The established golfing formats of strokeplay and match play will always be the go-to for competitive golf events and most casual games we play will be completed using either stroke play, Stableford or Match Play.
But there are some other excellent formats out there to try and one of the most entertaining is the Skins game.
What is a Skins Game?
Normally played when you have either a three or fourball, each hole is worth one “skin.” That skin is often allocated a monetary value. If a player wins the first hole outright (full handicap is applied) they get the skin. If nobody wins outright, the skin is carried over and the next hole is worth two skins. This continues until someone wins a hole outright. When that happens, the next hole will be worth one skin again. The player with the most skins at the end of the round is the winner.
The pressure builds
Skins is a great format to play with your mates at the club
(Image credit: Tom Miles)
Quite often, at least two players in the group will tie the hole and the skins will build up. The game favours the bold player who might be prepared to take on a shot or make an aggressive putt at a key moment to pick up a healthy number of skins in one fell swoop. If players tied the first nine holes and then one player manages a birdie at the 10th hole, they will pick up 10 skins and will be untouchable in the overall game – only eight skins will be left to be won.
Consistency doesn’t always win
Aggressive play is often the way in Skins
(Image credit: Tom Miles)
You can also find someone can pop out of the blue to pick up a bundle of skins and win the game unexpectedly. One could play poorly all the way and be out of every hole before bagging an unexpected birdie at the death and picking up enough skins to surpass the other competitors.
Other versions
There’s “Back It Up Skins,” where instead of pocketing the prize, you can “back it up”.
If you do that, the next Skin is worth double if you win it, whilst the Skin you had won but laid on the next hole, is also worth double if you win it. If another player wins the hole,…
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