| Type | Match or Stroke |
| Alias | Modified Pinehurst, Canadian Foursomes, Scotch Foursomes, Foursomes with Select Drive, Alternate Shot with Select Drive |
| Format | Game |
| Number of players | 4 |
| Team or Individual play | Team |
- Foursomes is a game played between two teams of two and can be played as either stroke play or match play.
- In this game, the two players of a team take turns in hitting the same ball throughout the round.
- For example, suppose Player A tees off on the first hole. Then, Player B will hit the second shot from where the ball landed, Player A will play the third shot, Player B the fourth shot, and so on, until the ball is holed.
- Players of a team also alternate hitting the tee shots so that only one player doesn’t hit all the drives. So, if Player A hits the tee shot on the first hole, then Player B would hit the second tee shot. Players usually decide who will tee off on the even-numbered holes and who will tee off on the odd-numbered holes before the round begins.
- The best scores of both teams are compared after each hole, and the team with the lowest score wins the hole. The team with the most wins at the end of the round wins the game.
Handicaps
Match Play:
- In match play Foursomes, the course handicaps of both players of a team are combined. The combined handicap of both sides is then compared, and the lower handicap is subtracted from the higher handicap. This figure is then divided in half and rounded off if necessary. The higher handicap team plays off the resulting handicap while the lower handicap team plays from scratch.
Example:
Suppose Team 1, consisting of players A and B, and Team 2, consisting of Player C and D, play against each other. Team 1’s combined handicap is 27, while Team 2’s combined handicap is 13.
We first subtract Team 2’s handicap from Team 1’s handicap:
27 – 13 = 14
This is then divided in half:
14 / 2 = 7
So, the team with the higher handicap (Team 1) plays with a 7-handicap allowance while the team with the lower handicap (Team 2) plays off scratch.
Stroke Play:
- For stroke play Foursomes, the handicap allowance for a team is 50% of the two players’ combined handicap.
Example:
Players A and B have a handicap of 12 and 15, respectively, and their combined handicap is 27. Dividing this in half, we get 13.5 which rounds off to 14. So, this team’s handicap allowance would be 14.