Golf Games Explained
How to play 'St. James Roll': The game where it pays to be the low man in the group
MichaelSvoboda
Golf Games Explained is exactly what it sounds like. You want to mix it up and try something new for once? Well, someone has to do the thankless work of playing different golf formats and telling you if it's worth it. You can thank me later.
Tired of losing matches to lesser players? Frustrated with everybody playing off your ball as the low handicapper? Boy, do we have the break-from-the-norm golf game for you.
It's called "St. James Roll," and it actually rewards you for being the low man, or woman, on a consistent basis throughout the round. Be careful, though, because both the wins and losses can multiply. Quickly.
Here's how to play.
Number of players required: Three-to-four.
Best for: Groups with four really good players. Groups with four really bad players. A mixture of both. Folks who like playing their own ball for their own score. Players who can build on momentum.
How to play: On every hole, there are six points up for grabs in St. James Roll. You begin by starting the round in order of handicaps, lowest to highest. From there, play the hole as you normally would and tally up the scores afterward. The player with the low score in the group receives three points for beating the other three players. The player with the second-lowest score receives two points since they beat two players. The player with the third-best score receives one point for beating just one player. The player who came in dead last receives exactly the amount of points they should: zero. Repeat this process on each hole until the round is complete, then add up the points. The player with the highest amount of points wins.
In the event of a tie for the low score, both players receive two points. In the event of a tie for second-place score (i.e., 3-4-4-5), the two players who made four would receive one point each, while the player who made three would receive three points. In the event of a tie for high score, both players receive zero points while low scorer gets three and second-best scorer gets two. In other words, the full allotment of six points does not need to be used on every hole should there be ties.
As for payouts, it should be decided before the round how much each point is worth, and then you pay out each player depending on the difference in points. Let's say Player A won 33 points, Player B won 20, Player C won 17 and Player D won 15, Player A would be owed $13 from Player B, $16 from Player C and $18 from Player D for a tasty total of $47. Players B, C and D would also pay out each other their differences.
The final added wrinkle in St. James Roll is Roll Call, where any player at any time can yell out Roll Call and the points would double for that hole. It's also possible for two players to call Roll Call, tripling the points (and so on ... yes, really). You can put a limit on how many times each player is allowed to make a Roll Call if you'd like, or just let it rip the entire round. The only player who is not allowed to call Roll Call is the player who has the honors on each tee. Also, if you do want to make a Roll Call, you must do so before your tee shot.
If you have any golf games or variations of golf games we haven't covered and you'd like to explain, feel free to reach out to me on Twitter/X @Cpowers14.
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