Stroke play
Everyone counts every shot on every hole, and the lowest total wins.
How it works
Everyone plays their own ball and counts every stroke on every hole.
With handicaps, each player's strokes come off their total. The lowest net total wins.
Players with the same score on every hole share the place. Otherwise the tie is broken hole by hole, from the hardest hole to the easiest, net in a net round, and the lower score wins. The host can choose the last holes, a shared place or a playoff instead.
Good to know
- Picking up: if you pick up on a hole, you stay on the card but have no total for the round, unless the house rules set a most on a hole. The leaderboard shows Picked up, with no place.
- If the host chooses the last holes, in a shotgun start the last nine means holes 10 to 18, whatever order you played them in.
- On a nine-hole round, the nine holes played are compared hardest first, and the last-holes choice uses the last 6, 3 and 1.
A worked round
Net stroke play, each player getting 95% of their handicap.
The momentSam led by two with three to play. On 16 Kasper made 2 and Sam made 5, and Kasper won by one.
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Net |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Par | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 72 |
| Kasper | 72 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Sam | 73 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Jordan | 75 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Ike | 77 |
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Par | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 4 | |
| Kasper | ||||||||||
| Sam | ||||||||||
| Jordan | ||||||||||
| Ike |
| Hole | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Net |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Par | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 72 |
| Kasper | 72 | |||||||||
| Sam | 73 | |||||||||
| Jordan | 75 | |||||||||
| Ike | 77 |
| Hole | Par | Kasper | Sam | Jordan | Ike |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | ||||
| 2 | 4 | ||||
| 3 | 3 | ||||
| 4 | 5 | ||||
| 5 | 4 | ||||
| 6 | 3 | ||||
| 7 | 4 | ||||
| 8 | 5 | ||||
| 9 | 4 | ||||
| 10 | 4 | ||||
| 11 | 4 | ||||
| 12 | 3 | ||||
| 13 | 5 | ||||
| 14 | 4 | ||||
| 15 | 4 | ||||
| 16 | 3 | ||||
| 17 | 4 | ||||
| 18 | 5 | ||||
| Net | 72 | 72 | 73 | 75 | 77 |
Net scores, each player's handicap strokes already off. A circle marks a birdie and a square a bogey. The Net column is each player's total; the lowest wins.
Handicaps
Players get 95% of their handicap. The host can change the percentage when setting up.
Why that number? Each format has its own usual handicap allowance, set so a 20 and a 5 both have a fair shot.
House variations
Other ways to play it.
- Gross only: no handicap strokes, for a scratch game. Choose it under More options on the Game step.
- Peoria: two holes from each third of the course (one on a nine) set a handicap for the day from your scores on them. The host picks the holes in advance, or leaves them to the app to keep them secret until the round closes. Set by the host from More on the scoring screen: under Day handicap in the app, or Round, then Day handicap on the website. A day handicap needs stroke play, each player for themselves.
- Callaway: your worst holes come off your total by the published Callaway table, which depends on that total. Eighteen holes only. Set by the host from More on the scoring screen: under Day handicap in the app, or Round, then Day handicap on the website.
- System 36: two points for par or better and one for a bogey on each hole; your handicap for the day is 36 minus your points (18 minus your points on a nine). Set by the host from More on the scoring screen: under Day handicap in the app, or Round, then Day handicap on the website.