Golf how does match play work

In their medal game, Jack 'gives' 12 strokes to Tom. So who won? Even though Jack shot the lower score, Tom won because he played better compared to his own potential.

Match Play : So what then is match play? Match play is a hole-by-hole game where the lowest score wins the hole. If I shoot a five, and you shoot an eight, then in medal play I should gain three strokes. However, in match play I only win one point no matter how many strokes better I played the hole. If the players tie the hole, it is 'halved' no one wins a point. Once we are finished the golfer with the most points wins.

So how does the handicap come into play here? Let's stick with the same example. In the Jack and Tom example above, Tom would once again receive 12 strokes, but this time he would receive one stroke on each of the twelve hardest holes. In the example below, these holes are marked with a red x on the HDCP line. So who won here? First let's note a few things.

Since Jack kept score, he marked the holes he won as positive points, and the holes he lost as negative points. Second, on hole number six, although both players had fives, because it was the sixth hardest hole, Tom 'gets' a stroke, and wins the hole.

Create a personalised content profile. Measure ad performance. Select basic ads. Create a personalised ads profile. Select personalised ads. Apply market research to generate audience insights. Measure content performance.

Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors. Brent Kelley. Brent Kelley is an award-winning sports journalist and golf expert with over 30 years in print and online journalism. Updated August 31, The Definition of Halved or Halve in Golf. The Meaning of 'Medal Play' in Golf. Your Privacy Rights. To change or withdraw your consent choices for LiveAbout. At any time, you can update your settings through the "EU Privacy" link at the bottom of any page.

These choices will be signaled globally to our partners and will not affect browsing data. Match play is a variation of the more traditional scoring method of stroke play in golf. More emphasis is placed on the result of each hole as opposed to accumulating the lowest number of strokes for the entire round.

Match play differs from stroke play in that the scoring is based on the number of holes that are won during the round as opposed to the number of strokes accumulated. As a result, the number of strokes it takes to win a hole becomes virtually irrelevant. In effect, this type of play can be viewed as a series of 18 separate games within a round. In match play, the player or team with the lowest total score for the hole wins the hole and is awarded a point.

In team play, the lowest score on each team is often used to determine the winner of each hole. Match play has its own distinct terminology. For example, if one team has a four-hole lead after 16 holes, it means there is no way the second team can win and the match is over.