Strokes In A Match

How do you know how many strokes to give or take when you play in a match? And on what holes do you actually receive or give these handicap strokes?

In a singles match, the lower-handicap player plays at scratch and the other player receives the full difference between their Course Handicaps. To illustrate, suppose that Uncle Snoopy and Woodstock play a match. From the middle tees, Uncle Snoopy has a Course Handicap of 13, while Woodstock's is 20. Uncle Snoopy plays at scratch; Woodstock receives seven strokes from Uncle Snoopy (20-13 = 7).

In a four-ball match, the best player plays at scratch, and the other three players receive the full difference between their Course Handicaps and the Course Handicap of the best player. For example, Uncle Snoopy's Course Handicap is 13, Woodstock's is 20, Charlie Brown's is 15, and Lucy's is 10. Thus, Lucy plays at scratch while Uncle Snoopy receives three strokes, Woodstock gets 10 strokes, and Charlie Brown receives five strokes.

Handicap strokes generally are doled out on holes where they most likely will be needed by players to produce a half in a match. Check your scorecard to find out where you'll get or give strokes. Look for a horizontal line of numbers usually identified as "strokes."

Each hole has a stroke allocation number. The hole with the number 1 is the hole where you most likely will need a stroke to obtain a half It's logical, then, that a hole with the stroke allocation number 18 is the hole where you are least likely to need a stroke.

Let's look at Uncle Snoopy and Woodstock's scorecard. Woodstock will receive his strokes on the seven lowest-numbered stroke holes-the holes with the handicap numbers 1 through 7. You will notice that Woodstock receives a stroke on each of the holes identified on the front nine as strokes, 1, 3, 5, and 7. On the back nine, he receives a stroke on holes marked 2, 4, and 6.

Looking at a sample scorecard like this one gives you a good idea of how the handicap strokes are actually allocated. If the difference in Course Handicaps is greater than 18, say 20, then the higher-handicap player receives two strokes on the number 1 and 2 stroke holes, and one stroke on each of the other 16.

As you can see, strokes are given out according to the relative difficulty of a hole in a way that provides a boost just when you need it the most. If you're like most golfers, you won't mind a helping hand that makes your match more fair-and more fun.