Short Game » Golf leagues

Golf pairings – make the task of pairing golfers easy

Steve — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 16:08:15 +0000

Golf pairings for professional tournaments such as the Masters, as opposed to local club tournaments and leagues, serve very different needs, but have some similarities. For the first two rounds of the Masters, for instance, it is totally up to the powers-that-be to pair the golfers. They may take into consideration the television audience, crowd control, the golfers’ star power. The last two rounds, of course, are based on scores from the first two rounds.

With club tournaments, of course, there are no likely concerns about television, crowds, star power, etc. In a multi-round tournament, previous round scores may come into play for later-round pairings. A common concern for club level leagues and tournaments is to make sure golfers play with as many different players as possible. For a group taking a golf trip, they typically want to make sure everyone plays with everyone else. Depending on the number of players and the number of rounds to be played, trying to make sure everyone plays with everyone else with a minimum of repeats can send smoke rising out of the best of computers. For a mere human brain attempting to arrange or pair the players, the result can be lots of hair pulling.

Luckily there are solutions for both planning tournament pairings and creating the pairings for a golf league. In a tournament the goal might be to make sure that different players are placed into foursomes over a course of a number of round. In a league the goal would be to make sure individuals or teams are matched against different opponents for each weekly event as much as possible. The ideal – never playing the same person or team – is, of course, sometimes not achievable. It’s a mathematical problem for which the ideal solution depends on the number of individuals or teams as well as the number of events.

Our League Manager and Tournament Manager have a very similar “engine” for creating unique pairings (where mathematically possible). The following is a screenshot of the feature of the programs. In the example there are 24 teams (could be players) and 23 events. Teams are numbered horizontally at the top as well as vertically at the left. The black boxes indicate that the team (or player) cannot play against itself.

Golf leagues: how to start and run your golf league

Steve — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 20:43:03 +0000

Golf leagues run the gamut. One league might be highly competitive while another is casual and concentrating on fellowship and fun. A league might have mostly players in their 30′s and 40′s or have a whole range of ages. There are men’s leagues, women’s leagues and mixed leagues. Some leagues will have beginners and others will have highly skilled golfers while others will have a mix. What’s your league like?

If you’re puzzled about how to start or run your golf league, our 22-minute video, How Best to Run a Golf League, might be just what you need. The video will help you…

determine your league type
games or playing format recommended for each league type
a case study
handling seasonal challenges encountered by leagues (golfer absences, incomplete rounds, change in number of players / teams, rain-outs)

The video will help you figure out what kind of league you have using the League Quadrant tool. The League Quadrant tool helps you decide if your league is a high or low competition league. Additionally the tool will help you conclude whether your league is a high or low diversity league in terms of skill levels. Determining your golf league’s type leads you to the next step of deciding which golfing play formats most appropriately fit your league type.

Play formats include team-based individual match play, team match play, Stableford, best ball, skins and more. In addition to solving a problem through the case study, the video will walk you through solutions for some of the challenges leagues face during their season.

Find our video at How Best to Run a Golf League, and fine-tune your league.

Ready to test your knowledge of golf rules?

Debbie — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 17:01:09 +0000

While many golfers have put away their clubs for the next few months, you can still keep your mind in the game!

   Did you know that the USGA website offers quizzes on the Rules of Golf? The quizzes are available to take online or can be printed for later use. You can choose your desired level of difficulty (Basic, Advanced or Random-mixed) as well as the length of your quiz.
   While you wait in line, you could take the shortest quiz of 10 questions. If you have more time, 18 or 25 question quizzes are available. It’s a great way to stay current with the rules. See how quickly you can complete a quiz… Try to stump your golfing friends!
   Not only does the online answer key tell which questions you answered correctly, it also provides a link to the rule in question, for each question. It’s a great way to familarize yourself (or a newer golfer) with the rules of the game. When it’s time to get those clubs back out, you’ll be ready for any situation on the course!

Printable golf score cards for any 9 or 18-hole course

Steve — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 14:55:41 +0000

Looking for printable golf score cards? We offer printable golf score cards for use with League Manager and Tournament Manager. These make preparing for a league event or a tournament a snap as you do not have to write the player names onto all the cards. With these cards you can print…

the correct pairing on each card
two or four players per card
team numbers
handicap strokes awarded for individual or team match play (see samples below)
yardages for multiple tees
hole pars
order of handicap holes
player handicaps
course name
tee time
tee
start hole(s)
three lines of extra miscellaneous information

The image below shows you two cards. The one on the top half is for 9 holes. The bottom one is for 18 holes. Two score cards make one 8 1/2 x 11 sheet of paper for use with virtually any printer. The score cards are made of card stock.

Printable golf score cards for 9 (top) and 18-hole (bottom) courses

Ready for Another Great Year of Golf?

Debbie — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 15:17:38 +0000

We’re starting to get more calls here at GolfSoftware.com… It’s time to download program(s) to the new adminstrator’s computer, start a new leagues, check on expiration dates for websites, or order scorecards.

Don’t forget to check out our knowledgebase for answers to those ‘once-a-year’ questions – How to transfer your golfers into a new/2011 league or Moving your software onto another computer. We’ve even got a list of sample websites you can peruse for ideas on how to enhance communication with your golfers.

We have made it easier than ever to access your Golf Software account. Your account information is available to view/update–24/7!

Simply go to our home page at: www.GolfSoftware.com
On the upper right corner you will see a gold ADMINISTRATORS button.
Click the button, type in your customer number and password, and sign in to view/update your information.
Check out these tabs:

WEB SERVICES – shows whether you are using our basic PAR package, or subscribing to our BIRDIE or EAGLE packages. It lists subscription and technical support expiration dates and includes a link to renew services online, as well as our email/phone contact information.

DESKTOP SOFTWARE – lists software you have purchased - includes the version, purchase date, registration codes, and install/reinstall software links. Also has a link to what is new in our latest software version.

Looking forward to spring,

GolfSoftware.com

Holiday Golf Games

Debbie — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 18:15:35 +0000

Try these games for ‘holiday fun’ on the course.

Rudolph Golf – Have a red ball for each team. The team score will be based on the red ball and 1 net best ball of the other players. Each player alternates playing with the red ball for each hole… Player 1 plays the red ball first hole, player 2 plays the colored ball on the next hole and so on… Use the ‘Colored Net ball’ report in Tournament Manager to calculate the winner.

Santa’s List – The nicest (low net ball) and naughtiest (high net ball) scores on each hole count for the team. Use the ‘LowNetBallHighNetBall’ report in Tournament Manager’s Reports for Team Results (Custom ADVANCED).

Eggnog for everyone – Play a scramble format.

As a side game, you may want to try ‘O Christmas Tree’. Keep track of the number of times the ball goes into the trees/rough, instead of tracking putts.

Wishing you a wonderful holiday season and Happy New Year!
From all of us at GolfSoftware.com

Match play in golf – individual or team match play (or both)

Steve — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 16:15:00 +0000

Most golfers know the difference between match and stroke (or medal) play. In match play golfers or teams compare scores on each hole to see who won the hole. Whoever wins the most holes wins the match. In stroke (medal) play, you compare golfers’ or teams’ total scores to see who won by having the lowest total score. Both types of competition can be played with or without handicaps (gross or net scores).

In match play golfers or teams win, lose or “halve” holes. Halving a hole means that both sides finish the hole with the same score. Typically 1 point is won for winning the hole outright and the losing side receives 0 points. Golfers or teams are “one up” if they have won one more hole than the other side, “two up” if they have won two more holes, etc. If both sides have won the same number of holes, they are “all square.”

Additional match play point award possibilities exist with League Manager.

Individual Match Play Points (1 or more):

per hole won (net or gross score)
per best net on 9 or 18 holes (leagues tend to be 9 holes)
per most holes won

Team Match Play Points (1 or more):

per hole won (team net or gross score)
per best team net on 9 or 18 holes (leagues tend to be 9 holes) – variation: compare best x balls out of y players per team
per most holes won comparing team total hole score
per hole for team best ball
per best team net based on adding up best ball for each hole
per most holes won comparing team best ball for each hole

In either individual or team match play points listed above, if an item is tied, the number of points awarded are split (0.5 if 1; 1 if 2, 1.5 if 3, etc.).

Many leagues that play in 2-person teams will use both individual and team match points listed above in some combination to arrive at an event total for each team. Enhance your league by adding some of the above “spice” to your match play in golf.

Online Golf League Management Software for League Tasks and Creating a Website

Steve — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 14:28:02 +0000

Either you just can’t get enough golf or you just can’t find enough time for “real” golf. That’s why you’re thinking of or already involved in a virtual or online golf league…or contemplating starting one. Inevitably you’ll come to ponder online golf league management. How do you manage an online golf league? It’s hard enough to manage – or is it “hurding cats”? – a “real” golf league. How do you manage the play, schedule, pairings, results, cumulative statistics and so forth when you have little or no opportunity for participants to be physically present with one another?

It may not seem so, but much of online golf league management is exactly the same as a – let’s see, it’s not “brick and mortar”…how about – “ball and grass” league. You will want to have online golf league management software that helps you with the tedious and time consuming tasks such as…

scheduling
pairings
handicapping
results
standings
sharing league information (website)
etc.

Whether you’re playing online golf – such as World Golf Tour or Tiger Woods PGA Tour® Online – or using a virtual golf simulator found in colder climates, it will help to have League Manager which is well-suited for online golf league management. Not only does it give you the essential golf-related features above, but it provides you with a way to create a website so your scattered online golf league members have a spot on the Internet to gather league information and view it.

One of the remaining questions to ask yourself is, how are the players going to provide you with their scorecards from their online golf rounds? One way is for them to use some sort of screen capturing software such as Snipping Tool. Each player can capture their scorecard from the screen and send it to you by email. Just post those scores in League Manager and run a results report which you can put on your website! You’re on your way to online golf league management.

Golf league schedule – it’s a lot easier with the right software!

Steve — Tue, 19 Oct 2010 14:35:50 +0000

Have you ever torn your hair out trying to create the perfect golf league schedule? That’s because it can be very difficult depending on the number of golfers or teams, the number of events, the number of courses, etc. If computers had hair, they would sometimes “want” to pull it out because, with some combinations, there’s no perfect mathematical solution.

Many golf leagues play as teams, on the same course, the front nine one week and the back nine the next week. If you play one less event than there are players or teams in your league, the mathematical calculation to have each player or team play every other player or team during the season is simple. For example, if you have twenty 2-person teams and you play 19 weeks, every team can play every other team one time during the season. Even the simplest of scenarios like this one, however, is more easily done with the right software.

It is when your league doesn’t have an ideal combination of players or teams and events that your head can metaphorically explode trying to figure out the optimal pairings for all the events during the season. In such cases it is much easier and sanity-saving to let a computer using capable software to develop your golf league schedule. Our League Manager software will make your golf league scheduling a snap.

League Management 201: How Best to Run a Golf League

Randy — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 16:34:21 +0000

GolfSoftware.com University is here!

When it comes to running a golf league, with 20 years of experience under our belt, we’ve learned what works, what doesn’t and have identified the challenges most often faced during a season. Leveraging this experience we’ve developed our flagship course for GolfSoftware.com University…

League Management 201: How Best to Run a League

Agenda:

Determining League Type
Games Recommended for Each League Type
Handling Seasonal Challenges

Format: Online Webinar

Duration: 1 Hour

Synopsis: The course will start by introducing you to the League Quadrant, a tool you can use to identify your league type (eg Hi-Diversity/Hi-Competition). Next you’ll see the games we recommend for each type of league and we’ll conclude with recommendations on how best to handle seasonal challenges that ALL leagues face (eg decrease/increase teams, incomplete rounds, golfer absences, rainouts). And as time allows we’ll conduct a Q&A session at the end of the course.

So…

If you’re a league manager who’s struggling to find the best format for your league, who’s struggling for the best way to handle common seasonal challenges or who’d just plain benefit from some fresh ideas, this course is for you!

Act now to take advantage of our $29.95 introductory offer which represents a 25% savings off the regular price of $39.95! Don’t delay as class sizes are limited to 20 attendees per date given. Click this link to register now…

Look forward to seeing you in class!

Randy Schultz
GolfSoftware.com