Pete saysEvery group has two games and one guy who "does the math." The math is always wrong, it always goes in his favor, and it always happens in the parking lot. Let's fix that.
Skins: every hole is a little pot
Skins is the simplest bet in golf, and the one that gets the loudest.
- Every hole is worth one skin. Say $1.
- The lowest score on the hole wins the skin, but only if they win it outright.
- If two or more players tie for low, nobody wins. The skin "carries over," and the next hole is worth two.
- Carryovers keep stacking until somebody wins a hole by themselves.
- Each skin is paid by every other player. In a foursome, a $1 skin is worth $3 to the winner.
How a $1 skins game actually plays out
Dale, Big Mike and Rhonda play nine holes for $1 skins with carryovers:
| Hole | What happened | Skins on the line |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | All three make 5. Tie. | 1, carries over |
| 2 | Dale makes 4. Nobody else does. | Dale wins 2 |
| 3 | Big Mike makes the only 5. | Big Mike wins 1 |
| 4–8 | Five straight holes with somebody tied for low. | 5, all carrying over |
| 9 | Big Mike makes the only 4. | Big Mike wins 6 |
Big Mike won 7 skins, Dale won 2 and Rhonda won none. At $1 a skin from each of the other two players, Big Mike is up $12 on skins. That one 4 on the last hole was worth $12 by itself. That's the beauty of skins: you can play bad all day and win it all on one hole.
Skins rules groups argue about
- What if the last hole ties? Agree on this before you tee off. Common choices: the skins die, they go to a playoff hole, or everybody splits them.
- Carryovers or no carryovers? With no carryovers, a tied hole is just dead. It keeps the money small.
- "Validation." Some groups say a carryover only counts if the winner pars (or bogeys) the next hole too. It stops one lucky hole from scooping the pot.
- Gross or net? In net skins, players get their handicap strokes on the hardest holes. That gives the higher handicaps a real shot.
Pete saysFive carryovers in a row is when grown men start reading greens from four sides. Skins turns a 10-foot putt for bogey into the most important putt of the year.
Nassau: three bets in one
A Nassau splits an 18-hole round into three separate bets:
- The front nine (holes 1–9)
- The back nine (holes 10–18)
- The whole 18
A "$5 Nassau" means $5 on each one. That's why golfers call it "five-five-five." Lose all three and you're out $15. Win the front and lose the back and the overall comes down to the whole round.
Match play, not total strokes
Most groups play each part of a Nassau as match play: you win or lose holes, not strokes. Win more holes on the front nine than the other guy and you win the front. A triple bogey only costs you one hole, not the whole bet. Some groups play it by total strokes instead. Just decide which before the first tee.
The press
The press is how a Nassau gets expensive. When a player falls behind, usually 2 holes down, they can "press": start a brand-new bet, for the same amount, over the holes that are left in that nine. The original bet keeps going too.
Some groups play automatic presses, so a new bet starts every time somebody goes 2 down. Others make you call it out loud. Either way, a $5 Nassau with presses can turn into a $30 afternoon in a hurry.
A little history
- The Nassau. The story goes it was invented around 1900 at Nassau Country Club on Long Island, New York. Some of the club's members didn't like seeing lopsided losses in the newspaper, so they split matches into three separate points. That way the worst beating looked like 3–0. Whether that's the whole truth or not, the name stuck and so did the bet.
- Skins. Nobody knows for sure where the name came from. What made it famous was TV. In 1983 a made-for-TV event called the Skins Game put Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player and Tom Watson head to head, hole by hole, for big money. Weekend groups have been playing their own version ever since, for a lot less.
Settle it in Pete (no parking lot math)
Settle the Bet is free and does the math for you. It runs in your phone's browser.
- Load the round. Finish a round in the Pete Scorecard and tap Settle up. Everybody's scores come in for you. No scorecard? Type the scores in by hand.
- Pick the games. Skins (carryovers on or off), Nassau, stroke play (with a cap so a bad day doesn't get expensive) and snowman pays: make an 8 or worse and you pay everybody.
- Set the stakes. Dollars or just points for bragging rights.
- Read who owes who. Pete nets it all out into the fewest payments, so you're not passing $1 bills back and forth for ten minutes.
A few things to know so nobody's surprised:
- Pete plays the Nassau as match play, everybody against everybody. On 9-hole rounds, he splits it into holes 1–3, 4–6 and 7–9.
- Skins and Nassau use the scores as entered. No handicap strokes and no presses. If your group plays net or presses, settle those parts the old-fashioned way.
- If the last hole ties in skins, those skins are left on the table.
- Pete only does the math. It never holds, sends or collects money. Pay up however your group does.
in ten seconds. Skins, Nassau, stroke play and snowman pays, in dollars or points. Load a round from the Pete Scorecard or type the scores in. Settle the bet
Skins and Nassau FAQ
How do skins work in golf?
Every hole is worth a skin. The player with the lowest score wins it, but only if nobody ties them. If there's a tie for low, the skin carries over to the next hole. Each skin is paid by every other player in the group.
What happens to skins if the last hole ties?
That's up to your group, so decide before you tee off. Common choices are that the skins die, go to a playoff hole, or get split. Pete's Settle the Bet leaves them on the table.
How much is a $5 Nassau?
$5 on the front nine, $5 on the back nine and $5 on the whole 18. The most you can lose without presses is $15.
What is a press in golf?
When a player falls behind in a Nassau, usually 2 holes down, they start a new bet for the same amount over the holes left in that nine. The original bet keeps going. Automatic presses start a new bet every time someone goes 2 down.
Is a Nassau match play or stroke play?
Usually match play: you win holes, not strokes. Some groups play it by total strokes on each nine. Pete's Settle the Bet plays it as match play.
What's "snowman pays"?
A house rule: make an 8 or worse on any hole and you pay everybody in the group the stake. Every snowman. It's built into Settle the Bet.
IF YOU KNOW, YOU GOLF.