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I am declaring 2007 the year of “Match Play.” It is the best way to play golf as well as the most interesting when you have money on the line. Gambling is a huge part of the game of golf. It raises the stakes with your usual foursome as well as keeps you on your toes.

By playing Match Play you are going to keep everyone in your group in tune with their games throughout the entire round. Unlike Stroke Play where if you have one major blowup holes the person or team is out of it at that point. With Match Play they will lose the hole and move on.

I am going to start the season out in my group running a Two Man Best Ball Match Play. We will put $20 to $50 per person into the pot and the winning team takes the money. This is very fun for a group of people whose handicaps run from scratch all the way to 22.

For those who do not know how this game is setup and handicapped then I will explain. In a foursome, you draw two balls out of a hat and those are the teammates for that day. Then you take the person with the lowest handicap and that is who you are going off of. That means, for example, if the handicaps for the foursome are 3, 12, 19, 22, you are going to subtract 3 from the other three people and that is how many strokes they will have on the round. So the person with a 3 handicap plays at a scratch while the others play at a 9, 16, and a 19. At this point tee off and have fun.

I am going to alternate that format with individual matches between my foursome. I will probably bet the other three people each $20 and go about the match plan on an individual basis. This will keep everyone on their toes but they do not have anyone to back them up.

Remember that you can “press” the bet when you are down more than one hole. You now have two bets starting from the hole you declared a press. This will get out of control the first few times you play.

The year of the Match Play is underway so bet heavy and make sure you manage your presses.

Next week’s topic: Women, Booze and Golf.

you gotta have something on each hole on match play….it makes the game a lot better. even if it’s only a buck a hole. Nice work. I’ll be looking for the women booze and golf next week. Late

This is a good way to play. I have trouble staying focused for 18 holes unless I have something to play for. This keeps me focused throughout the whole round.