Format type: The common name for four-ball, a formal partner format under Rule 23 of the Rules of Golf, played as match play, stroke play or Stableford.
Free tool: Better-ball handicap calculator (90% match play, 85% stroke play, strokes by hole) →
Better ball, four-ball better ball or best ball?
The only thing that changes between these names is who is saying them. The format underneath is the one sentence in Rule 23.1: "Two partners compete together as a side, with each player playing their own ball" and "a side's score for a hole is the lower score of the two partners on that hole." The one real difference hides inside "best ball", which in the United States can also mean a team of three or four.
| Name | Where you hear it | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Better ball | Club competitions in the UK, Ireland and Australia | Two partners, each plays their own ball, the better score counts. The format in Rule 23. |
| Four-ball better ball, 4BBB, fourball | Club fixtures and inter-club matches | Exactly the same format; "four-ball" refers to the four balls in play when two sides meet. |
| Four-ball | The Rules of Golf (Rule 23), the Ryder Cup, the Solheim Cup | The official name of the format. |
| Best ball (two players) | United States | The same two-person format: the lower of the two scores counts. |
| Best ball (three or four players) | United States society and charity days | A team format where the lowest score of three or four teammates counts on each hole. Not covered by Rule 23; the Committee sets the conditions. |
| Best-Ball (Rules of Golf) | Rule 23.1 | A match in which one player plays against a side of two or three partners, each playing their own ball. |
So if a fixture card says "4BBB Stableford", it is four-ball Stableford under Rule 23 with the allowances below. If an American society day says "best ball", ask how many players are on a team and whether one or two scores count per hole: "two best balls of four" is a common variant where the two lowest scores are added together.
Rules source: The R&A — Rules of Golf, Rule 23: Four-Ball (the Rule does not use the words "better ball"; it uses "Best-Ball" only for one player against a side of two or three). The two-person "best ball" and three-or-four-player usage is from Golf Compendium and England Golf iGolf.
How better ball is scored
On every hole, each partner plays their own ball until it is holed or they pick up, and the side's score is the better of the two. Only one partner has to finish the hole: once one partner is in, the other can pick up (Rule 23.2a). What the side then does with that score depends on the form of play.
- Better-ball match play. Two sides play each other hole by hole. The lower better-ball score wins the hole, equal scores halve it, and the match is counted in holes up (1 up, 2 up, all square) until one side leads by more holes than remain. This is four-ball match play, the Ryder Cup format; see how match-play scoring works.
- Better-ball stroke play. The side records its lower gross or net score on each hole and adds the 18 together. Lowest total wins. The scorecard must show which partner made each score, and at least one partner's gross score must be entered on every hole (Rule 23.2b).
- Better-ball Stableford. Each partner converts their net score on the hole into Stableford points (net bogey 1, net par 2, net birdie 3, net eagle 4, two over or worse 0) and the side takes the higher of the two. Points are added over the round and the highest total wins. This is the most common club better-ball competition, because a partner who blows up simply scores 0 and the side moves on.
In all three, the higher score on the side is ignored. A partner having a bad hole never costs the side anything as long as the other partner holds it together, which is why the format rewards an aggressive partner playing alongside a steady one.
A worked better-ball Stableford hole
Blue (Alex and Sam) and Red (Jordan and Casey) are playing a 4BBB Stableford off Course Handicaps of 8, 12, 18 and 24. At the 85% allowance their Playing Handicaps are 7, 10, 15 and 20, and each player keeps their own. The hole is a par 4, stroke index 9, so Sam, Jordan and Casey each receive a stroke here and Alex does not.
| Player | Playing Hcp | Gross | Strokes | Net | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alex (Blue) | 7 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 2 |
| Sam (Blue) | 10 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 1 |
| Jordan (Red) | 15 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 2 |
| Casey (Red) | 20 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 |
Blue's better ball is Alex's net par for 2 points; Sam's net bogey for 1 point is ignored. Red's better ball is Casey's net birdie (a gross 4 with a stroke) for 3 points, even though Jordan also made a net par. Red take 3 on the hole and Blue take 2. In stroke play the same hole would read Blue 4, Red 3 net; in match play Red would win it.
Once Alex is in for 2 points, Sam only keeps playing while 3 points is still possible, which with a stroke means a gross 3; the moment that is gone, Sam picks up. Once Jordan is in for 2, Casey keeps playing because a gross 4 would be a net birdie for 3, and it was. That is the pace-of-play advantage of the format: on most holes one partner on each side picks up.
Let the group see the same game.
MatchPlay is being built to put the format, the live result and the final settlement in one group conversation.
Better ball handicap allowance
Because only the better score counts, better ball does not use full handicaps. The World Handicap System's Rules of Handicapping, Appendix C, recommend the allowances below. Multiply each Course Handicap by the allowance and round to get the Playing Handicap.
| Format | Recommended allowance | How strokes are given |
|---|---|---|
| Four-ball match play | 90% | Lowest Playing Handicap plays off scratch; the other three receive the difference |
| Four-ball stroke play | 85% | Each player uses their own Playing Handicap |
| Four-ball Stableford | 85% | Each player uses their own Playing Handicap |
| Four-ball par/bogey | 90% | Each player uses their own Playing Handicap |
Worked example (stroke play or Stableford, 85%). Course Handicaps 8, 12, 18 and 24: 8 × 0.85 = 6.8 → 7; 12 × 0.85 = 10.2 → 10; 18 × 0.85 = 15.3 → 15; 24 × 0.85 = 20.4 → 20. Each player takes their own strokes at the holes with stroke index 1 to 7, 1 to 10, 1 to 15, and 1 to 18 plus a second stroke at index 1 and 2. Nobody plays off scratch.
Worked example (match play, 90%). The same four: 7, 11, 16 and 22. The lowest Playing Handicap is 7, so that player plays off scratch and the others receive 11 − 7 = 4, 16 − 7 = 9 and 22 − 7 = 15 strokes, as on the four-ball page. The match play handicap calculator does both: switch it between match play and stroke play and enter the stroke index to list the holes.
Allowances source: Rules of Handicapping, Appendix C: Handicap Allowances (the 90% match play and 85% stroke play figures appear in its worked examples; the full table, including Stableford and par/bogey, is reproduced in text by National Club Golfer). These are recommendations: the Committee can set a different allowance in the Terms of the Competition.
Better ball as a betting game
Better-ball match play is the base game for most two-on-two money matches. Play it as a straight match, as a Nassau (front, back and overall, with presses, settled by the Nassau calculator) or as better-ball skins, where each side's better ball competes for a skin on every hole and the skins calculator settles the carryovers. Agree the allowance, the stake and the press rules on the first tee. More games in the golf betting games guide.
Related golf formats
The full rules of the format, including order of play, concessions, late partners and penalties, are in the four-ball guide. Or explore the complete golf match-play format library, and compare foursomes (one ball, alternate shot), individual match play, scramble, Nassau and skins.
Common questions
What is four ball better ball in golf?
Four ball better ball (4BBB) is a two-person partner format where each partner plays their own ball and the better of the two scores is the side's score on each hole. It is the same format the Rules of Golf call four-ball (Rule 23); "better ball" and "4BBB" are the names used at most clubs in the UK, Ireland and Australia.
Is better ball the same as best ball?
For a side of two, yes: the lower of the two partners' scores counts, and "best ball" is simply the American name for it. "Best ball" is also used for teams of three or four where the lowest score of the team counts on each hole, and the Rules of Golf use "Best-Ball" for a match where one player plays against a side of two or three partners. Agree which one you mean before the first tee.
Is better ball the same as four-ball?
Yes. Better ball, four-ball better ball, fourball and 4BBB all describe the two-partner, better-score format set out in Rule 23 of the Rules of Golf. The site's four-ball guide covers the full rules.
How is better ball Stableford scored?
Each partner works out their own Stableford points on the hole from their net score (2 points for a net par, 3 for a net birdie, 1 for a net bogey, 0 for worse), and the side takes the higher of the two points. The side's points are added over the round and the highest total wins.
What is the handicap allowance for better ball?
The Rules of Handicapping (Appendix C) recommend 90% of Course Handicap for four-ball match play and four-ball par/bogey, and 85% for four-ball stroke play and four-ball Stableford. In match play the lowest Playing Handicap plays off scratch and the others receive the difference; in stroke play and Stableford each player keeps their own Playing Handicap.
Do both players have to hole out in better ball?
No. Once one partner has holed out, that score is the side's score and the other partner can pick up. In Stableford a partner who cannot beat the side's points on the hole should pick up to save time; the side's score is unaffected.
What is the difference between better ball and a scramble?
In better ball each partner plays their own ball for the whole hole and only the lower score counts. In a scramble the partners both play from the position of the side's chosen best shot on every stroke, so there is only one score. Better ball is a form of play under the Rules of Golf; scramble is a format the Rules leave to the Committee.
Can better ball be played as match play?
Yes. Two sides play each other hole by hole, the side with the lower better-ball score wins the hole, and the match is scored in holes up until one side leads by more holes than remain. This is four-ball match play, the Ryder Cup format.