The 10 Man Golf Trip Format (Making an Odd Number Work)

Choose how you want to compete

Book three tee times with the course and agree on the group sizes. Two competition teams of five do not mean two fivesomes. Everyone plays the same format within a round; you can change the format for the whole group between rounds.

Option 1: five pairs playing best ball

Make five two-player teams. Both partners play their own ball, and the lower agreed gross or net score on each hole counts for the pair. Add those hole scores for the team total. All five pairs compete against the field, including the pair playing in the twosome. The two pairs sharing a foursome are not playing a separate head-to-head match.

Keep the same pairs if you want a simple competition across the trip. Over three 18-hole rounds, the lowest combined 54-hole best-ball total wins. Agree on a tie rule before teeing off. Rotate which pair gets the twosome so the same two people are not separated from the rest of the crew every day.

A two-player scramble is another way for the same five pairs to compete against the field. Both hit, choose a shot, and both play from there until the ball is holed. Use that format for everyone in the round and agree on its handicap policy. If you change formats between rounds, set the overall scoring method in advance rather than treating unlike round totals as interchangeable.

Option 2: five singles matches per round

Split into Team A and Team B, with five golfers on each. Each match is one A player against one B player. This gives you a team competition without needing partner sessions.

Award one point for a win and half a point to each side for a tied match. Three rounds put 15 points in play; eight wins the cup outright. The schedule below changes opponents each day.

Copy these singles pairings

Replace A1 to A5 and B1 to B5 with names. Each foursome contains two separate singles matches. Every golfer appears once per round, and no opponent repeats in these three rounds. Three twosome slots cannot give all ten players an equal turn, so agree on the grouping before the trip.

Option 3: individual Stableford

If the crew wants individual standings, play net Stableford. Use the same points ladder and handicap policy for everyone, then add each player’s points across the agreed rounds. A bad hole earns zero points rather than adding a large number to a stroke total. Groups of 4-3-3 can work here because you are not trying to keep complete singles matches or partnerships together; confirm that arrangement with the course.

Write down the rules before the trip

Agree on handicaps before the trip. USGA recommendations include 100% for singles match play and 85% for four-ball stroke play. In singles, the lower-handicap player plays off zero and the opponent receives the difference. In a field-wide best-ball stroke competition, apply the allowance to each player’s Course Handicap rather than treating each foursome as a separate off-low match. Check the chosen scoring tool against that policy.

• Competition: five pairs, two overall teams playing singles, or individual standings.
• Rounds and tee times: ___; names in each group: ___.
• Handicaps and tees: ___; gross or net: ___; allowance: ___.
• Round scoring and overall winner: ___; tie rule: ___.
• If changing formats, everyone switches together and the overall scoring method is agreed in advance.

Keep the plan easy to find

Put the round schedule and matchups where everyone can find them. Stymie gives the crew a shared schedule and scoreboard as results are entered. Check the supported format and standings setup before choosing it for your competition, especially a field-wide competition with five pairs.