POT · LOW NET TAKES IT

Stroke Purse

Everybody puts the same money in the middle. Eighteen holes later the lowest net score picks it up. No per-hole math, no presses — one number decides it.

2–8 players18 holesOne buy-inNet or gross

HOW IT WORKS

One pot, one number, one very long back nine.

The simplest bet in golf and the hardest to hide in. Everyone buys in for the same amount before the round, plays their own ball for 18, and the lowest score after handicaps takes the purse. Two decisions do all the work: whether you settle on net or gross, and whether the money pays one place or two.

  1. Agree the buy-in

    One number, same for everybody, settled on the first tee. Most groups land between $10 and $50 a man.

  2. Net or gross

    Net is the default: handicap strokes come off before cards are compared. Gross works when everybody is within a couple of shots.

  3. Decide how it pays

    Winner-takes-all is cleanest. Paying 70/30 to first and second keeps two players interested walking to 18.

  4. Cap the disasters

    Max double par, or net double bogey, so one lost ball on the third hole does not end somebody’s afternoon.

  5. GoLo settles the purse

    Enter scores as you play. GoLo allocates strokes, keeps a live net leaderboard, and splits the places at the end.

SETTLE THESE FIRST

Four questions, asked at the buy-in — not on the 18th green.

A purse only goes sideways when nobody agreed how it pays out. Here is where most groups land.

Net or gross?Whether handicap strokes come off before cards are comparedNET
How many places pay?One winner takes everything, or 70/30 to first and second70 / 30
Where do handicaps come from?A posted index converted for the teesCOURSE HANDICAP
What happens on a blow-up hole?One triple can decide a purse before the turnMAX DOUBLE PAR

WATCH IT PLAY OUT

$40 a man, a $160 purse, and one net shot between first and second.

Four players, net scoring off the course handicap, paying 70/30. Mike shot the low gross round of the day and still finished second.

  1. 69NETYou — 78 gross, 9 strokesBirdie on 17 to take the low card+$72
  2. 70NETMike — 74 gross, 4 strokesLow round of the day, one net shot short+$8
  3. 72NETTom — 86 gross, 14 strokesDouble on 12 cost him a place−$40
  4. 75NETDave — 95 gross, 20 strokesTwo blow-ups, both capped at double par−$40
You1st · net 69+$72
Mike2nd · net 70+$8
Tom3rd · net 72−$40
Dave4th · net 75−$40
PURSE · YOU COLLECT
First place at 70%
+$72

WAYS TO SPLIT IT

Winner-takes-all is one option, not the only one.

How the purse pays out changes how the whole round feels. Four structures groups actually use.

  • Winner takes all

    One payout, nothing to argue about, and last place funds it.

  • Two places, 70/30

    Pays first and second, keeping two players live down the stretch.

  • Front, back, and total

    Split the purse into thirds by nine for three chances to win.

  • Quota purse

    Score Stableford points against a quota when the handicap spread is wide.

PLAY SMART

A purse is won on your worst holes, not your best.

Nobody wins with the round they planned. They win by turning the three holes that got away into bogeys instead of doubles.

  • Know your net par before you swing

    On stroke holes a bogey can be a net par. Hit the shot that protects it.

  • Doubles cost more than birdies pay

    A purse is decided by your worst three holes. Take the punch-out while bogey is available.

  • Play all 18

    Cards come back to the field, and the app shows the gap in real time.

TALK THE TALK

The words that decide who gets paid.

Purse
The pooled buy-in. Everybody contributes the same amount and the field plays for it.
Buy-in
What it costs to be in, agreed before the first tee.
Net score
Your gross score minus handicap strokes.
Course handicap
Your index adjusted for the tees you played.
Places
How many finishers get paid.
Quota
A Stableford variant that scores points against a target.

STROKE PURSE, ANSWERED

Before you put money in the middle.

Net, unless everybody is within a shot or two. Gross otherwise turns the purse into a bet on who is already better.

Big enough to pay attention on the last three, small enough that fourth place still buys a round afterwards. Ten to fifty dollars covers most groups.

No. Paying 70/30 to first and second is the most common compromise.

Split it or use a card playoff: back nine, last six, then the 18th. Pick one before teeing off.

Yes. Max double par keeps one disaster from deciding the purse on the third hole.

Yes. GoLo tracks the purse, skins, and side bounties from the same card and nets the result.

PLAYS WELL WITH

A purse plus one side game is the standard Saturday.

The purse settles the round. Everything else keeps the holes in between interesting.

One buy-in. One number. No spreadsheet.

Set the purse, choose the places, and let GoLo keep the live net leaderboard honest.

In testing with real groups · Free while we’re in beta · iPhone & Android