The Difference Between Four-Ball and Foursomes In Golf

Foursomes and fourballs are a key ingredient to the biggest team matches in golf including the Ryder Cup, Solheim Cup and Presidents Cup.

Both formats involve teams of two players, but the main difference between four-balls and foursomes is in the number of balls being played.

In foursomes, team-mates share a ball; in four-balls, each of the four players involved plays their own own ball.

Foursomes, which is also known as Alternate Shot, sees a team of two playing one ball, with one of the players teeing off on the odd-numbered holes, and the other doing so on the even-numbered ones.

Throughout each hole the team-mates play alternate shots.

A key factor to consider for foursomes players is whose ball is used. Sometimes the pairings play the same ball anyway, while other teams may play balls from different manufacturers with similar characteristics.

It's also common for the foursomes partners to use a different ball on alternate holes, where the player driving off hits their partner's preferred ball so they can hit it into the green and be able to judge the distance, flight and spin better.

Four-balls is also known as Four-ball Better-Ball. Both the players on a side play their own ball, and the better score of the pair on the hole counts as the team score for that hole.

The four-balls format does not require both players in a team to hole out, as only one score will be counted.

Technically, it does not even require that both members of a team play a hole, although such a scenario is only likely if a player gets injured during the round or turns up late for the start of it.

Both players can lose their ball and simply concede the hole and move on to the next one.

Both formats can be used in stroke play or match play, with the Ryder Cup, Solheim Cup and Presidents Cup using the match play variation.

In both formats one player can act for the team. In four-balls this means a team-mate can mark his or her partner’s ball, or lift and clean, or drop it under penalty. (If these are done incorrectly, it is the player whose ball it is who incurs any penalty not the player who performed the action.)

Similarly a player and his caddie may also help the other player in the same way that the player's own caddie would be allowed to do.

In four-balls, partners may also play in whichever order the team elects when is one of their members’ turn to play.

Thus if Player A and Player B are a fourball team, and it would normally be Player B’s turn to play as their ball is the furthest from the hole, the team can chose that Player A plays before Player B, if they so wish to help player B with their shot.

How handicaps work in foursomes and four-balls

In amateur foursomes, a team's handicap is 50% of the aggregated course handicaps of the team-mates.

So if Player A's course handicap is 19 and Player B's course handicap is 5, they will recieve 12 shots - 19 + 5 = 24, divided by 2 = 12.

In four-balls each player takes their course handicap and gets 90% of the difference between them and the lowest handicapper in the group. So a 16 handicapper would get nine strokes if they were playing against a six-index (Difference of 10, 90% of 10 is 9).

Foursomes vs fourballs - what you need to know

• Foursomes: One ball, alternate shot
• Foursomes: One player tees off odd-numbered holes, one goes off even-numbered holes
• Foursomes: 50% of combined handicap
• Foursomes: Quicker format as only two balls in play
• Fourballs: Each player plays their own ball
• Fourballs: Each player gets 90% handicap