Types of Play in Golf

There are two basic formats of golf: stroke play and match play.

In stroke play, golfers accumulate strokes over the course of 18 holes. The golfer with the fewest strokes at the completion of the round wins. Stroke play is more a player vs. the course approach than match play, which is player vs. player. Recreational golfers playing a "friendly game" usually play by stroke play rules, and they will give each other "gimmies"--which you will usually not find in match play.

In stroke play, order of play is a matter of etiquette. If you hit out of turn, it's a breach of etiquette, but there is no penalty. Teeing off from outside the teeing ground (the teeing ground is between the tee markers and up to two club lengths behind the tee markers) results in a 2-stroke penalty. If your putt strikes another ball on the green, you get a 2-stroke penalty.

In the rule book, just about every section concludes with a warning: "Penalty for Breach of Rule." If a golfer fails to follow the proper procedures set forth in the rules, he will incur a penalty in addition to any penalties set forth in that rule. That penalty in stroke play is usually 2 strokes, but in match play it usually means loss of hole.

In match play, players (or teams) compete to win individual holes, with the side winning the most holes claiming the match. Amongst all the variations on the theme, the best-known match play formats are those used in the Ryder Cup.

Ryder Cup Singles match play pits Player A against Player B, hole after hole. If Player A scores a 4 on the first hole while Player B records a 5, Player A wins the hole. Ties are called "halves" and are not played off (each side scores a half-point for their team).

In Ryder Cup-style competitions, this is common. However, in singles match play tournaments, such as the U.S. Amateur Championship, a match that is all square (or tied) after 18 holes continues on until there is a winner.

In "Fourballs", each side consists of two players. Each player plays his own ball throughout the round. On each hole, the low ball of the two players serves as that side's score. For instance, imagine that on the first hole for Team A, Player 1 scores a 4 and Player 2 scores a 5, so the team score is 4. If Team A gets a 4 while Team B scores 5, then Team A wins the hole.

"Foursomes" match play is one of the best-known forms of match play. It's not very common as a format used among friends during a casual round of golf. Foursomes pits two-person teams against each other, with each team playing one ball with alternate shot takers after every team-stroke until the ball is holed. The lower of the two teams' scores wins the hole.

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