Worst Ball Event

[azgreg]

Playing in a worst ball event next weekend. On par 3's and 4's we use the worst drive then best ball from there. On par 5's we use the worst drive and 2nd shot then best ball from there.

[LBB]

So if this is say a 4 man team, and one guy hits it OB, then all 4 of you re-tee?

 

Sounds like a disaster when it comes to slow play.  I hope you have the entire course reserved and are not impacting pace of play for normal playing golfers.  Part of the beauty of a scramble is that if someone hits it off the map and they can't easily find their ball...you just look for 10 seconds and say eff it...lets go to the best ball we are playing and move on.  Now you guys are going to actually have to search for said ball because it makes a difference whether or not you find it or have to take some type of penalty. 

 

Normally in a scramble If you hit your ball into another fairway...you know you're not playing that shot, so you just wait till it's all clear for a few seconds and drive over and scoop your ball up.  In your format, if you have to play that ball in the next fairway as your worst ball...you now have to wait till it's all clear for 4 of you to take your second shot.

 

I mean...whatever floats your boat...I suppose this type of format can be "fun"...but I would lose my marbles if this type of event was in front of me causing a 5.5 hour round.

Edited February 24 by LBB

[azgreg]

There are questions for sure. Hopefully we get answers before the first tee. I'm hoping it's worst ball in play.

 

[naval2006]

1 hour ago, LBB said:

So if this is say a 4 man team, and one guy hits it OB, then all 4 of you re-tee?

 

Some years ago I entered one worst ball team competition. These type of things happened so it was a flop. 
 

Hope the organizer knows how to manage all these things. You need a lot of caveats for that format, especially for all the things that happen to very bad shots in golf. 

[david.c.w]

Few years ago we were on an 8 man golf trip.  Played 18 had lunch, and were then able to go out on a 4 on 4 scramble.  Yes this was approved by the shop.  Indexes were between 4 and 12, so plenty of opportunity for horrible shots.

 

First 8 holes went as planned and was super smooth.  The 9th hole is a par 5 and we switched to a worst ball scramble, all the way to the hole.  I think the winning team won with an 8 or 9 and the last hole took like 45 or 60 minutes.  No there was nobody ahead or behind us.

 

If you are playing your stated format it is going to take forever.  Fun, but be prepared for a loooooooong round. 

[svlido]

This really only works in matchplay because your opponent choses which ball you take.  My buddy and I play it at night once in a while where we each play two balls and get to pick where the other guy plays from.  It's really hard putting because you have to make both balls.

 

Just doing it on tee shots shouldn't be that bad.  Just make sure everyone hits fairway finders and lay ups.

[Tyrus Webb]

31 minutes ago, david.c.w said:

Few years ago we were on an 8 man golf trip.  Played 18 had lunch, and were then able to go out on a 4 on 4 scramble.  Yes this was approved by the shop.  Indexes were between 4 and 12, so plenty of opportunity for horrible shots.

 

First 8 holes went as planned and was super smooth.  The 9th hole is a par 5 and we switched to a worst ball scramble, all the way to the hole.  I think the winning team won with an 8 or 9 and the last hole took like 45 or 60 minutes.  No there was nobody ahead or behind us.

 

If you are playing your stated format it is going to take forever.  Fun, but be prepared for a loooooooong round. 

 

I have the exact same story.  We weren't in the same group for a Sweeten's Cove / Honors Course / Chattanooga Country Club (scene of the worst ball crime) trip, were we?

[david.c.w]

5 minutes ago, Tyrus Webb said:

 

I have the exact same story.  We weren't in the same group for a Sweeten's Cove / Honors Course / Chattanooga Country Club (scene of the worst ball crime) trip, were we?

 

Nope.  Couple of courses I would like to get to though.  I am IN for the next trip!  

 

Scene of my crime was Secession.

[Tyrus Webb]

2 minutes ago, david.c.w said:

 

Nope.  Couple of courses I would like to get to though.  I am IN for the next trip!  

 

Scene of my crime was Secession.

 

I'm in on your next trip as well! 😉

[david.c.w]

Just now, Tyrus Webb said:

 

I'm in on your next trip as well! 😉

 

We got snowed out this year.  Was supposed to be late January but course was frozen and under 4 inches of snow.  Total bummer.

[bcjim]

2 hours ago, azgreg said:

There are questions for sure. Hopefully we get answers before the first tee. I'm hoping it's worst ball in play.

 

If so, if player 1 hits a good one, then all 3 of the rest should launch one OB on purpose.😂  Grab a small bucket from the range first for this. Or just grab prov1s out of someone else's bag for those shots. 🤣

 

Could also get dangerous if OB is a road or something.

[McMunch]

Sounds like the kind of thing you could do for 1 maybe 2 holes just as a Scramble gimmick.  Not for all 18. 

[Par4Nate]

This sounds like the answer to the question “How can we ensure the slowest rounds possible during our tournament?”

[jda]

How come no "this is what I play ever round" jokes?

 

When I have been in one of these, if something goes OB or in the hazard, you take the next worse ball and assess the penalty strokes.  It does not have to be too slow.

 

If you really do this right, then all 4 people have to sink the last putt.  This can get slow if you all need to make an 8 incher.

 

We played with 4 low single handicap guys and shot about 90 with no lost balls... just takes one guy missing a 4 footer after missing a green to get a 5.  Getting a par feels like an accomplishment sometimes.  Best score was not much below us.

[Par4Nate]

23 minutes ago, jda said:

How come no "this is what I play ever round" jokes?

 

When I have been in one of these, if something goes OB or in the hazard, you take the next worse ball and assess the penalty strokes.  It does not have to be too slow.

 

If you really do this right, then all 4 people have to sink the last putt.  This can get slow if you all need to make an 8 incher.

 

We played with 4 low single handicap guys and shot about 90 with no lost balls... just takes one guy missing a 4 footer after missing a green to get a 5.  Getting a par feels like an accomplishment sometimes.  Best score was not much below us.

 

“Make…the…putt…Bill…oh geez…just make the…”

[azgreg]

2 hours ago, jda said:

How come no "this is what I play ever round" jokes?

 

When I have been in one of these, if something goes OB or in the hazard, you take the next worse ball and assess the penalty strokes.  It does not have to be too slow.

 

If you really do this right, then all 4 people have to sink the last putt.  This can get slow if you all need to make an 8 incher.

 

We played with 4 low single handicap guys and shot about 90 with no lost balls... just takes one guy missing a 4 footer after missing a green to get a 5.  Getting a par feels like an accomplishment sometimes.  Best score was not much below us.

Worst ball off the tee only and 2nd shot on par 5's. The rest is best ball.

[LBB]

I think a more reasonable scramble alternative that has the element of someone screwing their team is to do a tee flip after each tee shot.  So if it's a 4 man team, you get in a circle and flip a tee and take the drive of whoever the tee points to, then you play a normal scramble from there.  At least when you drive from the tee box, you already know what ball you are taking and what balls need to be picked up.  

 

Still would not recommend doing it for every shot.

 

 

 

[Ferguson]

You know, I read this thread and immediately thought of the time I opened a package of out-of-date chicken thighs. At the actual time of opening, I maintained a little hope but it quickly turned to chaos. 

 

Good luck.

[MtlJeff]

LOL.....i thought i was the only one who did this. I have done "worst ball" in team matches before and it's remarkably cruel. 

 

We do 2-man teams (match play)

 

worst ball until you get on the green and then putt out from there. 

[Treats]

23 hours ago, LBB said:

So if this is say a 4 man team, and one guy hits it OB, then all 4 of you re-tee?

 

If it's the latter, it could be a 7 hour round with some groups teeing off until they finally get a ball in play.

[Treats]

20 hours ago, McMunch said:

Sounds like the kind of thing you could do for 1 maybe 2 holes just as a Scramble gimmick.  Not for all 18. 

On a day where there were no golfers behind us.

My friend and I played worst ball for every shot and putt.

You played until you sank your final 2 putts.

It was fun but got tiresome quickly. We stopped after 4 holes.

I did manage a to get a par on one hole.

[Yanki01]

..and you can bet the last team you'd think will still card a 57.

[TNwanabe]

There will be a team whos worst shots will always be in the fairway.........and will post 18 under par.......its just always like that anymore. 

[TNwanabe]

14 hours ago, Ferguson said:

You know, I read this thread and immediately thought of the time I opened a package of out-of-date chicken thighs. At the actual time of opening, I maintained a little hope but it quickly turned to chaos. 

 

Good luck.

Hilarious!! Well done sir!!

[david.c.w]

On 2/24/2025 at 12:39 PM, azgreg said:

Playing in a worst ball event next weekend. On par 3's and 4's we use the worst drive then best ball from there. On par 5's we use the worst drive and 2nd shot then best ball from there.

 

So how was it?

Did you finish?

How long did it take?

Would you ever do it again?

 

[azgreg]

1 minute ago, david.c.w said:

 

So how was it?

Did you finish?

How long did it take?

Would you ever do it again?

 

Thanks for reminding me. I meant to come back for an update.

How can I put this..........what a stupid event.

It was a small event. 20 guys, 5 foursomes. I was in the last group and watched everyone tee off. Every group except ours was playing their second shot from the trees.

This is by far teh dumbest event I've ever played in.

 

[david.c.w]

1 minute ago, azgreg said:

Thanks for reminding me. I meant to come back for an update.

How can I put this..........what a stupid event.

It was a small event. 20 guys, 5 foursomes. I was in the last group and watched everyone tee off. Every group except ours was playing their second shot from the trees.

This is by far teh dumbest event I've ever played in.

 

 

Yes, funny for 1 hole, not for 18.

[azgreg]

1 minute ago, david.c.w said:

 

Yes, funny for 1 hole, not for 18.

Wasn't fun for 1 hole.

 

[Par4Nate]

On 3/3/2025 at 9:07 AM, azgreg said:

Wasn't fun for 1 hole.

 

 

Curious, how many days did it take to complete 18 holes?

[azgreg]

20 hours ago, Par4Nate said:

 

Curious, how many days did it take to complete 18 holes?

4 1/2 hours. Short course.