Foursomes

Last updated

Foursomes, also known as alternate shot, is a pairs playing format in the sport of golf. [1] [2]

Contents

Golfers compete in teams of two, using only one ball per team, and taking alternate shots until the hole is completed. [3] [4] Team members take turns in teeing off on each hole, i.e. one player will take the tee shot on odd-numbered holes, and the other on even-numbered holes.

Foursomes is most commonly played as match play, with each hole being won by the team that completes it in the fewest shots. This form of golf is often played in team golf competitions such as the Ryder Cup, [2] Solheim Cup and the Presidents Cup.

Foursomes can also be played in stroke play competitions, with the winners being the team who have taken the fewest strokes to complete a set number of holes. Since 2000 this format has been used with alternating rounds of four-ball by the World Cup of Golf, [5] and since 2017, again combined with four-ball rounds, by the Zurich Classic on the PGA Tour. [6]

Variations

Greensomes, also known as "Scotch foursomes", follows the same format as foursomes except that both players tee off on every hole. The better ball is chosen and alternate strokes are then played to complete the hole. This format is used at the Bass Pro Shops Legends of Golf, where two rounds are played on a par three course; in each round, nine holes are played as greensomes and nine as better ball.

Bloodsomes, or gruesomes, follows the same format as greensomes except the opposition pairing choose which ball is played.

Chapman, also known as Pinehurst or American foursomes, [7] is a combination of alternate shot and fourball. The pair each play a ball from the tee, play their partner's ball for the second shot, before selecting which ball to complete the hole with. The players then take alternate strokes, with the next (third) being played by the player who hit the chosen ball from the tee. It is named after American amateur golfer Dick Chapman, who collaborated with the USGA in devising the system. [8]

See also

Related Research Articles

Match play is a scoring system for golf in which a player, or team, earns a point for each hole in which they have bested their opponents; as opposed to stroke play, in which the total number of strokes is counted over one or more rounds of 18 holes. In match play the winner is the player, or team, with the most points at the end of play.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sergio García</span> Spanish professional golfer

Sergio García Fernández is a Spanish professional golfer. He has played on the European Tour, PGA Tour and currently plays in the LIV Golf Invitational Series. García has won 36 international tournaments as a professional, most notably the 2008 Players Championship and the 2017 Masters Tournament. García was also the Chairman of Spanish football team CF Borriol.

Stroke play, also known as medal play, is a scoring system in the sport of golf in which the total number of strokes is counted over one or more rounds of 18 holes. In stroke play, the winner is the player who has taken the fewest strokes over the course of the round, or rounds.

The following is a glossary of the terminology currently used in the sport of golf. Where words in a sentence are also defined elsewhere in this article, they appear in italics. Old names for clubs can be found at Obsolete golf clubs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Presidents Cup</span> Golf tournament between the United States and an international team

The Presidents Cup is a series of men's golf matches between a team representing the United States and an International Team representing the rest of the world minus Europe. Europe competes against the United States in a similar but considerably older event, the Ryder Cup.

The Curtis Cup is the best known team trophy for women amateur golfers, awarded in the biennial Curtis Cup Match. It is co-organised by the United States Golf Association and The R&A and is contested by teams representing the United States and "Great Britain and Ireland". The same two teams originally contested the Ryder Cup, but unlike that competition, the Curtis Cup has not widened the Great Britain and Ireland team to include all Europeans. Many women who have gone on to become stars of women's professional golf have played in the Curtis Cup.

The Seve Trophy was a biennial golf tournament between teams of professional male golfers; one team representing Great Britain and Ireland, the other team representing Continental Europe. The tournament was played in years when there is no Ryder Cup. The competition was held eight times from 2000 to 2013.

The World Cup of Golf is a men's golf tournament contested by teams of two representing their country. Only one team is allowed from each country. The players are selected on the basis of the Official World Golf Ranking, although not all of the first choice players choose to compete. The equivalent event for women was the Women's World Cup of Golf, played from 2005 to 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">QBE Shootout</span> Team golf event on the PGA Tour

The QBE Shootout is a team golf event that takes place on the PGA Tour as an unofficial money event. It was originally played during the off-season, but now it is played during the wrap-around season's December break.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 Ryder Cup</span>

The 37th Ryder Cup Matches were held September 19–21, 2008, in the United States at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky. Team USA won 1612 - 1112 to end the streak of three successive victories for Europe. This was USA's largest margin of victory since 1981 and the first time since 1979 that the Americans had held the lead after every session of play. The team captains were Paul Azinger for the US and Nick Faldo for Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lexus Cup</span>

The Lexus Cup was an annual golf tournament played between 2005 and 2008 for professional women golfers contested by a team representing Asia and an international team representing the rest of the world. It was sanctioned by the LPGA Tour, but any winnings were unofficial and were not included in the LPGA money list standings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1997 Ryder Cup</span>

The 32nd Ryder Cup Matches were held at the Valderrama Golf Club in Sotogrande, Spain, marking the first time the event was contested in continental Europe. The European team won the competition by a margin of 1412 to 1312 and retained the Ryder Cup.

Four-ball is a pairs playing format in the game of golf. It is also known as better ball and best ball, although the latter more properly describes a variation involving teams of 3 or 4 players. It is also sometimes abbreviated as 4BBB.

The 2007 Omega Mission Hills World Cup took place from 22 November to 25 November at Mission Hills Golf Club in Shenzhen, China. It was the 53rd World Cup. 28 countries competed and each country sent two players. The team purse is $5,000,000 with $1,600,000 going to the winner. The Scottish team of Colin Montgomerie and Marc Warren won the tournament. They defeated the American team of Heath Slocum and Boo Weekley in a playoff on the third extra hole. This was the first time that Scotland won the World Cup.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Variations of golf</span> Activities similar to the game of golf

Variations of golf include methods of scoring, starting procedures, playing formats, golf games, and activities based on or similar to the sport of golf which involve golf-like skills or goals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Golf</span> Club-and-ball sport

Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outline of golf</span> Overview of and topical guide to golf

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to golf:

The 2015 Presidents Cup was the 11th Presidents Cup, played at the Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea in Incheon, South Korea from 8–11 October. It was the first time the Presidents Cup was played in Asia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Ryder Cup</span>

The 41st Ryder Cup Matches were held in the United States from September 30 to October 2, 2016, at the Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minnesota, a suburb southwest of Minneapolis. Europe entered the competition as the cup holders, having won in 2014 in Scotland for their third consecutive win.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 World Cup of Golf</span> Golf tournament

The 2018 World Cup of Golf was a golf tournament that was played from 22 to 25 November at Metropolitan Golf Club in South Oakleigh, Victoria, Australia. It was the 59th World Cup. The format is 72-hole stroke play; the first and third days were four-ball, and the second and fourth days were foursomes play.

References

  1. Ellwood, Jeremy (September 30, 2018). "The Difference Between Fourball and Foursomes". Golf Monthly. Archived from the original on December 17, 2019. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  2. 1 2 Woodard, Adam (September 26, 2018). "Ryder Cup format: Breaking down fourball, foursomes and scoring for non-golf fans". USA Today. Archived from the original on November 9, 2020. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  3. "Rules of Golf - Rule 22: Foursomes (Also Known as Alternate Shot)". The R&A. Archived from the original on August 12, 2020. Retrieved December 16, 2019.
  4. "Rules of Golf: Rule 22 – Foursomes (Also Known as Alternate Shot)". USGA. Archived from the original on December 12, 2019. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  5. "A quick guide to the World Cup of Golf: Preview, format, field, course, weather, live scores". Aussie Golfer. November 20, 2018. Archived from the original on December 17, 2019. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  6. "How it works: Zurich Classic of New Orleans team format". PGA Tour. April 18, 2019. Archived from the original on December 17, 2019. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  7. Kelley, Brent (June 12, 2017). "Explaining the Pinehurst Format (aka Pinehurst System)". thoughtco.com. Archived from the original on September 29, 2018. Retrieved September 29, 2018.
  8. Elliott, Len; Kelly, Barbara (1976). Who's Who in Golf . New Rochelle, New York: Arlington House. pp. 35–6. ISBN   0-87000-225-2.