The 9 Best
Golf Betting Games

Ranked from most popular to hidden gem — with rules, best use case, and why each one is worth playing.

The best golf betting games make every shot matter, keep every player engaged for eighteen holes, and settle cleanly at the end. Below are the nine best formats, ranked from most widely played to the ones more groups should know about. Every game here can be set up and tracked automatically in bagboy.

1. Skins — The Most Popular Game in Golf

Skins is the king for a reason. Lowest score on a hole wins the skin. Ties carry to the next hole. That is the entire rulebook. A five-year-old can understand it. But the simplicity hides real drama: a skin that has carried over four holes is now worth five, and one putt decides who takes it all.

Best for: Any group size, any skill level, any stakes. The universal game.

Why it is number one: Zero learning curve. Works with two players or twelve. Creates the single most dramatic moments in recreational golf — the carryover skin that builds and builds until someone finally wins it outright.

Typical stakes: $2 to $10 per skin.

Full skins rules and strategy →

2. Nassau — The Backbone of Golf Betting

Three bets in one: front nine, back nine, overall. Match play within each segment. The press — starting a new bet when you fall behind — is what elevates Nassau from a simple match to a multi-layered competition. A $5 Nassau with auto-presses at 2-down can generate five or six separate bets by the eighteenth hole, all running simultaneously.

Best for: Twosomes and foursomes who want structured competition across the full eighteen.

Why it is number two: Nassau has been the default golf bet for decades because the three-segment structure means you are never out of it. Lose the front badly? Win the back and the overall. Presses add a comeback mechanism that keeps both sides engaged.

Typical stakes: $5-5-5 (front-back-overall).

Full Nassau rules and press examples →

3. Wolf — The Most Strategic Game

The wolf rotates each hole. After watching the other three players tee off, the wolf picks a partner for the hole or goes lone wolf against the field. Lone wolf pays double. Blind wolf (calling it before seeing any tee shots) pays triple. Wolf is as much about reading people as it is about playing golf. The partner-pick decision after each tee shot is the most strategic moment in any golf side game.

Best for: Competitive foursomes who want maximum decision-making and table talk.

Why it is number three: No other game creates the stories Wolf creates. The blind wolf call that paid off. The partner pick you regretted by the green. The lone wolf birdie that swung the entire round. It is the conversation starter at the bar afterward.

Typical stakes: $1 to $5 per point.

Full Wolf rules and strategy →

4. Match Play — The Purest Competition

Hole by hole. Win the hole, take the point. Your total score does not matter — only whether you beat your opponent on each individual hole. Match play is the oldest form of competitive golf and it changes your entire approach. You play the person, not the course. A bogey that beats the other player's double bogey is just as good as a birdie that beats their par.

Best for: Head-to-head competition between two players or two teams.

Why it is number four: Match play is the foundation that Nassau and many other formats are built on. It is direct, intense, and every hole is its own contest.

Typical stakes: $10 to $50 per match.

Full match play rules and formats →

5. Vegas — The Wildest Team Game

Two teams of two. On each hole, each team combines their scores into a two-digit number (lower score first). A 4 and a 6 becomes 46. The difference between the two teams' numbers is the point swing. The birdie flip — where the losing team's number gets reversed if anyone on the winning team birdies — creates point swings that are truly absurd. A 46 becomes a 64 in a heartbeat.

Best for: Foursomes who want a team game with big, dramatic swings.

Why it is number five: Vegas is the most fun team format because the birdie flip creates moments you cannot get in any other game. A birdie on a hole where the other team shot 4-7 turns a small win into a massive one. The math is wild, which is why having an app track it matters.

Typical stakes: $0.10 to $0.50 per point (Vegas points add up fast).

Full Vegas rules and birdie flip examples →

6. Dots — The Best Side Game System

Dots are a collection of bonus-point bets — greenies, sandies, birdies, poleys, barkies — that run alongside your main game. Each dot has a value. Earn dots by hitting specific achievements during the round. Dots settle separately and add depth to every shot without replacing the main competition. They reward things your main game does not: a great bunker shot, a clutch one-putt, an impossible par after hitting a tree.

Best for: Any group, as an add-on to any main format.

Why it is number six: Dots make your round about more than just the total score. Every shot has multiple things riding on it. They are also the lowest-stakes side game, so they work for groups that want action without big money.

Typical stakes: $0.50 to $2 per dot.

Full dots rules and categories →

7. Stableford — Best for Higher Handicaps

Points-based scoring. Double bogey or worse is zero. Bogey is one. Par is two. Birdie is three. Eagle is four. Highest point total wins. Stableford eliminates blow-up holes from the equation. If you make a triple bogey, you score zero and move on — it does not ruin your round the way it does in stroke play. Pick up when you are out of the hole and keep the pace moving.

Best for: Mixed-handicap groups and higher-handicap players who want a game that rewards good holes without punishing disasters.

Why it is number seven: Stableford is the most forgiving format. It keeps everyone in the game regardless of skill level and speeds up pace of play. The modified Stableford variant adds negative points for bad holes, which makes it more competitive for lower-handicap groups.

8. Sixes (Round Robin) — The Fairest Team Game

Four players rotate partners every six holes. Holes 1 through 6 with one partner, 7 through 12 with another, 13 through 18 with the third. Each six-hole segment is its own match. By the end, you have played with and against everyone. No one is stuck with a bad partner for eighteen holes. No one gets carried by a great one.

Best for: Foursomes who want team play but do not want the result to hinge on one partnership.

Why it is number eight: Sixes is the fairest team format because every player combination is represented. It also keeps the round fresh — new partner, new dynamic, every six holes.

9. Nines — The Best Threesome Game

Nine points distributed each hole among three players. Low score gets five, middle gets three, high gets one. Ties split points. After eighteen holes, the point differential between players determines payouts. Nines is purpose-built for threesomes — the only major format designed specifically for three players.

Best for: Threesomes. Period. If you have three players, this is the game.

Why it is number nine: Nines is ranked last only because threesomes are less common than twosomes and foursomes. For the groups that play with three, it is the best game available — better than three-player skins, more engaging than a three-way match.

How to Pick the Right Game

The best game depends on three things: how many players you have, how competitive the group is, and how much complexity you want.

Or stack multiple games on one scorecard. Most regular groups play two or three games per round. bagboy runs all of them simultaneously and nets everything at settlement.