Golf Side Games: The Complete Guide
Almost every foursome plays for something — a dollar a skin, a press on the back nine, lunch for the loser. These are the side games golfers actually play, how each one works, and which fits your group.
What is a golf side game?
A side game — also called side action — is a bet that runs alongside your normal round. You still play your own ball and post your own score, but every hole also pays into a game: a skin for the low score, points for hitting the green, a pot that doubles when someone throws the hammer. Side games give every hole stakes, even when the round itself is going sideways.
Most groups play for small money — a quarter a point, a dollar a skin — because the fun isn't the amount. It's the carryovers, the presses, and the trash talk.
The classic money games
Skins
Low score on the hole wins the skin. Ties carry over, so pots stack — three skins can ride on one swing. The most-played betting game in golf. Full Skins rules →
Wolf
Each hole one player is the Wolf: watch the tee shots, pick a partner — or go Lone Wolf and play one against everyone for double the money. Full Wolf rules →
Wolf Scotch
Regular Wolf, but each hole splits 8 Scotch points across low ball, low total, birdies and proximity — sweep them all for a Blitz that doubles the lot. More math, more swings. Full Wolf Scotch rules →
Banker
The low scorer becomes the Banker and takes on everyone individually. Press to double your bet — and the Banker can press back, up to 4×. One bad Banker hole swings the round. Full Banker rules →
Hammer
Team best-ball where either side can "throw the hammer" after any shot, doubling the pot. Opponents fold and pay, or match and play on. Pots escalate fast. Full Hammer rules →
Nassau
The most common bet in golf: separate match-play wagers on the front nine, back nine and total 18 — with presses that stack the pressure when you fall behind. Full Nassau rules →
Sixes
Also called Round Robin: partners rotate every six holes, so you team with everyone once. Three quick better-ball matches in a single round. Full Sixes rules →
Match Play
Head-to-head, hole by hole, with a team-play selector for Singles, Fourball, Foursomes and Bloodsome (your opponents pick which of your drives you're stuck with) — plus presses. Full Match Play rules →
Vegas
Each team's two scores form a two-digit number, low first; the lower number wins the difference, and a birdie flips your opponents' number the wrong way. Keep the stake small. Full Vegas rules →
Points games (great for mixed skill levels)
Bingo Bango Bongo
Three points per hole: first on the green (bingo), closest once everyone's on (bango), first to hole out (bongo). Long hitters get no edge — order of play levels everything. Full Bingo Bango Bongo rules →
DOTS
Earn a dot for fairways, greens in regulation, one-putts, sand saves, birdies and more. The fairest game for groups with mixed handicaps — you compete against the course, then settle dot-for-dot. Full DOTS rules →
Nines
Nine points per hole, split 5–3–1 by score. The cleanest math in golf and the best game ever invented for three players. Full Nines rules →
Landmines
Acey-deucey scoring (low wins, high pays) plus penalty points for hazards — water, sand, three-putts. Every mistake costs you. Not for the faint of heart. Full Landmines rules →
Par-3 and bonus games
Bolt-on games for extra action on the short holes — most groups run one or two alongside a main game: Greenies (hit the green off the tee on a par 3 and make par), Sandies (up-and-down from a bunker), and Closest to the Pin.
Feeling lucky? The wild card
Chaos Card
Hidden cards flip on random holes — double-downs, skill challenges, and rule twists like one-club or scramble tees. Play it on its own or layer it over your other games to multiply the stakes. Full Chaos Card rules →
How to pick the right game for your group
Four players, similar skill: Skins or Wolf. Mixed handicaps: DOTS or Bingo Bango Bongo — they reward good shots, not just low scores. Exactly three: Nines, no contest. Your group likes chaos: Hammer or Landmines. And most groups don't pick just one — running Skins alongside a points game keeps everyone in it for 18 holes.
Settling up without the argument
Every side game ends the same way: someone doing carryover math on a crumpled scorecard in the parking lot. That's the part we built an app for. SideAction Saloon tracks every game in this guide simultaneously — one score entry covers all of them — and ends the round with a settlement screen that says exactly who owes who.
SideAction Saloon — The Side Game AppEvery game in this guide, tracked live. We do the math, you handle the trash talk.