Alternate shot (foursomes): one ball, two players
The oldest team format in golf and still the most nerve-shredding. Partners share a single ball and take turns hitting it, which means every shot you hit is a shot your partner has to deal with.
Foursomes — the traditional British name; Americans usually say alternate shot — puts two players on one ball. One partner tees off, the other plays the second shot, and they alternate until the ball is holed. Two teams do this against each other, and it plays fast: a foursomes round can finish in under three hours because there are only two balls on the course.
Tee shot order
Before the round the team decides who tees off on odd-numbered holes and who tees off on even-numbered holes. That assignment is fixed for the whole round and does not change based on who holed out. So if your partner holes the putt on the third green, you still tee off on the fourth if you have the even holes.
Choosing the split is a real decision. Look at the card and count which set of holes has the harder or longer tee shots, then give those to the more reliable driver. Many teams also weight the par 3s deliberately toward the better iron player, since those tee shots are effectively approach shots.
Penalties and the alternating order
This is where groups get confused, so the key principle: a penalty stroke does not change whose turn it is. If you hit into a hazard and take a penalty drop, your partner plays the next stroke from the drop. If a ball is lost and you must return to play again under stroke and distance, the player who hit the original shot replays it — the order rewinds with the ball.
- Wrong player plays a shot — in match play the hole is lost; in stroke play it is a two-shot penalty and the correct player must replay.
- Only the player whose turn it is may hit; the partner may advise, read putts and remove loose impediments.
- Either partner may mark and lift the ball on the green.
Handicap allowance
For handicapped foursomes, the recommended allowance is 50% of the combined course handicapsof the two partners. A 6 and a 16 play off (6 + 16) ÷ 2 = 11 team strokes, allocated by stroke index in the normal way. Match play between two teams then uses the difference between the two team allowances — if the other team works out to 8, your team receives 3 shots on the three hardest holes.
Worked example
Par 4, both teams playing off scratch, Team Blue has the odd holes assigned to player A.
- A tees off into the right rough.
- B plays the second shot, laying up short of the green.
- A pitches on to twelve feet.
- B misses the putt; it finishes two feet away.
- A holes out for a 5.
Blue's score is 5. Note that A hit three of the five shots — alternate shot does not distribute work evenly, and a partner who keeps leaving awkward half-wedges will hand the other player every difficult shot on the card.
Strategy and etiquette
Play to your partner's strengths, not your own ego. If your partner is a poor bunker player, take the conservative line and leave them a putt from the front of the green. Lay up to a full number rather than a 40-yard pitch if they hate short pitches. And say all of this out loud before the shot — foursomes rewards conversation more than any other format.
The etiquette part matters. Alternate shot is the one format where your bad shot becomes someone else's problem, and it can turn friendly rounds sour. Establish early that nobody apologises and nobody comments. Just play the next one.
Variations
- Greensomes — both partners tee off, the team picks the better drive, then alternates from there. Far more forgiving, and the usual choice for club mixed events.
- Chapman / Pinehurst — both tee off, then each plays the other's ball for the second shot, then they pick one and alternate to the hole. Excellent format, slightly fiddly to explain on the first tee.
- Gruesomes — both tee off and the opposition chooses which drive your team must play. Fun and cruel.