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Organized golf leagues offer opportunities for golfers of different abilities to play competitively under conditions which are almost fair to all players. When social groups have an annual golf outing, this event is similar to one of the events in a regular league. Selecting the type of game to play, which is fair to all, can be a complex matter, moreso for the league which has to come up with a different game every week. The purpose of this page is to help organizers of golf events select from a variety of games which are suitable to any particular group of golfers with established handicaps. A number of games are available to mixed groups of golfers and non-golfers without handicaps, but these are not covered here (the Peoria and Callaway systems, for example.)
Typically, golfers with established handicaps are characterized by flights A, B, C, and D. Handicaps 0 to 18 may be in the A flight, 19 to 24 in the B flight, 25 to 30 in the C flight, and 31 and over in the D flight. The limits are moved up or down in each flight to accomodate the number of golfers available so that each flight has about an equal number of golfers. This permits the formation of ABCD foursomes which are generally equivalent to all other ABCD foursomes and which compete against each other in the following types of games:
Additional refinement in the formation of ABCD groupings is sometimes done
by
averaging the handicaps, thereby creating the computation of a "team net
score".
One method simply divides the sum of the four handicaps by ten, then subtract
the result from the gross score. Usually, there are not enough "A" players
to go around, and teams who are blessed with a good golfer have an advantage.
A team composed of 6, 19, 28, and 36 handicap golfers will take advantage
of the skill of the "A" player. Another team composed of 16, 21, 24,
and 26 handicap golfers will be at a slight disadvantage because they cannot
match the individual skills of the best player on the first team. Further
refinement is sometimes done by manipulating the makeup of each foursome
until the average handicap of the teams is nearly equal. Teams blessed
with a good golfer have even a greater advantage when average team handicap
is used. The games listed above are self-explanatory, for the most part,
by their titles. They are played in youth, men's, women's, and senior
leagues throughout the golf world, and are easily arranged when the number
of golfers is steady at 12 or more foursomes. The focus of this page
is to discuss lesser known games which are required when the number of golfers
is:
The pairs are usually friends who ride together or who have been assigned by the league. Because the handicap within the pair is unbalanced, the mix of handicaps when twosomes are grouped into foursomes is out of control. This limits the number and type of golf games that can be played fairly. Except for "low net individual", all other golf games are unfair, ranging from statistically unfair to grossly unfair. The handicap is supposed to take care of these distinctions, but only does so when looking at the play of an entire season. The players prefer to play with their permanent partner and overlook the day to day mismatching as long as net scores are based on handicap, and the prizes awarded seem to even out across the length of the season. Leagues are, after all, social clubs.
In Low net individual (the predominate game), the golfer competes with other golfers in his flight. There are usually as many handicap flights as there are foursomes, so the competition is actually against three other golfers with similar handicaps. The flights are reorganized weekly as handicaps change. In a league of 36 golfers, there would be 9 handicap flights for this purpose, and a weekly prize of first and second place in each flight. The other games are played once or twice per season for a change of pace. They are all unfair in a twosome pairs organization.
At the time for the annual tournament, the twosome pairs would be broken up for the day, and the golfer play with his/her immediate competitors in flighted foursomes.
Points play, match play, and best ball are impossible to play with permanent twosome pairs. In these leagues, handicaps are often not limited to 36.
The remaining groups can be lumped into a single category for discussion. The problems are obvious. There is no way to form equally flighted groupings, and no good way to produce foursomes which can fairly compete with each other. However, the differences can be made statistically small by a combination of methods. The foursomes and threesomes can be arranged to be nearly equal in average handicap. And, the choice of games can be limited to those which prevent some players from having a distinct advantage over others. Other than "low net individual", which is the universal game in every circumstance, there are two choices; point scoring systems and scramble variations.
Since handicaps in these groups are not limited to 36, the points system is usually made generous as follows: 1 point for double bogey, 2 points for bogey, 3 points for par, and 4 points for birdie. This lets high handicappers into the game. See chart below.
The quota for each golfer is computed by subtracting his/her handicap from the handicap limit for the league (30, 36 or 54). Then,
Individual play: Net score = (points minus quota). For example, a ten handicapper in a league with a handicap limit of 36 would have a quota of 26 points. If his/her point score for that day is 30, then the net score would be +4.
Twosome play: Net score = (sum of points - sum of quotas), etc.
By this method, perfect pairings are unimportant. Winners are the pair of golfers who both have a best day. There should be no threesomes that day. If the number of golfers who show up require the formation of threesomes, then the event could be changed to to individual points or to threesome points (if all threesomes). However, if the groups are not all threesomes or all foursomes, then each group's score should be calculated as follows:
Threesome play: Net score /3
Foursome play: Net score /4
By this method, threesomes and foursomes can still be compared. On the day that you plan to play points, you don't have to decide on the size of the groupings until you see how many show up, and making a hasty rearrangement of the pairings is unnecessary.
Note that points can be played with either more restrictive or more generous distribution, e.g., par can be any number from one to five points. All other scores would be worth zero to nine points relative to par as a base. Point schemes A, B, F, and G (below) are most commonly seen. Event directors pick the scheme that seems best suited to the range of handicaps in their group. The use of point systems on the PGA tour encourages the players to take more risk in order to be competitive. In small irregular groups, point systems are used as handicap equalizers. In leagues where handicaps are limited to 36, then current handicap is subtracted from 36, and the result is the golfer's quota for that days play. This points variant is called simply quota golf and is played either as individual, twosomes, threesomes, or foursomes.
| A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | |||
| triple bogie | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | triple | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
| double bogie | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | double | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| bogie | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | bogie | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| par | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | par | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| birdie | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | birdie | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | |
| eagle | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | eagle | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
The ideal scramble competition should be among matched groups. Where ABCD groups cannot be fairly formed, then good groups can be put together using average handicaps, making sure that players from each flight are equally distributed across the groups. In other words, the breakpoint defining A's, B's, C's, and D's should be determined by ordering the players by handicap, then splitting the list into four equal parts. The sum of the handicaps divided by ten makes a good team comparison.
Handicaps up to 24 play from the regular tee boxes. Handicaps 25 and higher play from the forward tee boxes, which should make the course play about 1,000 yards shorter. The breakpoint between regular and forward tee boxes should be close to the median handicap for the league, or in some cases, confined just to the "D" players. Remember to form good ABCD foursomes.
Normal four-man scramble rules apply except the following:
Each team is required to select one (sometimes two) drives from each golfer on each nine hole side. The scorecards should be marked to show whose drive was selected on each hole.
Threesomes electing to play four balls in this event, may assign the first six holes to one golfer, holes 7 through 12 to another golfer, and the final six holes to the remaining golfer, or permit each golfer to alternate taking two shots, excluding any "A" player. There are a variety of rules regarding the playing of the fourth shot in a threesome. The first system (above) seems most fair to me.
If the teams are equally flighted, low score wins. If the teams are mixed, then the average or computed team handicap for each team will be subtracted from the gross score.
Option:
Requiring two drives per side is not popular with long hitters who feel that they are being taken out of the game. You can reduce that requirement to one drive per side if necessary. However, since the Texas scramble is devised to bring all parties into the game by putting high handicappers on the forward tee boxes, two drives per side is not really at any one's expense. Alternatively, you can require two drives on one side, but only one drive on the other.
There are many variations on the Texas scramble.
Normal four-man scramble rules apply except the following:
The player whose ball is selected by the group for playing the next shot is forbidden to participate in the next shot. This no-succession rule applies to every shot until the ball has been holed.
Each team could be required to select one drive from each golfer on each nine hole side. The scorecards should be marked to show whose drive was selected on each hole.
Threesomes electing to play four balls in this event, may assign the first six holes to one golfer, holes 7 through 12 to another golfer, and the final six holes to the remaining golfer, or permit each golfer to alternate taking two shots, excluding any "A" player.
If the teams are equally flighted, low score wins. If the teams are mixed, then the average or computed handicap for each team will be subtracted from the gross score.
Option #1: The no-succession rule could be changed to terminate once the ball is safely on the green of each hole, thus allowing every golfer to participate in putting until the ball is holed. The terminology for this option is called “through the green”, while regular play calls for no succession “through the cup.”
Option #2: The true Step-Aside Scramble is played from the tee box on the
first hole
through the cup on the eighteenth green. Instead of a 3 - man scramble
with four drives on every tee box, you will have four drives only on the
first tee. The team must carefully choose the golfer to hole short putts
because that golfer will not be allowed to hit a ball off the next tee. This
and the two games which follow are good strategy games for team development,
comaraderie, collaboration, and cooperation. And, they are fun to play
if the big egos are set aside. The ball closest to the pin is not always
the
ball to select for play. You have to think about which player has the
shot you need, and which player you can afford to have step aside for the
following shot.
Normal four-man scramble rules apply except the following:
A block of four consecutive holes, including at least one par three hole and one par five hole, on each nine holes will be selected for the 4-3-2-1 method of play. The player/driver whose ball is selected by the group for playing the first hole of the the 4-3-2-1 holes is not eligible to hit from the tee box on holes 3-2-1. The player/driver whose ball is selected for play on the second hole is not eligible to hit from the tee box on holes 2-1. The player/driver whose ball is selected for play on the third hole is not eligible to hit from the tee box on the last hole in the 4-3-2-1 group. Thus, there is only one player left to hit from the tee box on the last of the four holes. The four holes selected for 4-3-2-1 play on each side need not be contiguous. For example, holes 2, 4, 6, and 8 on the front, and 11, 13, 15, and 17 on the back or similar can be used.
There are no other drive requirements for foursomes.
In this game, threesomes are a nuisance, unless all groups are threesomes.
Option #1: Threesomes can play 3-2-1 in the same manner as foursomes would have played 4-3-2-1.
Scorecards should be marked to indicate which drives have been selected.
If the teams are equally flighted, low score wins. If the teams are mixed, then the average or computed team handicap for each team will be subtracted from the gross score.
A variation of this game is 6-5-4-3. In this game, the A player gets
exactly 6 drives from the tee box, the B player 5 drives, the C player 4
drives, and the D player gets 3 drives.
As in 4-3-2-1, the strategy for each team is to select the right drive on
each hole to play so that the team effort does not suffer when the weaker
member's drive must be taken. This game is a mental exercise, and selecting
the right drive to play on each hole is an art. Threesomes are a problem
in this game, and I suggest that they play 8-6-4.
This game is a variation upon "Best Ball Foursome" in that the players play their own game, but the score achieved by the X-out or Red Ball is the team score. Each team is given an orange or yellow ball (marked for the occasion). The players take turns, and each golfer plays that ball for at least four of the 18 holes. Any two golfers are selected by the team to play the special ball on the 17th and 18th holes. At the end of the round, each team must return their marked ball to scoring officials. Teams who have lost their ball are disqualified.
Red Ball requires ABCD foursomes, and is best played when water and OB hazards are at a minimum.
Option #1: Two red balls :
If the team has been given two balls, then the loss of one ball results in a 5 or 10 stroke penalty. This keeps all the teams in the competition.
Option #2: Two Best Ball Foursome.
In this option, the best net score among the other three golfers on each hole is added to the red ball score. The sum of these two scores becomes the team score.
While not usually played as a team event, the following variations can be played as twosome, threesome, or foursome best ball.
A guide to game variations which includes individual betting formats can
be found at
http://golf.about.com/cs/golfterms/a/formatsbets.htm
Computer software for management of golf
leagues at www.golfsoft.com, and others.
In addition to the USGA handicap system, there are a number of other schemes
which work well in small leagues. For example:
There must be other games suitable for small or mismatched groups or mixed threesomes and foursomes which I have not yet played. I hope that the reader will write to tell me of their experience or suggestions.
Tom Clothier
manytimes REMOVETHISPART @ REMOVETHISPART mfi.net
Above is my e-mail address, coded to prevent robot created bulk mail. No
spaces.
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