, and the players alternate hitting the same ball. The first player tees off, the second player hits the second shot, the first player hits the third shot, and so on until the ball is holed. Players alternate hitting tee shots so that the same player doesn’t hit every drive. Foursomes can be played as stroke play or match play. Match play foursomes is one of the formats used in the Ryder Cup. On a golf trip, compare results to the other team results.

Stroke (or Medal) Tournaments with Handicaps

A stroke-play competition consists of every player on the trip playing their own ball against all the other players for a given round or as many rounds as you want to stipulate for the tournament. You may want to play for both low gross and low net prizes. Many times the stroke play format is used in addition to other competitions that may take place concurrently. To speed play for a stroke play event, make sure you use the USGA-approved Equitable Stroke Control system. ESC sets a maximum number that a player can post on any hole depending on the player’s handicap.

Quota

This is a fun game where every player subtracts their handicap or index from 36. The resulting number is the quota, or target for that player. Players earn points as follows: for bogey, one point; for par, two points; for birdie, four points and for eagle, six or eight points. The player who earns the most points above their quota wins. The bets are paid off in relation to the point differences among players. If Mark is an 18 handicap and earns 26 points, he is eight points above quota. If Andy is a 12 and earns 27 points, he is three points above his quota, and would owe Mark for the difference of five points. This is a great game for multiple foursomes.

Ringer Score

A multi-round tournament where each player posts their personal lowest score on the 18. If on day one of the trip, they score a 5 on number 1; on day 2 a 7 and on day 3 a 4, the ringer score is 4—-and so on for all 18. The 18 hole ringer scorecards are compared at the end of the trip to determine the winner(s). You can even put together a Ringer Score over different courses.

Whack and Hack

Members of the foursome each play their own ball for four individual scores. Two of those scores are combined to make up the team score for each hole. In Whack and Hack, the two scores that are used are the low ball and the high ball. So if the four players score 3, 5, 6 and 7, respectively, the team score is 10 (3 + 7). Sometimes there is an added rule: if the low ball for the hole is a birdie, then the team is allowed to count the two low balls as its score for that hole.