Golf Betting Glossary: Every Term You Need to Know

The Terms You'll Hear on the Course

Golf betting has its own language. Some of it is universal, some of it changes from group to group, and some of it sounds made up until you hear it at the turn and suddenly owe someone $10 for a barkie.

This glossary covers every term you're likely to encounter — from the basics like Nassau and Skins to the deeper vocabulary of presses, carryovers, and junk bets. Terms are grouped by category so you can learn the vocabulary that matters for your game, and every term links to the guide where it's explained in full.

Betting Formats

These are the games themselves — the structures that determine how you bet, score, and settle.

Nassau

Three separate bets in one round: front nine, back nine, and overall 18 holes. A "$10 Nassau" means $10 on each segment — $30 total at risk before any presses. The most popular betting format in golf because you can lose the front, win the back, and still break even on the overall. Full Nassau guide →

Skins

Each hole is worth a set amount (a "skin"). Win the hole outright and you take the skin. If two or more players tie, the skin carries over to the next hole. One good hole can be worth four or five skins if enough ties stack up. Full Skins guide →

Wolf

A four-player game where one player (the Wolf) watches everyone tee off, then picks a partner for the hole — or goes Lone Wolf for double stakes. The Wolf rotates each hole. Full Wolf guide →

Match Play

Head-to-head, hole by hole. Win a hole, go 1 up. Lose a hole, go 1 down. Ties are halved. The match ends when one player is up by more holes than remain. The oldest and purest format in competitive golf. Full Match Play guide →

Snake

A side bet where three-putts are the only thing that matters. Three-putt and you hold the snake. Someone else three-putts, they take it. Whoever holds the snake at the end of 18 pays everyone. Full Snake guide →

Vegas

Two-person teams combine their scores into a two-digit number. If one player makes 4 and the other makes 5, the team score is 45. The difference between team numbers determines the payout. Also called Las Vegas. Full Vegas guide →

Scotch

A two-person team game with four to six scoring categories per hole: low ball, low total, proximity, and more. Win a category, win a point. Sweep all categories and the umbrella doubles everything. Also called Six-Point Scotch. Full Scotch guide →

Nine Point

Nine points distributed among three players each hole. Best score gets 5, worst gets 1, middle gets 3. Ties split. Also called Nines or 5-3-1. Full Nine Point guide →

Split Sixes

Six points distributed among three players each hole. Best gets 4, worst gets 0, middle gets 2. Similar to Nine Point but the worst score gets nothing — more punitive. Also called English. Full Split Sixes guide →

Sixes

Four players rotate partners every six holes, so everyone plays with every possible pairing across 18. Each six-hole match is scored separately. Also called Hollywood or Round Robin. Full Sixes guide →

Junk

A point-based side bet where specific achievements earn "dots" — greenies, sandies, barkies, and more. The most customizable format in golf. Also called Dots, Trash, or Garbage. Full Junk guide →

Quota

Each player gets a point target based on their handicap (36 minus your course handicap). Earn points with birdies, pars, and eagles. Beat your quota, win the difference. The only game purpose-built for large groups — works for 4 to 30+ players. Also called Chicago. Full Quota guide →

Betting Mechanics

The rules within the games — how bets start, escalate, and resolve.

Press

A new side bet that starts mid-round when you're losing. It runs alongside the original bet for the remaining holes in that segment. In a $5 Nassau, pressing on hole 4 of the front nine creates a second $5 bet covering holes 4 through 9 while the original bet stays active. Presses are primarily a Nassau mechanic. Full press guide →

Auto-Press

A press that triggers automatically at a set threshold — most commonly when a player falls 2 holes down. Removes negotiation, keeps the game moving. The alternative is manual press, where the trailing player chooses when.

Manual Press

A press initiated by the trailing player at a time of their choosing, rather than triggering automatically. Adds a strategic layer — you pick the moment when you feel your game is turning. Requires being at least 1 down.

Press the Press

Pressing an already-active press. If you pressed on hole 4 and you're now 2 down in that press on hole 7, pressing again creates a third parallel bet. The bets stack independently, and the math gets complex fast.

Carryover

When a Skins hole ties, the value rolls to the next hole. If holes 3 and 4 both tie, hole 5 is worth three skins. Carryovers create the tension that makes Skins dramatic — one clutch birdie can sweep four holes' worth of value.

Hammer

A dare bet. One side "throws the hammer," doubling the stakes on the current hole. The other side can accept (play at double) or drop (concede the hole at current value). Some groups allow the opponent to "hammer back," doubling again. Used in Wolf and some Scotch variations.

Roll

Another name for hammer, used in Scotch. Same mechanic — one team challenges the other to double the hole's value.

Umbrella

In Scotch, winning every category on a single hole (low ball, low total, proximity, etc.) triggers the umbrella — all points on that hole are doubled. The ultimate sweep bonus.

Blitz

Beating every other player by 2 or more strokes on a hole. In Split Sixes and Nine Point, a blitz awards all points on the hole to the winner. Some groups call it a shutout.

Birdie Double

A variation used in Nine Point and Split Sixes where all points on a hole are doubled when someone makes birdie or better. Stacks with blitz — a birdie blitz in Split Sixes is worth 12 points on a single hole.

Lone Wolf

In Wolf, declining to pick a partner and playing the hole 1 vs. 3. If the Wolf wins, the payout doubles. If the Wolf loses, the Wolf pays all three. High risk, high reward.

Blind Wolf

Declaring Lone Wolf before anyone tees off. Triples the stakes in most groups. You're betting on yourself without seeing a single tee shot. Some groups require each player to go Blind Wolf at least once per round.

Pig

A Wolf variation where the selected partner can reject the Wolf's invitation. If they refuse, the Wolf goes lone — but at double stakes. Forces the Wolf to consider whether the partner actually wants the pairing.

Dormie

In Match Play, the match is dormie when one player is up by exactly as many holes as remain. If you're 3 up with 3 to play, you're dormie — your opponent needs to win every remaining hole to tie. The term comes from the French dormir (to sleep), as in "the match is sleeping."

Closing Out

Winning a Match Play match before the 18th hole. If you're 4 up with 3 to play (4 & 3), the match is over. The margin is stated as "holes up & holes remaining" — a 3 & 2 win means 3 up with 2 to play.

Validation

A Skins rule where winning a hole isn't enough — you must par or better the following hole to claim the skin. If you don't validate, the skin goes back into the pot and carries over. Adds a confirmation layer that prevents a lucky double-bogey-wins-because-everyone-else-tripled from sticking. Not all groups play with validation, so agree before the first tee.

Scoring & Handicaps

How scores are counted and how handicap strokes level the field.

Gross

Your actual score with no handicap adjustment. If you took 5 strokes on a hole, your gross score is 5. Quota is the main game that uses gross scoring — the handicap is baked into your target, not applied per hole.

Net

Your score after handicap strokes are subtracted. On a hole where you receive a stroke, your net score is one less than your gross score. A 20-handicap who shoots 5 on a stroke hole plays it as a net 4. Most casual golf betting uses net scoring. Full handicaps guide →

Off the Low Man

The most common handicap method in golf betting. The lowest-handicap player plays at scratch (0 strokes), and everyone else receives the difference between their handicap and the low player's. In a group with handicaps 5, 12, 20, and 28: the 5 plays scratch, the 12 gets 7 strokes, the 20 gets 15, and the 28 gets 23.

Stroke Hole

A hole where a player receives a handicap stroke based on the course's stroke index (difficulty ranking). The hardest holes (stroke index 1, 2, 3) are where strokes are given first. A player receiving 7 strokes gets one stroke on each of the 7 hardest-rated holes.

Stableford

A point-based scoring system: bogey = 1, par = 2, birdie = 3, eagle = 4, double bogey or worse = 0. Quota uses Stableford points with a personal target based on your handicap. Modified Stableford (used on the PGA Tour at the Barracuda Championship) uses a different scale with negative points for bogey and worse.

Junk Categories

Individual side bets within Junk (Dots/Trash/Garbage). Each one rewards a specific achievement on a hole.

Greenie

Hitting the green in regulation on a par 3 and finishing closest to the pin — but only if you make par or better. Miss the putt and you lose the greenie even if you were closest. The most common junk category.

Sandy

Making par or better from a bunker. Getting up and down from the sand. Also called sandie. One of the most satisfying dots to earn because it rewards recovery.

Barkie

Making par or better after hitting a tree. Yes, your ball has to physically hit a tree during the hole. Proof is on the honor system (or the sound everyone heard). One of the quirkier junk categories.

Arnie

Making par on a par 5 without hitting the green in regulation. Named after Arnold Palmer. You missed the green but still got your par through scrambling. Not all groups include this one.

Chippie

Getting up and down (holing out in two shots) from off the green. Similar to a sandy but from anywhere off the putting surface — rough, fringe, fairway.

Poley

Making the longest putt on a hole. Some groups require it to be over a certain length (like 15 or 20 feet). Also called pole winner. Tracks putting heroics.

Ferret

Holing out from off the green — a chip-in, a pitch that drops, a bunker shot that finds the bottom of the cup. Rarer and more dramatic than a chippie, which just requires getting up and down.

Prox

Short for "proximity to the pin," a category in Junk where the player closest to the hole in regulation on par 3s wins a dot. Worth noting: prox heavily favors low handicappers because hitting greens in regulation is a ball-striking skill that doesn't adjust for handicap.

Settlement

How money changes hands after the round.

Settlement

The process of calculating who owes whom after 18 holes. The part of golf betting that causes the most arguments, which is why tracking apps exist. Full settlement guide →

Zero-Sum

A settlement is zero-sum when every dollar won by one player is lost by another. Add up all net winnings and losses and the total is exactly $0.00. Stick verifies this for every game — if the numbers don't balance, the math is wrong.

Pairwise Settlement

Each player settles independently with every other player. In a four-player game, that's six individual transactions between every pair of players. Used in Nassau, Skins, and Match Play. More complex than a pot but ensures every matchup counts.

Pot Settlement

Everyone contributes to a central pool and the winner (or top finishers) take the pot. Used in some Skins formats and Quota. Simpler than pairwise but doesn't reflect individual head-to-head results.

Single Liability

One player holds all the risk. Used in Snake — whoever is holding the snake at the end pays everyone else. Nobody else owes anything.

Common Phrases

Things you'll hear between the tee box and the 19th hole that aren't formal terms but are part of the language.

"I'm pressing"

The universal announcement that you're starting a new press bet. Usually said after a bad hole with varying degrees of frustration or bravado. In groups with auto-press, the announcement is more of a notification than a decision.

"The snake is with you"

A reminder — usually from someone who doesn't have the snake — that you're holding it. Tends to come up right before a difficult putt. The goal is purely psychological.

"Good good?"

A mutual concession in Match Play where both players agree their remaining putts are close enough to count. Both pick up and the hole is halved. Strategic when you want to avoid the risk of a miss but don't want to concede the other player's putt unilaterally.

"That's a dot"

Calling out a junk achievement as it happens. "That's a sandy." "That's a greenie." The group needs to acknowledge it because Junk relies on everyone agreeing in real time.

"What are we playing for?"

The question that should be answered before the first tee, not on the 3rd hole. Covers the game format, stakes, handicap method, press rules, and any junk categories. The group that settles this cleanly up front is the group that stays friends.

Game Aliases

The same game goes by different names depending on where you play. If you heard a name and can't find it, check here.

Looking for the rules to a specific game? Browse all 12 game guides →

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