Casual game modes
These are the game modes a player can put on a casual round with friends. Open any one for its rules, a worked example and its settings. They belong to Casual Games only: none of them runs inside a tournament or a league.
Everyone plays their own ball and counts every stroke. The lowest total for the round wins.
Played net, each player's handicap strokes come off their score — one on each of the hardest holes, by the card's stroke index — so players of different abilities can compete.
For example
Sam shoots 88 with 16 strokes: net 72. Lee shoots 79 with 5 strokes: net 74. Sam wins by two.
The money
Either everyone puts the stake in and the winner takes the pot (a tie shares it), or it's so much a stroke and every player settles with every other for the strokes between them.
Played for stake — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Every hole is its own contest. The lower score wins the hole; the same score halves it. Your total for the round doesn't matter — only how many holes you've won.
The match is over as soon as one side is more holes up than there are holes left. Winning 3 up with 2 to play is written “3 & 2”.
With two players a side it's four-ball: everyone plays their own ball, and each side counts its better score on the hole.
For example
After 15 holes Sam is 2 up. Sam wins the 16th to go 3 up with 2 to play — the match is over, 3 & 2. One bad hole earlier cost Sam a hole, not the match.
The money
One bet on the match. The losing side pays the winning side the stake — in four-ball, each loser pays one winner. A halved match pays nothing.
Played for the match — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Each hole earns points against par: a bogey is 1, a par 2, a birdie 3, an eagle 4, an albatross 5. Two over par or worse scores nothing.
The most points wins. A disaster hole just scores zero, so one bad hole can't ruin the round — pick up and move on.
Played net, your handicap strokes come off before the points are worked out, so a net par is worth 2 whatever you actually shot.
For example
On a par 4 where Sam gets a stroke, Sam makes 5: net 4, a net par, 2 points. Lee, getting no stroke, makes 3 for a birdie: 3 points.
The money
Either everyone puts the stake in and the most points takes the pot (a tie shares it), or it's so much a point and every player settles with every other for the points between them.
Played for stake — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Points per hole, but on a scale that rewards attacking: a birdie is +2, an eagle +5, an albatross +8. A par scores nothing, a bogey costs you a point, and a double bogey or worse costs three.
The most points wins. Because a birdie earns more than a bogey loses, going for it pays.
For example
Sam goes birdie, bogey, par, double bogey: +2, −1, 0, −3 for −2. Lee makes four pars for 0 and leads — steady beats wild, unless the birdies come.
The money
Either everyone puts the stake in and the most points takes the pot (a tie shares it), or it's so much a point and every player settles with every other for the points between them.
Played for stake — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Each player has a quota: 36 minus their handicap strokes (39 in the version called Chicago). A scratch player has to make 36 points; a 20-handicap, 16.
You earn points on your actual score: a bogey is 1, a par 2, a birdie 4, an eagle 8. A double bogey or worse scores nothing.
Whoever finishes furthest over their own quota wins. No net scores to work out — the handicap is built into the target.
Over nine holes the quota is half — 18, or 20 for Chicago — less your strokes for the nine.
For example
Sam gets 16 strokes, so Sam's quota is 20. Sam scores 24 points: +4. Lee, off 5, needs 31 and makes 33: +2. Sam wins.
The money
Either everyone puts the stake in and whoever is furthest over their quota takes the pot (a tie shares it), or it's so much a point and — once the round is done — every player settles with every other for the difference between them.
Played for stake — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
You play a match against the course itself. Beat par on a hole and you win it (+1); match par and it's halved; anything over par and you lose it (−1). It doesn't matter by how much.
Add up your holes won and lost. The best total wins. Played net, your strokes come off first, so a net par is a half.
For example
Through six holes Sam has two birdies, three pars and a triple bogey: two holes won, one lost, +1. The triple cost exactly what a bogey would have.
The money
Either everyone puts the stake in and the best total takes the pot (a tie shares it), or it's so much a hole and every player settles with every other for the difference between them.
Played for stake — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Each player starts with a set number of strokes: the par of the round plus their own handicap strokes. You play until your strokes run out, and plant your flag where your last one finished.
Whoever gets furthest round the course wins. Finish the round with strokes to spare and you beat everyone who ran out — the most left over wins.
Also called Tombstone or Last Man Standing. The app works out where each flag falls from the scores: the last hole you completed, and how many strokes you had left for the next.
For example
Par is 72 and Sam gets 18 strokes, so Sam has 90. After the 17th Sam has used 87: three strokes left for the 18th, which won't be enough to finish it — the flag goes in on the 18th fairway. Lee holes out on the 18th with 2 to spare and wins.
The money
Everyone puts the stake in and whoever gets furthest takes the pot. A tie shares it.
Played for stake — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
For a group where not everyone has a handicap. Six holes are picked in secret — a par 3, a par 4 and a par 5 on each nine, where the course has them — and nobody knows which until the round is over.
Your scores on those six are added up (no hole counting for more than double par), multiplied by three, and par for the course is taken off. Eighty percent of that is your handicap for the day.
Take it off your actual score for your net, and the low net wins. The app picks the hidden holes when the game is set up and reveals them at the end. Handicaps entered for the round are ignored.
Over nine holes it uses three hidden holes the same way.
For example
On the six hidden holes Sam scores 31. Three times that is 93, less par 72 leaves 21, and 80% of 21 is 17. Sam shot 95, so Sam's net is 78.
The money
Everyone puts the stake in and the low net takes the pot. A tie shares it.
Played for stake — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
For a group where not everyone has a handicap. Your handicap for the day comes from your own card: the higher your score, the more of your worst holes are taken off.
A published table says how many: shoot 76 to 80 and one worst hole comes off; 86 to 90, two; 96 to 100, three — with half-holes in between and a small adjustment of up to two strokes either way.
Three rules keep it fair: no hole counts for more than double par, the 17th and 18th can never be among the holes taken off, and half a hole rounds up.
Take the handicap off your score for your net, and the low net wins. Handicaps entered for the round are ignored.
For example
Sam shoots 96. The table gives three worst holes and an adjustment of −2. Sam's three worst are a 7 and two 8s: 23, less 2, is a handicap of 21. Sam's net is 75.
The money
Everyone puts the stake in and the low net takes the pot. A tie shares it.
Played for stake — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Everyone on the team tees off. The team picks its best shot, and everyone plays their next shot from that spot — and so on until the ball is in the hole. The team has one score for the hole.
It's the tournament favourite: fast, forgiving, and nobody has to play their own bad shots.
Three common ways to play it. A plain scramble has no extra rules. A Texas scramble makes the team use a minimum number of each player's drives (four each is common in a foursome). A Florida scramble, or step-aside, makes the player whose shot was chosen sit out the next one.
The app takes the team's score for each hole. Counting drives and stepping aside are for the team to keep honest.
For example
All four drive. You take Lee's, in the fairway; all four hit from there and you take Sam's, 10 feet from the hole; Pat holes the putt. The team makes 3.
The money
One bet on the game. Each player on the losing side pays one on the winning side the stake; a tie pays nothing.
Played for the game — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Everyone on the team tees off. The team picks its best drive, and everyone plays their own ball from that spot until it's holed.
The team's score on the hole is its lowest individual score — or its two lowest, if you play best two. Enter each player's own score; the app can't see whose drive was used, so that part is on you.
It's a scramble's easy start with real golf afterwards. Also called a bramble.
For example
Four of you drive; the team takes Sam's in the fairway. From there you each play your own ball and make 4, 4, 5 and 6: the team scores 4, or 8 playing best two.
The money
One bet on the game. Each player on the losing side pays one on the winning side the stake; a tie pays nothing.
Played for the game — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Two teams. Everyone plays their own ball all the way round, and on each hole the team's score is its lowest individual score — or its two lowest added together, if you play best two.
With two a side this is four-ball. It keeps everyone involved without one bad hole sinking the team.
For example
On a par 4 your team makes 4, 5, 6 and 7. Best ball, the team scores 4. Best two balls, it scores 9.
The money
One bet on the game. Each player on the losing side pays one on the winning side the stake; a tie pays nothing.
Played for the game — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Best ball, except the number of scores that count changes with the hole. Played 1-2-3: one score counts on a par 5, two on a par 4 and three on a par 3.
Played 3-2-1 it's the other way round: three count on the par 5s and one on the par 3s.
Needs at least three a side, so there are always three scores to count.
For example
Playing 1-2-3 on a par 3, your team makes 3, 4, 4 and 5: the three lowest count, so the team scores 11. On the next hole, a par 5, only the best score counts.
The money
One bet on the game. Each player on the losing side pays one on the winning side the stake; a tie pays nothing.
Played for the game — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Best ball with a rhythm. On the first hole you play, the team's best score counts. On the second, its two best. On the third, its three best. Then it starts over: one, two, three, all the way round.
Also called 1-2-3. Needs at least three a side.
For example
First hole: your best score, a 4, is the team's score. Second hole: your two best, 4 and 5, make 9. Third hole: your three best, 3, 4 and 5, make 12. The fourth hole is one ball again.
The money
One bet on the game. Each player on the losing side pays one on the winning side the stake; a tie pays nothing.
Played for the game — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
On every hole one player on each team is the Lone Ranger, and their score has to count. The team's score is the Lone Ranger's score plus the best score among everyone else on the team.
The job rotates in the order the team is listed: the first player on the first hole, the second on the next, and so on round.
Also played as Money Ball, Yellow Ball or Pink Ball, where the Lone Ranger plays a marked ball.
For example
It's your turn as Lone Ranger and you make 6. Your teammates make 4, 5 and 5. The team scores 6 + 4 = 10 — your teammates' best ball couldn't rescue your hole.
The money
One bet on the game. Each player on the losing side pays one on the winning side the stake; a tie pays nothing.
Played for the game — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Two against two. Both partners play their own ball, and the team's score on a hole is the two added together.
Unlike best ball, a partner's bad hole always costs the team — so it rewards two steady players over one star.
For example
You make 4 and your partner 6: the team scores 10. The other pair make 5 and 5 for 10 as well — the hole is level.
The money
One bet on the game. Each player on the losing side pays one on the winning side the stake; a tie pays nothing.
Played for the game — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Two partners play one ball, taking alternate shots until it's holed. One of you tees off on the odd-numbered holes and the other on the even ones, whoever holed the last putt.
Its proper name is foursomes. It's quick — there are only two balls in play — and it leaves a weak partner nowhere to hide.
For example
You tee off on the 1st. Your partner hits the second shot to the green, you putt, your partner taps in: a 4. On the 2nd your partner tees off, whoever putted last.
The money
One bet on the game. Each player on the losing side pays one on the winning side the stake; a tie pays nothing.
Played for the game — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Both partners tee off on every hole. You pick the better drive, and then play alternate shots from there — the partner whose drive was not used plays the second shot.
It's alternate shot with a second chance off the tee. Also called Scotch foursomes.
For example
You both drive. Yours is in the fairway, so your partner plays the second shot, you the third, and so on until it's in.
The money
One bet on the game. Each player on the losing side pays one on the winning side the stake; a tie pays nothing.
Played for the game — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Both partners tee off. Then each plays the other's ball for the second shot. After those two shots you pick the better ball, pick the other one up, and play alternate shots until it's holed.
The player whose second shot was not chosen plays the third. Also called Pinehurst.
For example
You and your partner drive. You hit their ball, they hit yours. Yours — the one your partner just hit — is on the green, so you take it, and you putt first.
The money
One bet on the game. Each player on the losing side pays one on the winning side the stake; a tie pays nothing.
Played for the game — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Both partners tee off. Then the other side picks which of your two drives you have to play — and they'll pick the worse one. You play alternate shots from there, the player who hit that drive playing the second.
Greensomes turned upside down. Also called bloodsomes or yellowsomes.
For example
You're in the fairway; your partner is in the trees. Your opponents point at the trees. Your partner chips out, and you carry on with alternate shots.
The money
One bet on the game. Each player on the losing side pays one on the winning side the stake; a tie pays nothing.
Played for the game — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Every hole is worth a skin. Make the lowest score on the hole, alone, and the skin is yours. If the low score is tied, nobody wins it — however many of you tied.
With carryovers on, a tied hole's skin rides on to the next hole, so that one is worth two (then three…) until somebody wins a hole outright and takes the lot.
With carryovers off, a tied hole is simply dead and the next hole is worth one skin.
For example
Holes 1 and 2 are tied. On the 3rd, Sam makes the only birdie and takes three skins — the 3rd's and the two carried over. If the last hole is tied, the skins riding on it go unwon.
The money
Each skin is worth the stake from every other player: win a skin in a foursome at $1 and you collect $3. Carried-over skins are paid for when they're finally won.
Played for each skin — $1 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
A Nassau is three matches played at once: one over the front nine, one over the back nine, and one over all 18. Each is match play — win the hole with the lower score, halve it with the same.
The nines start fresh, so a bad front nine costs you one bet, not all three.
A press is a new bet that starts when a side falls behind, covering only the holes left in that nine. With automatic presses on, the app starts one whenever a side goes 2 down in a nine (or in a press of it) — it begins on the next hole and runs to the end of that nine.
Or let the players call presses themselves: tick one on the hole where it's called, on the nine or on the overall bet.
With two players a side, each side counts its better ball.
For example
A $5 Nassau puts $15 at stake. Sam wins the front nine 2 & 1, loses the back 1 down and halves the overall: Sam wins $5, loses $5, and the third bet is a push — all square. With presses on, had Sam's opponent gone 2 down after the 5th, a $5 press would have started on the 6th for holes 6 to 9.
The money
Each of the three bets is worth the stake, and so is each press. The losing side of a bet pays the winning side; a tied bet pays nothing.
Played for each bet — $5 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
For four. On every hole one player is the Wolf, in turn: the first player listed on the 1st, the second on the 2nd, and so on. On the holes left over at the end — the 17th and 18th of a full round — the Wolf is whoever is in last place.
Everyone tees off, and after each of the other players' drives the Wolf decides on the spot: take that player as a partner, or wait for the next. Pass on all three and the Wolf plays alone.
With a partner it's two against two, better ball: the winning pair each take a point from one of the losers.
Going it alone is Lone Wolf — one against the other three's best ball, for double. Calling it before anyone has hit is Blind Wolf, for triple. A tied hole pays nothing.
Groups differ on whether the Wolf tees off first or last; the app doesn't mind — just tell it what the Wolf chose.
For example
At $1 a point: Sam is the Wolf and likes Lee's drive, so it's Sam & Lee against Pat & Ross. They win with a 4: Sam and Lee +$1 each, Pat and Ross −$1 each. Next hole Lee is the Wolf, goes Lone Wolf and wins: +$2 from each of the three, +$6.
The money
So much a point. With a partner, each loser pays one winner a point. A Lone Wolf wins or loses two points with each of the other three; a Blind Wolf, three.
Played for each point — $1 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Two against two. On each hole a pair's two scores are put side by side to make a number, the lower score first: a 4 and a 5 is 45. A 5 and a 5 is 55.
The pair with the lower number wins the difference in points. A 45 against a 56 is 11 points.
A score of 10 or more goes first instead: a 4 and a 10 is 104, not 410 — still a disaster, but a survivable one.
With Flip the Bird on, a birdie lets you turn your opponents' number round, so their 48 becomes 84. If both pairs make a birdie, nobody flips.
For example
You make 4 and 5: 45. They make 4 and 6: 46. You win 1 point. Next hole you birdie for a 35, and they make 4 and 8 — with Flip the Bird, their 48 becomes 84 and you win 49.
The money
So much a point. Each player on the losing pair pays one of the winning pair the points on the hole times the stake.
Played for each point — $0.25 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Two against two, scored like Vegas: each pair's two scores make a two-digit number, and the lower number wins the difference in points.
The twist is which score goes first. If either of you makes par or better, your low score leads: a 4 and a 6 on a par 4 is 46. If neither of you does, your high score leads: a 5 and a 6 is 65.
So one of you making par is worth a great deal — it keeps your number small.
For example
On a par 4 you make 4 and 6: someone made par, so 46. They make 5 and 5: nobody made par, so their number is 55. You win 9 points.
The money
So much a point. Each player on the losing pair pays one of the winning pair the points on the hole times the stake.
Played for each point — $0.25 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
For exactly three players. Every hole is worth nine points: 5 for the low score, 3 for the middle one, 1 for the high one.
Ties split the points of the places they share: two tied for low get 4 each and the other 1; two tied for second get 2 each behind the winner's 5; all three tied get 3 each.
It's also called 5-3-1 or nine-point. Split Sixes is the same game with six points a hole: 4, 2 and 0.
For example
Sam makes 4, Lee 5, Pat 5. Sam takes 5 points; Lee and Pat tie for second and split the 3 and the 1 — 2 each. Nine points given out, as on every hole.
The money
So much a point. After each hole every player settles with each of the others for the difference in points between them.
Played for each point — $1 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
For four. The round is three six-hole matches, two against two, and you change partners for each — so everyone partners everyone else once.
Each six-hole stretch is its own better-ball match: on a hole the pair with the lower best score wins it. Whoever wins more of the six holes wins that match.
The order players are listed in sets the partners: the first plays with the second on holes 1–6, with the third on 7–12 and with the fourth on 13–18. Also called Hollywood or Round Robin.
For example
Holes 1–6: Sam & Lee beat Pat & Ross 2 up. Holes 7–12: Sam & Pat lose to Lee & Ross. Holes 13–18: Sam & Ross halve with Lee & Pat. Sam has won one, lost one — square. Lee has won two.
The money
Each six-hole match is a bet of its own: both losers pay one winner the stake. A halved match pays nothing.
Played for each match — $3 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Two against two, with two points on every hole. The first goes to the pair with the lowest individual score — the low ball.
The second goes to the pair whose worse score is the better of the two — the high ball. So the weaker player in each pair is playing for a point on every hole.
Played as Low Ball / Low Total, the second point goes to the pair with the lower combined score instead. A tie for either point means nobody gets it.
For example
You make 4 and 6; they make 5 and 5. You have the low ball (4 beats 5): a point to you. They have the better high ball (5 beats 6): a point to them. One each.
The money
So much a point. Each player on the pair that wins more points on a hole collects the difference from one of the other pair.
Played for each point — $1 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Every hole has three points to win. Bingo: the first player to get their ball on the green. Bango: the player closest to the pin once everyone is on. Bongo: the first player to hole out.
It only works if you keep to the proper order of play — whoever is furthest from the hole always plays next. That's what gives a shorter hitter the first go at the green.
Your score on the hole doesn't matter, so it suits a group of mixed abilities: a high-handicapper who is on in four but putts first can take two of the three points.
For example
On a par 4, Pat — shortest off the tee, so first to play the approach — hits the green first: bingo. Once all four are on, Sam is closest: bango. Pat, furthest away, putts first and holes it: bongo. Pat 2, Sam 1.
The money
So much a point. After each hole every player settles with each of the others for the difference in points between them.
Played for each point — $0.50 to start with, any amount, or points only.
On each hole one player is the Banker, in turn: the first player listed on the 1st, the second on the 2nd, and so on round.
Every other player then names what they want to play the Banker for on that hole — anything from the minimum bet up to the maximum. So the Banker is playing a separate match against each of you, for different amounts.
On the hole, each player's score is compared with the Banker's: the lower score wins that player's bet, and a tie is a push.
With birdies doubling, a player (or the Banker) who wins a bet with a birdie or better wins double.
For example
Sam is the Banker, bets from $1 to $5. Lee plays for $5, Pat for $1. Sam makes 4, Lee 5, Pat 3. Sam wins $5 from Lee and loses $1 to Pat: +$4 on the hole. On the next hole it's Lee's turn at the bank.
The money
Each player's own bet against the Banker, hole by hole: the lower score wins it.
Played for smallest bet — $1 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Each hole is played for the stake, one side against the other: the lower score wins it (the better ball, with two a side) and a tie pays nothing.
At any point during a hole, the side holding the hammer can throw it: the hole is now worth double. The other side must either accept — and they now hold the hammer, and can throw it back to double it again — or give up the hole there and then at what it was worth before the throw.
Tell the app how many hammers were accepted on the hole, and whether one was turned down. A hammer turned down ends the hole: the side that threw it wins.
For example
At $1 a hole: Sam's side throws the hammer after a good drive — $2. Lee's side accepts, then throws it back from the fairway — $4. Sam's side accepts and wins the hole: +$4. Had Sam's side turned that second hammer down, they'd have lost the hole for $2.
The money
So much a hole, doubled by every hammer accepted. A hammer turned down pays the thrower the hole's value before it.
Played for each hole — $1 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
The rabbit starts out loose. The first player to win a hole outright — the lowest score, alone — catches it.
Played the classic way, when a different player then wins a hole outright the rabbit is set loose again, and it takes another outright win to catch it. Played the simple way, the rabbit just passes straight to whoever wins a hole.
Whoever is holding the rabbit after the 9th wins the front-nine pot, and the rabbit is let go. It's run again on the back nine for a second pot. If nobody is holding it when a nine ends, that pot isn't won.
Over nine holes there is one rabbit and one pot.
For example
Sam wins the 2nd outright and has the rabbit. Lee wins the 5th: classic rules, the rabbit is loose. Nobody wins a hole outright until Pat takes the 9th — Pat catches it on the last hole and wins the front-nine pot.
The money
A pot on each nine: every other player pays the stake to whoever is holding the rabbit when the nine ends.
Played for each nine — $2 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
A putting game with no gimmes: everything is holed out. The first player to three-putt holds the snake, and keeps it until somebody else three-putts.
If two of you three-putt on the same hole, the last one to finish takes it.
Whoever is holding the snake at the end of the round pays every other player. Played with a growing snake, what they pay goes up with every three-putt in the round.
For example
Sam three-putts the 3rd and holds the snake. Lee three-putts the 11th and takes it. Nobody three-putts again — Lee pays everyone. With a growing snake at $1 and two three-putts in the round, Lee pays each player $2.
The money
At the end, whoever holds the snake pays each of the others the stake — or, with a growing snake, the stake for every three-putt in the round.
Played for the snake — $2 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
On every hole the lowest score — the ace — collects the stake from each of the other players. The highest score — the deuce — pays the stake to each of the others.
A tie cancels that half of the hole: two players tied for low means there's no ace, and two tied for high means there's no deuce.
So a hole can pay twice: the ace collects from the deuce as the ace, and collects again as one of the players the deuce pays. Best with four; it works with three.
For example
In a foursome at $1, Sam makes 3, Lee and Pat 4, Ross 6. Sam, the ace, collects $1 from each: +$3. Ross, the deuce, pays $1 to each: −$3. Net on the hole: Sam +$4, Lee and Pat level, Ross −$4.
The money
So much a hole for the ace, from every other player; and the same from the deuce to every other player.
Played for each hole — $1 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
On each hole one player is the defender, in turn: the first player listed on the first hole, the second on the next, and so on round.
The defender plays alone against the best ball of everyone else. Beat the others' best score and the defender wins the hole; lose to it and the defender loses; tie and nothing happens.
It's one against the field on every hole, and everybody takes their turn.
For example
It's Sam's hole to defend, in a threesome at $1. Sam makes 4; Lee and Pat make 5 and 6. Sam beats their best ball and collects $1 from each. Next hole Lee defends.
The money
So much a hole: a defender who wins collects the stake from each of the others, and one who loses pays each of them.
Played for each hole — $1 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
Dots — also called junk, trash or garbage — is a tally of small achievements, each worth a point, played alongside whatever else you're playing.
Birdies and eagles are counted for you from the card: a birdie is one dot, an eagle two.
The rest you tap in when they happen. A greenie is closest to the pin on a par 3, as long as you're on the green in one and make par or better. A sandy is par or better after being in a bunker.
The full set adds a barkie (par or better after hitting a tree), a chippy (holing out from off the green), an Arnie (par or better without ever being in the fairway) and a polie (holing a putt longer than the flagstick).
For example
On a par 3 Sam hits it closest and makes par: a greenie. Lee holes a bunker shot for birdie: a birdie, a sandy and a chippy — three dots on one hole.
The money
So much a dot. After each hole every player settles with each of the others for the difference in dots between them.
Played for each dot — $0.50 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
On every par 3, whoever is closest to the pin wins the hole's prize. The ball has to finish on the green to count; if nobody hits the green, nobody wins it.
On every par 5, the longest drive wins — and it has to finish in the fairway.
Tap the winner on each hole. Nothing else about your score matters.
For example
On the par-3 4th only Sam and Lee hit the green, and Lee is closer: Lee wins it. On the par-5 7th Ross is longest but in the rough, so the prize goes to Pat, longest in the fairway.
The money
Each prize is worth the stake from every other player to the winner.
Played for each prize — $1 to start with, any amount, or points only.
Settings the players choose
A mulligan is a do-over: hit a shot you don't like, drop another and play that one instead, without counting the first.
Everyone gets the same number for the round. Tap one in on the hole where you use it, and the app shows how many each player has left.
At a tournament they're often sold before the round to raise money. Enter the score you made with the mulligan — the app only counts them.
For example
With three mulligans each, Sam uses one off the 1st tee and another on a short putt at the 6th. Sam has one left for the back nine.
The money
Nothing rides on mulligans themselves — this is a tally.
Settings the players choose
Instead of handicap strokes, each player gets a length of string: a foot for every stroke of their handicap (or two feet, if you play it generously).
At any time you may move your ball by hand — out of a bunker, away from a tree, into the hole — without counting a stroke. Measure how far you moved it and cut that much off your string.
When the string is gone, it's gone. Play other games on the round gross, since the string is the handicap. Tap in the feet you use on each hole and the app tracks what's left.
For example
Sam has 18 feet. A putt stops 2 feet short on the 1st: Sam uses 2 feet of string and counts it holed. On the 5th Sam moves the ball 3 feet out from behind a tree. 13 feet left.
The money
Nothing rides on the string itself — this is a tally.
Settings the players choose
This page is for reading. Players start a round, and choose from these, on the Casual side of the app.