Stableford in golf, gross and net: understanding the scoring, filling in the scorecard correctly and what scramble and foursomes are

If you play Stableford in golf, you count points, not strokes. The scoring is simpler than its reputation: every hole gives points for your net score, and a ruined hole costs at most that hole's points. Here is the arithmetic over 18 holes, plus what else counts at a tournament: gross and net, the card, the formats, the app and the simulator.

Stableford in golf: the points per hole

The yardstick is the hole's par, unless the Committee sets another. Subtract the handicap strokes you receive on the hole from your strokes and compare the net with par. The table is in Rule 21.1b of the Rules of Golf:

Net score	Points
two or more over par	0
one over par, bogey	1
par	2
one under par, birdie	3
two under par, eagle	4
three under par	5
four under par	6

Two points on every hole is 36 for the round, and 36 points means you played exactly to your handicap. Once no points are possible on a hole, you may pick up. The hole then gives 0 points, nothing more (Rule 21.1b).

Gross and net: what the difference is

Gross is the strokes you really took, penalty strokes included. Net is gross minus the handicap strokes you receive on the hole. How many depends on your Course Handicap: Handicap Index times Slope Rating divided by 113, plus Course Rating minus par, rounded at the end (Swiss Golf, Rules of Handicapping 2024, Rule 6.1a). On the yellow tees of the example course in Swiss Golf's WHS document (Course Rating 71.9, Slope 135, par 72), index 36.0 becomes a Course Handicap of 43: 36 × 135 ÷ 113 = 43.0, minus 0.1, rounded 43. Index 54.0, the maximum, becomes 64. The strokes go by the card's stroke index, SI for short: the first on SI 1, the eighteenth on SI 18, the nineteenth on SI 1 again (Appendix E). With 43 you have two strokes on every hole and a third on SI 1 to 7, with 64 three on every hole and a fourth on SI 1 to 10.

For your handicap the full Course Handicap always counts. For a tournament's results the Committee may set a share, the Playing Handicap: Swiss Golf recommended the full Course Handicap in 2021 (WHS in 6 steps), the Rules of Handicapping 2024 name 95 percent for individual Stableford in Appendix C. The tournament conditions say what applies. The gross winner has the most points without handicap strokes.

Worked through once: 18 holes with Course Handicap 43

The card below is an example with par 72, SI as in Appendix E: odd on the front nine, even on the back. Course Handicap 43: two strokes on every hole and three on SI 1 to 7.

Hole	Par	SI	Receives	Gross	Net	Points
1	4	5	3	7	4	2
2	5	11	2	8	6	1
3	3	17	2	5	3	2
4	4	1	3	10	7	0
5	4	7	3	6	3	3
6	3	15	2	4	2	3
7	5	3	3	8	5	2
8	4	13	2	6	4	2
9	4	9	2	7	5	1
Out	36		22	61	39	16
10	4	6	3	7	4	2
11	3	18	2	3	1	4
12	5	10	2	7	5	2
13	4	2	3	8	5	1
14	4	12	2	6	4	2
15	3	16	2	6	4	1
16	5	4	3	9	6	1
17	4	8	2	8	6	0
18	4	14	2	6	4	2
In	36		21	60	39	15
Total	72		43	121	78	31

Front nine 61 strokes and 16 points, back nine 60 and 15: gross 121, net 78, 31 points, five under 36. Net, that is six over par, in points five. The difference is hole 4, and it shows the protection: 10 strokes with 3 received is a net 7 on a par 4, 0 points. Whether it was 9, 10 or 12 changes nothing. Hole 11 shows the opposite: a gross par with 2 received is a net 1, two under par, 4 points.

Net double bogey: why one hole does not ruin your handicap

For the Handicap Index hole 4 counts not as 10 but as the net double bogey: par plus 2 plus your handicap strokes on the hole, here 4 + 2 + 3 = 9. That is the lowest score with 0 Stableford points and the cap per hole for the handicap calculation, on any number of holes (Rules of Handicapping 2024, Rule 3.1b). The 121 strokes thus become an Adjusted Gross Score of 120, from which the system computes the Score Differential; how that becomes the index is in the post on the handicap.

Filling in the scorecard: line by line

1. Before the round: name, date, tee and Course Handicap at the top; Course Rating, Slope, par and SI are printed.
2. Swap cards: your marker keeps your card, you keep theirs. In a tournament the Committee appoints or accepts the marker.
3. After every hole: the marker asks for your strokes, penalty strokes included, and enters the gross number. Net and points are not required.
4. After the round: compare hole by hole. If it matches, the marker certifies the hole scores and so do you, by signature or electronically.
5. Hand it in: the card goes to the Committee promptly. Adding up and applying the handicap is their job.

The consequences are in Rule 3.3b of the Rules of Golf: a hole with a lower number than you took means disqualification. A higher number stands. A missing certification means disqualification too. In stroke play you must also hole out on every hole, or you are out unless you correct it before the next hole (Rule 3.3c). In Stableford you simply pick up at 0 points.

Match play, scramble, foursomes, greensomes: the formats

• Match play: you play for holes, not strokes. Fewer strokes on the hole win it, the same number halves it. The match is decided once someone leads by more holes than remain. The next stroke, a hole or the match can be conceded, and a concession is final (Rules of Golf, Rule 3.2).
• Scramble: teams of two, three or four. Everyone tees off, the team picks the best ball, everyone plays on from there until the ball is holed. In a Texas Scramble a minimum number of each player's tee shots must count (R&A, Committee Procedures, Section 9). Recommended allowance for four players: 25, 20, 15 and 10 percent from lowest to highest handicap, for two 35 and 15 percent (Rules of Handicapping 2024, Appendix C).
• Foursomes: two partners, one ball, played alternately. Allowance: 50 percent of the combined team handicap (Appendix C).
• Greensomes: both tee off, the team picks one ball, the other partner plays on, then the strokes alternate (Section 9). Allowance: 60 percent of the lower, 40 of the higher handicap (Appendix C).
• Chapman (Pinehurst): both tee off and play the second stroke with the partner's ball, then pick one ball and play it alternately until holed (Section 9). Allowance as in greensomes.

In Switzerland only individual stroke play counts for the handicap, by strokes, as Stableford, Par/Bogey or Maximum Score, in a tournament or as General Play, over 9 or 18 holes. Match play and team formats do not count (Rules of Handicapping 2024, Rule 2.1a).

General Play: the card in the Swiss Golf app

General Play is the handicap round outside a tournament, registered beforehand in the Swiss Golf app or at the club office (Rule 2.1a). In the app, start the round before the first tee shot: pick the course and the tee, invite the marker. At the end the marker confirms the card in the app, then you close the round: signature and submission in one. Internet is needed only at the start and end. It is played as stroke play with Maximum Score: pick up on a hole and you enter the net double bogey (Swiss Golf, General Play in the app). A 9-hole round must be played in full, an 18-hole score needs at least 10 holes, and a marker is mandatory (Rules of Handicapping 2024, Rules 2.1 and 2.2). Your first index: see the post on the Platzreife. How such a round runs in detail is in EDS rounds explained.

More on this: Golf penalty strokes at a glance, Hole in one.

What the simulator card shows

In a simulator the software keeps the card: every measured stroke counts, penalty strokes as set, and each hole shows the gross number. Whether it works out Stableford points or offers a scramble depends on the software; ask the venue before booking. The round does not count for the handicap: an acceptable score needs a course with a valid Course Rating and Slope Rating and a marker (Rules of Handicapping 2024, Rule 2.1), more in the post on the simulator score. The card is still good practice: play nine holes, keep a paper card, work out the points yourself and compare with the display. Find the nearest of the 110 indoor venues in Switzerland under Venues, simulator tournaments under Events, and the rest in the FAQ.

Frequently asked questions

How are Stableford points calculated?

On each hole you subtract your handicap strokes from the strokes taken and compare the net score with par: net par gives 2 points, one over 1, one under 3, two under 4, two or more over 0 (Rule 21.1b). 36 points means you played exactly to your handicap.

What is a net double bogey?

The par of the hole plus 2 plus your handicap strokes on that hole, for example 4 + 2 + 3 = 9. It is the lowest score with 0 Stableford points and the cap at which a hole enters the handicap calculation, on however many holes that happens. Whoever picks up in General Play enters the net double bogey.

How many points do you get with handicap 54?

With a Course Handicap of 54 you have 3 strokes on every hole. A triple bogey is then net par and gives 2 points, a double bogey 3, a bogey 4, a par 5. Only par plus 5 gives 0 points. On a hard course an index of 54.0 can become a Course Handicap above 54; in the example with Slope 135 it is 64 strokes.

What happens if a wrong number is left on my scorecard?

If a hole shows a lower number than you actually took, you are disqualified. If it shows a higher one, the higher one counts. That is Rule 3.3b. The numbers are your responsibility even though your marker writes them down; adding them up and converting them into points is the committee's job.

Which formats count towards a handicap?

In Switzerland only individual stroke play: by strokes, as Stableford, as par or bogey, or as maximum score, in a tournament or as a registered general play round over 9 or 18 holes. Match play, scrambles, foursomes and greensomes do not count.

Sources

• R&A: Golfregeln, Regel 21 (Stableford, Maximum Score, Par/Bogey) (Punktetabelle und Aufnehmen bei 0 Punkten (21.1b))
• R&A: Golfregeln, Regel 3 (Lochspiel, Zählspiel, Scorekarte) (3.2 Lochgewinn und Schenken, 3.3b Pflichten von Marker und Spieler, falsche Lochergebnisse, 3.3c Einlochen)
• R&A: Committee Procedures, Abschnitt 9 (andere Spielformen) (Scramble und Texas Scramble, Greensome, Chapman/Pinehurst)
• Swiss Golf: Handicap Regeln, gültig ab Januar 2024 (PDF) (Regel 2.1a handicapwirksame Spielformen, 2.2 Mindestanzahl Löcher, 3.1b Netto-Doppelbogey, 6.1a Course Handicap, Anhang C anteilige Handicaps, Anhang E Stroke Index)
• Swiss Golf: WHS in 6 Schritten (PDF) (Beispielplatz Gelb mit Course Rating 71.9 und Slope 135, Index maximal 54, Empfehlung 100 Prozent für handicapwirksame Turniere)
• Swiss Golf: Swiss Golf App, entdecken Sie das General Play (31.03.2023) (Runde vor dem Start einrichten, Marker einladen und bestätigen, Zählspiel mit Maximum Score, Internet nur am Anfang und Ende)
• golfsimulators.ch, Verzeichnis am 18. September 2026 (126 publizierte Anlagen, davon 110 Indoor-Anlagen)