Player Guides

A Player's Guide to Nassau, Skins, and the Other Games You'll See

2 min read · by theStick

Most of what gets said in a betting round comes down to a handful of formats. You don't need to understand all 66 games theStick supports — you need to understand whichever one your group is actually playing today. Here's the handful you'll run into most often, explained from the player's seat.

Nassau

A nassau is really three bets in one round: one on the front nine, one on the back nine, and one on the whole 18. It's scored by holes won and lost, not total strokes — so you'll hear someone say they're "2 up" or "down 1," which just means they've won two more (or one fewer) holes than their opponent so far in that segment. Losing the front nine bet doesn't affect the back nine or the overall bet — each is independent, which is exactly why a bad start doesn't sink the whole match. A press is a fresh bet a losing player can start mid-segment (commonly triggered automatically once someone's 2 down), giving a rough front nine a way to still pay off if the back nine goes well.

Skins

Each hole is worth a "skin," and you win it by having the outright lowest score on that hole — no ties allowed. If two players tie for low score, nobody wins the skin, and depending on your group's settings it either disappears or carries over, stacking its value onto the next hole. This is why a single late hole can suddenly be worth far more than the others — if several holes in a row tied, all those skins are riding on whoever wins the next one outright.

Wolf

Wolf rotates a decision-maker every hole. Whoever's the "wolf" that hole watches the other players tee off first, then has to decide, one player at a time, whether to take that player as a partner for the hole — or wait and see the rest, or go it alone against everyone else for a bigger payout if the group wins. It rewards reading who's swinging well that hole as much as it rewards your own game, which is why it's a favorite for groups that like the social, decision-heavy side of betting golf.

Best Ball (Four Ball)

Two teams of two, everyone plays their own ball the whole way, and each team's score on a hole is simply the better of its two players' scores. It's the most forgiving team format — one bad hole from you doesn't sink the team as long as your partner's ball is in good shape — which makes it a common choice when handicaps in the group are spread out.

You'll hear other games too — that's fine

Dots, hammer, banker, snake, and dozens of others show up as side bets layered on top of whatever the main game is. You don't need to learn all of them before you can play — if a game is unfamiliar, ask what it's worth per hole and how it settles, and everything else becomes clear within a hole or two of watching it play out. If you want the plain-English version of any specific term you hear mid-round — press, carryover, stroke index — the glossary covers exactly that vocabulary in one place.

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