How to fill in a golf scorecard

Filling in a scorecard, step by step

1. Write the player name, date, course and the tee you are playing at the top. Without those the card does not say which round it is.
2. Check the par row before you tee off. It gives the par of every hole and the par of the course, and the same numbers are on that course’s scorecard page here.
3. On each hole count every stroke: tee shots, approaches, putts and penalty strokes. An air shot counts. A practice swing does not.
4. Write the number in the box as soon as the hole is finished, before the next tee shot. Reconstructing three holes later is where a card starts to lie.
5. Total the front nine in the Out column and the back nine in the In column. The two added together is the round.
6. Compare that to the par of the course. Par 72 and a round of 85 is 13 over par.
7. In a competition the marker and the player check the card and sign it, and the card is returned to the committee.

Who fills the card in

In a competition a player does not record their own score. A marker is appointed, usually another player in the group, who records the player’s strokes and signs for them. The player is responsible for the hole-by-hole numbers being right; the committee does the addition.

On a social round none of this matters. One phone goes round the group and marks everybody, which is the same arrangement without the signatures.

What the columns mean

Scorch course pages carry the par of every hole and the hole count. They do not carry tee lengths, course rating, slope or stroke index, because the catalog does not hold them. The club’s own card does.

The common mistakes

• A penalty stroke is left out. A penalty area or out of bounds costs a stroke, and it belongs in the same box as everything else.
• The card gets filled in on the ninth tee. Three holes of memory is three guesses.
• The player adds the card up in a competition. That is not their job, and a wrong total is not their error, but a wrong hole score is.
• The signature is missing. In a competition an unsigned returned card means disqualification, not a reminder.
• The card is returned late. The deadline is set by the competition and keeping it is the player’s responsibility.

Common questions

Do putts count on a scorecard?

Yes. A putt is a stroke like any other. Every stroke made on the hole and every penalty stroke go into the same number.

What happens if a hole score is left blank?

On a social round you write it in as soon as you remember. In a competition a blank box on a card that has been signed and returned means disqualification, so the card gets checked before it is handed in.

Can I keep the scorecard on my phone?

Yes. A digital scorecard like Scorch replaces paper completely on a social round, does the addition itself, and does not end up in the wash. A competition always takes its own card.

Other guides

• Printable golf scorecard
• Stableford scoring explained
• The golf handicap explained
• Golf game formats
• Golf glossary

The online golf scorecard