Competition Ideas

[dagolfer18]

Hey guys! Over the past week or so, one of my coworkers and I have been thinking about setting up a competition between the two of us. In terms of handicaps we’re almost even (mine is 11.1, he’s a 12.1), so unless one of us gets dramatically better or worse before the match we’re gonna play straight up. Here’s a rough idea of what’s we’re thinking about:

•54 holes of match play that will most likely be over two days. It is also assumed that we’ll be playing the same tees in every round (probably blues)

•Day 1: 18 holes. We will aim towards a mid morning tee time for round one and probably travel a bit.

•Day 2: 36 holes. Will likely stick closer to home, probably Umstead in the morning (round 2) and Croasdaile in the afternoon (final round) with a lunch break in between.

•Wager: Either golf balls of the winner’s choice (most likely a dozen) or a shirt from the pro shop at Croasdaile. Enough pressure to where it’s treated as more than a friendly match but not to where we’re overwhelmed by it.

We also want a name for this competition so we know what we’re referring to other than just “the match”. 

So, there’s what we have right now, but I wanted to see if y’all had any ideas. We’re open to new ones!

[boogielicious]

Match play is a great way to do it. Make sure it doesn’t roll over into the next rounds so the slate is clean. Then the final 18 can be the showdown if you split the first two. You can also do most birdies, most pars, worst gross score on a hole, etc. for side bets.

[DoubleAce]

I'd think match play is the way to almost guarantee it stays pretty competitive. So you're on the right track there. Maybe do a hybrid with points. Something like 9 hole increment matches. Winner of each 9 gets a point. But don't fully reset. Second nine is a "clean" match. But still keep a running total for 18. So essentially 3 points up for grabs each full round.

I like boogie's idea to throw in some side challenges. Might be cool to do a half point for each birdie. One point for eagle.  Maybe something for par streaks? Half point for closest to the pin on par 3s, regardless of whether you even hit the green? Although with that approach, unlike traditional match play, you'd still want to putt everything out. 

I can tell you that even for a seasoned player, 54 holes of match play can get a little tiring/taxing. Especially on day two with 36 holes. So the side challenges would help keep the fun up. 

Will be curious to see what you come up with and how it goes!

[dagolfer18]

Just came up with a stableford point system that we might could use:

Eagle: 10 pts.

Birdie: 6 pts.

Par: 3 pts.

Bogey: 1 pt.

Double: 0 pts.

Triples or worse: -2 pts.

I think this would be a lot more fun than match play because while match play awards a great shot with just one hole, stableford can completely turn the tables with one hole. If I eagle a short par 5 and he doubles, that’s a ten point swing with my system.

Maybe we identify a few of the toughest holes on the course (in our opinions of course) and award a bonus point or two for making par or better.

Also, we’re most likely going to be playing a different course for each round, so not sure whether the points should be adjusted based on the difficulty of the course. My gut says no because we’re both going to be playing the same course under the same conditions, so it wouldn’t matter. The only thing I would do is alter them for the final round to make the final round a bit more interesting.

Edited May 30, 2022 by dagolfer18

[WillieT]

On 5/10/2022 at 9:00 PM, boogielicious said:

Match play is a great way to do it. Make sure it doesn’t roll over into the next rounds so the slate is clean. Then the final 18 can be the showdown if you split the first two. You can also do most birdies, most pars, worst gross score on a hole, etc. for side bets.

I like boog’s thoughts - maybe have it where you have individual day winners of match play.  Say you win round 1 4-3, he wins day two with 5-2.  Have a smaller prize on the table for those days.  Round three will be “spotted” start based on the cumulative scores of the two previous rounds. With the above scores you would be at 6 and he would be at 8.  He is two holes up so to speak, puts pressure on.  The big prize would be the overall winner based on the cumulative scores of all three rounds. You would still have a winner for round three, but the overall would be one with the best score over the three rounds.  

[Club Rat]

With the intent to compete over two days and multiple rounds, with Match Play or Stableford Points 
as the format between just two players, it could end up being a Lopsided win and the players would lose interest.

A format which may lead to leveling the competition and possibly keep both players in a competition 
throughout a Match would be to modify the Match scoring results.

One popular game known as a Nassau Betting game which allows a Player to Press when they are down 
might keep players interested.
We play a Six Hole Nassau with a Three Hole in between Bet.
An example is - Player A wins Hole #1 and #2, on the Third Hole Player B could press and if he wins the Match
would be tied with One Point each. If he would lose the hole, he would be down 2 points for the three holes played.
Scoring the Match is done through each Six Holes with One Point awarded to the winner of the combined Six Holes.
One Point is also awarded to each three-hole Match. In case of Ties, each player receives a Half Point.
Then add points for any "Hole Press" which are won.
A player also has the option to press the "Total" on the Fifth Hole to level to gain a point when losing.

The points would be totaled for Holes 1-6, 7-12 and 13-18 and then totaled for each 18 hole round played.
A separate bet could be played for each 18 holes if desired.