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| | Golf Competition Formats
| An article from Used Golf Clubs and Golf Bags UK
| | There are many formats of golf competitions, many using the handicapping system to make it possible for players of all levels to compete against each other. Some are individual competitions, but there are many team competitions. If you can't tell stableford from stroke play or greensomes from foursomes we have them all explained here.
Stableford
Stableford is a method of scoring the golf round to take into account each player's handicap and enable players of different levels to compete against each other. Since the scoring is per hole it tends to benefit players with higher handicaps since one hole played badly results only in the loss of a small number of points which can be compensated for by a well played hole.
The method works by adjusting the par of each hole according to the player's handicap and the difficulty of the hole, so a player with a higher handicap will be allowed more strokes to complete a difficult hole.
Each hole on the course is given a difficulty level (the stroke index) from 1 to 18, with 1 being the hardest and 18 being the easiest, this number is printed on the score card. Before starting to play each player works out their adjusted par for each hole according to their handicap. Each player receives an extra number of strokes equal to their handicap which are then distributed among the holes according to their difficulty. So a player with a handicap of e.g 24 will add 1 extra stroke to the par each hole from 1 to 18, then will add the 6 remaining strokes to the most difficult 6 holes on the course starting with stroke index 1.
Scoring - as each hole is played the player gains a number of points according to their adjusted par.
0 points for 3 over par
1 point for 1 over par (bogey)
2 points for par
3 points for 1 under par (birdie)
4 points for 2 under par (eagle)
Example. On a hole with a course par of 5 the player has added 2 strokes to make an adjusted par of 7. He completed the hole in 6 strokes, which is 1 under the adjusted par for the hole and gives him 3 points.
If a player has taken too many strokes on a hole so that no points can be scored this is called (informally) a 'blob'. It is usual to pick up the ball at this point and not complete the hole in order to keep the pace of play moving.
At the end of the round the points are totalled and the player with the most points wins the game. A player playing to his handicap would expect to finish with 36 points which would be par for the course.
Medal/Stroke Play
In Medal or Stroke Play every stroke taken during a round is counted and the player with the lowest total is the winner. In a handicap competition each player's handicap is subtracted from their gross score to give the nett score and the player with the lowest nett score is the winner.
Playing medal or stroke play competitions is very different from playing stableford competitions as every stoke counts and every hole must be completed or the player will be disqualified.
Match Play
In Match Play players (or teams of players) play against each other rather than against the course. The opponents play to win holes, the winner being the player (or team) who wins the most holes by taking the lowest number of strokes to complete the hole. If both players (or teams) record the same lowest number of strokes the hole is 'halved' and no team wins the hole. In a handicap competition the number of strokes required to win the hole would be adjusted by the extra strokes allowed for each hole by the player's handicap.
SinglesTwo players compete against each other.
DoublesTwo teams of two players compete for each hole, each player playing the hole normally. The team whose player wins the hole taking the hole.
FoursomesTeams of two players compete, but each team plays with one ball, each team player taking alternate shots at the ball. Team players alternate tee shots, one player taking the odd holes and the other player taking the even holes.
Greensomes is a version of foursomes, teams of two players compete, both players tee off then the best shot is selected and the players play that ball alternately until it is holed.
Scoring As each game progresses the score is kept as the number of holes each player (or team) is up (or down) on the other.
Example
Hole 1:Team A wins - Team A is +1, Team B is -1
Hole 2:Team A wins - Team A is +2, Team B is -2
Hole 3:Team B wins - Team A is +1, Team B is -1
Hole 4:Hole is halved (neither team wins) - Team A is +1, Team B is -1
Hole 5:Team B wins - Team A is 0, Team B is 0
Hole 6:Team B wins - Team A is -1, Team B is +1
The match is finished when there are not enough holes left for one team to be able to win enough holes to win. For example - after playing hole 15 Team A is +4, Team A wins the match as it is impossible for Team B to win 4 holes with only 3 left. Team A is said to win 4 and 3 (4 up and 3 holes to go).
If the teams are both at 0 after playing hole 18, then a tie-breaker must be played. This is usually 'sudden death' where the teams play additional holes and the first team to win a hole wins the match.
Best Ball
Best Ball is a team game played with 2, 3 or 4 players in a team. Each player plays their own game and the best score for each hole (adjusted for handicaps) is recorded as the team score. Best ball is usually played as stroke play so the team with lowest recorded score for the round is the winner.
Scramble
A Scramble competition is very popular for charity and club matches. It's a team competition, usually of 4 players but it can be played with teams of 2. Each member of the team tees off, the best shot is selected and all players play their own ball from that point, this is repeated until the ball is holed. In a Texas Scramble a set number of tee shots from each player in the team must be used.
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