How do skins work in golf?
The lowest score wins a skin only when one player finishes lower than everyone else. Tied holes can carry forward if your group agrees.
GolfDock editorial · Reviewed
Choose the rules first
Decide whether you will compare gross or net scores, whether ties carry forward, and how you will handle the final tied pot. Standard skins does not require a cash stake. Agree before the first tee so a late tie does not become an argument.
A three-hole example
Alex and Sam both score 4 on hole 1, so nobody wins. With carryovers on, hole 2 is worth two skins. Alex scores 5 and Sam scores 4: Sam wins both. Hole 3 starts at one skin again. With carryovers off, the first hole is unawarded and Sam wins just one skin on hole 2.
Gross versus net
Gross compares recorded strokes. Net subtracts the strokes received on each hole. A gross 5 receiving two strokes becomes net 3. Use the agreed Playing Handicap and tee stroke indexes; a Handicap Index is not automatically a Playing Handicap.
Missing scores and final ties
A blank is unfinished, not zero or par. Enter every player’s score before awarding a hole. This calculator stops at the first incomplete hole and leaves a final tied pot unawarded. Playoffs, split pots, presses and special league points are separate house rules.