What Is Alternate Shot (Foursomes)?
Alternate shot is a two-player team format where partners share a single ball and take turns hitting it until it's holed. One ball per team, one team score per hole. Its official name in the Rules of Golf is foursomes — which throws people, because only two players are on a side. The word describes the format, not the headcount.
Because the team plays one ball with alternating strokes, a hole moves fast and the score is low. But it's also the most pressure-packed format in golf: your partner's bad shot becomes the shot you have to play. A pushed drive into the trees isn't their problem to fix — it's yours. That shared fate is exactly what makes foursomes so tense, so social, and so revealing of who you actually trust on the course.
Foursomes can be played as stroke play (count every stroke over the round) or match play (win, lose, or halve each hole). It's a cornerstone of the Ryder Cup and the Presidents Cup, where each team's two players grind out a single ball through 18 holes against the world's best.
How a hole plays out
- 1.Decide your tee holes before the round. One partner tees off on all odd-numbered holes (1, 3, 5...), the other on all even-numbered holes (2, 4, 6...). This is fixed for the entire round.
- 2.The designated partner tees off. Say Partner A drives on the 1st.
- 3.Partner B plays the second shot from wherever A's drive finished.
- 4.Partner A plays the third shot, B the fourth, and so on — you simply alternate from there.
- 5.Keep alternating until the ball is holed. Whoever didn't hit the previous shot plays the next one.
- 6.Record one score for the team on that hole, then move to the next tee — where the rotation continues.
The one rule people forget
Tee shots rotate by hole number, not by who hit last. Partner A always tees off on odd holes and Partner B on even holes, no matter how the previous hole ended. The alternation only governs the shots *between* tee shots.
How the Tee Rotation Works
The rotation has two layers, and keeping them straight is the whole game. Layer one: tee shots are assigned by hole. Before you start, your team decides who drives on odd holes and who drives on even holes. That assignment is locked for all 18. Layer two: between tee shots, you simply alternate — whoever didn't play the last shot plays the next.
Because the tee assignment is fixed by hole number, the player who *holes out* on one hole has nothing to do with who tees off on the next. If Partner B sinks the putt on the 1st, Partner B might still be the one teeing off on the 2nd (if B is your even-hole driver). Don't let the end of a hole confuse the start of the next one.
Worked example: Partner A drives odd holes, Partner B drives even holes. Watch how the alternation carries within each hole — but the tee shot resets by hole number.
Penalty strokes do not change the rotation
A penalty stroke is not a stroke that a player physically hits, so it never alters whose turn it is. Example: Partner A hits the 2nd shot into a penalty area. The team takes a one-stroke penalty (now lying 3) and Partner B plays the next actual shot — exactly as if A's shot had been a normal stroke. You alternate based on who last *struck the ball*, and a penalty drop is taken by whichever partner is up to play next. The penalty changes your score, not your order.
How Handicaps Work (the 50% rule)
Foursomes uses one combined handicap for the team, because the team plays one ball and posts one score. The standard allowance is 50% of the sum of the two partners' course handicaps. You add the two handicaps together, then take half. That single number is the team's playing handicap for the round.
This keeps things fair without double-counting: since both players contribute to every hole, the team gets roughly the average of their two abilities rather than the full benefit of either. Always round to the nearest whole stroke at the end (0.5 rounds up), and apply the strokes to the holes by stroke index, just like an individual handicap.
Worked example
Partner A is a 10 course handicap. Partner B is a 18 course handicap. Add them: 10 + 18 = 28. Take 50%: 28 ÷ 2 = 14. The team plays off a 14 handicap — receiving a stroke on each of the 14 hardest holes (stroke index 1 through 14). In a match against another foursomes team, the difference between the two teams' allowances determines how many strokes change hands.
Quick reference
- •Combined handicap = Partner A course handicap + Partner B course handicap.
- •Team allowance = 50% of that combined number, rounded to the nearest whole stroke.
- •In match play, the lower-allowance team usually plays off scratch and the higher-allowance team gets the difference in strokes.
- •In stroke play, subtract the team allowance from the team's gross total for a net score.
Alternate Shot Strategy
Foursomes is won between the ears as much as off the tee. Because you inherit your partner's lie on every other shot, the best teams think one shot ahead — every swing is really a setup for the partner who plays next.
Assign tee holes to suit each player's drive
Look at the scorecard before you start. If most of the long, tight par 4s and the par 5s fall on even holes, put your straighter or longer driver on even holes. Match each player's tee assignment to the holes that best fit their game — it's a free advantage.
Put your best putter on the holes you'll likely be putting
Tee assignment cascades through the whole hole. On a par 4, the player who tees off usually ends up putting (tee, approach, chip, putt). Map out who lands on the green on each hole and lean your tee assignments toward letting your better putter face the most short putts.
Play for your partner, not for yourself
Leave the ball where your partner is comfortable. A 95-yard wedge into a green might be your favorite number — but if your partner hates that yardage, lay back to 110 where they're confident. Position over distance, always.
Take the safe miss off the tee
Your partner has to play your drive. A ball in the fairway 20 yards short beats a ball in the rough or hazard 20 yards long every time. Conservative tee shots win foursomes because they hand your partner a clean look.
Talk before every shot
Agree on the target, the club, and the miss you can both live with. Foursomes punishes silent assumptions. The teams who communicate calmly under pressure are the ones who hole the par putt on 18.
Recover conservatively
When you're in trouble, the goal is to give your partner a playable next shot — not a hero recovery. Punch out to the fairway and let the team's next two shots save par. Compounding mistakes is how foursomes matches get lost.
Variations
Straight foursomes is demanding because you're stuck with your partner's drive whether you like it or not. Most of the popular variations soften that single point — they give the team a choice of tee shot before the alternating begins, which makes the format friendlier for mixed-ability pairs.
Greensomes
Both partners tee off. The team picks the better of the two drives, then the partner whose drive was *not* chosen plays the second shot. From there, the team alternates to the hole. This guarantees a good drive every time, easing foursomes' biggest source of stress.
Best for: Mixed-ability pairs who want the team feel without being punished by one weak tee shot.
Scotch Foursomes
A name used loosely for greensomes and other modified foursomes. Most often it means the greensomes format above — both drive, pick the best, the other partner hits the next shot, then alternate. Always confirm the exact rules with your group, since the term isn't standardized.
Best for: Casual rounds where the group wants greensomes-style flexibility under a familiar name.
Chapman / Pinehurst
Both partners tee off, then each plays the partner's ball for the second shot. After two shots with each ball, the team picks the better-positioned ball and alternates from there to the hole. Every player hits both a drive and a second shot, so both contribute early on each hole.
Best for: Pairs who want maximum involvement from both players and a true test of all-around skill.
Mixed Foursomes
Standard alternate-shot rules played by a team of one male and one female partner. The fixed odd/even tee rotation and the 50% combined handicap all apply unchanged — it's foursomes, with a defined pairing.
Best for: Club mixed events, couples' competitions, and member-guest days.
Playing Alternate Shot on Cleek
Foursomes is fast to play and easy to score — one ball, one team total per hole — which makes it a natural fit for live scoring. With Cleek, you set up an alternate shot game in a sentence, pick your two teams, and start posting team scores hole by hole. No paper, no math at the turn: the team total and the 50% combined handicap are handled for you.
Because one person can score for the whole group and guests don't need an account, you can have two foursomes pairs underway on the first tee in under a minute. The round finishes as a shareable card — handicaps applied, result settled — so the bragging rights are locked in before you reach the clubhouse. Whether it's a Ryder Cup-style match with your regular four or a club mixed-foursomes day, Cleek keeps the focus where it belongs: on the next shot.