Golf without a little money on the line is still golf. But golf with something on the line is a different sport entirely. Suddenly every putt matters. Suddenly the par-5 on 14 is a real decision. Suddenly you find out a lot about the people you play with.

Here are 10 betting games worth knowing – from the ones every golfer should have in rotation to the ones that will ruin a Saturday in the best possible way.

1. Nassau

The most common golf bet in the world, and for good reason. A Nassau is three bets in one: front nine, back nine, and overall 18. Each is typically worth the same amount. Simple to track, hard to blow completely – even if you lose the front badly, you can still win the back and the overall. Every golfer should know this one. If you don’t, you probably haven’t played with anyone who cares about golf.

2. Skins

Each hole has a set value. Win the hole outright, you win the skin. Tie the hole and the skin carries over to the next one. By the 17th, a carried-over skin can be worth an uncomfortable amount of money. Skins rewards the hot hand and creates genuine drama on every hole, even when you’re already out of the round.

3. Wolf

One player per hole is designated the Wolf. The Wolf watches each player tee off in order and decides after each shot whether to take that person as a partner. If the Wolf doesn’t pick anyone, they go Lone Wolf against the field – double or nothing. Rotates every hole. High strategy, high variance, endlessly entertaining once everyone understands the rules.

4. Bingo Bango Bongo

Three points available per hole: first ball on the green (Bingo), closest to the pin once everyone’s on (Bango), first ball in the hole (Bongo). Points are worth whatever you agree on upfront. Works especially well in groups with mixed handicaps because it rewards different skills – long hitters, short game specialists, and good putters all have a path to points.

5. Match Play

Head to head, hole by hole. Win a hole, you go one up. Lose a hole, you go one down. Win by more holes than remain and the match is over — a 4&3 win means you won by four holes with three remaining. No scorecards, no math, no cumulative disaster. Just hole-by-hole competition. The format every major uses for a reason.

6. Vegas (a.k.a. Monte Carlo)

A team game. Each side combines their two scores into a two-digit number, lowest score first. If your team shoots a 4 and a 6, your score is 46. If the other team shoots a 5 and a 7, their score is 57. Difference is 11 points. Get assigned an unlucky 9 on a hole and watch your partner turn white as they realize the other team just scored 49 against your 99. Vegas lives up to its name.

7. Hammer

Start with a base bet on the hole. At any point before someone holes out, either player (or team) can throw the Hammer – doubling the bet. The other side must accept or concede the hole. You can Hammer back. It adds a poker element to every shot and creates genuinely awful decisions with the ball in the air. Not recommended for new friendships.

8. Greenies, Sandies, and Birdies

Side bets that run alongside whatever else you’re playing. A Greenie pays out to whoever hits the green first on a par 3, but only if they make par or better. A Sandie pays for making par out of a bunker. A Birdie is self-explanatory. Stack these on top of a Nassau and suddenly every shot has something attached to it.

9. Stableford

Points-based format instead of stroke play. Double bogey or worse: 0 points. Bogey: 1. Par: 2. Birdie: 3. Eagle: 4. The math is simple. The effect is significant – a blow-up hole costs you two points instead of torpedoing your entire scorecard. Great format for groups where skill levels vary and stroke play turns into a slog by the back nine.

10. Snake

Also called Putting Snake or just Snake. Whoever three-putts first is holding the Snake. They hold it until someone else three-putts, at which point the Snake passes. Whoever is holding the Snake at the end of the round pays the table. No one talks about their putting more carefully than a group playing Snake. The psychological weight of that Snake by the 16th hole is something you have to experience.

---

A few ground rules: agree on stakes before the first tee, not after. Keep it at a level where everyone’s comfortable. And know that the best golf bet is one where everyone’s trying on every hole — even the ones who are already losing.

Want more golf content that doesn’t take itself too seriously?

This one is for all the marbles.

The final 30 golfers—those who made it through the first two weeks of the FedEx Cup Playoffs—will tee it up this week at East Lake, about five miles east of downtown Atlanta.

Whoever wins is the TOUR Champion.

On its face, that sounds meaningful. But the PGA TOUR has long had a major problem with how its season ends—namely, that fans and players don’t assign the same importance to the FedEx Cup Playoffs that they do to the major championships, which the PGA TOUR does not own or operate.

If you’ve watched the Playoffs over the years, it’s easy to understand why new CEO Brian Rolapp announced the changes he did yesterday.

They even put out a handy little video to break it all down:

Breaking down how the @TOURChamp is changing in 2028, with @_SportsBall_. pic.twitter.com/VTPDfArdxa

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 25, 2026

That makes this the penultimate TOUR Championship at East Lake. After next year, things will look much different—and, hopefully, feel more meaningful to fans and players.

For now, it’s all eyes on East Lake and the final 30.

Key Stats for the TOUR Championship

Based on the 2025 tournament at East Lake.

• Back the elite: East Lake separated the best players more than a typical TOUR course, so this is not the week to reach too far down the board.
• Favor bombers: Distance was rewarded more than accuracy, giving longer hitters a clear advantage over shorter, fairway-first players.
• Prioritize putting and approach play: Those two categories accounted for 84.4% of the scoring variance, while driving contributed just 8.5%. Target strong iron players with a hot putter.

The Details

Previous Winners

How to Watch

Featured Groups

ESPN+ has featured-group coverage for the TOUR Championship.

All featured groups and tee times are available here.

---

Weekly Bets: TOUR Championship

Last week, we gave out our sixth winner of the season, with Keith Stewart picking Wyndham Clark.

Join Keith’s private golf community here.

Use code CADDYSHANKS2026 for 20% off.

---

Keith Stewart’s Picks

Wyndham Clark (+1600, DraftKings)

In two starts at East Lake, Wyndham Clark has finished third and eighth.

Multiple winners are a significant trend in the FedEx Cup Playoffs. In 19 editions, 12 players have won twice during the same playoff year. Five of them finished their FedEx Cup championship run by winning the final two events—a feat that has happened twice in the last five years.

Power and touch. Clark is your Player of the Year, and he’ll solidify that statement Sunday in Atlanta.

Gary Woodland (+4800, DraftKings)

It might be viewed as a sentimental pick, but Gary Woodland has the skill set required to win at East Lake.

Fresh off a fourth-place finish at the BMW Championship, Woodland learned a thing or two about his game while in contention. With smaller crowds and a better course fit, don’t be surprised if his dream season continues.

Gary gained on the field in all four major strokes-gained categories last week. That’s the type of well-rounded play that suits the TOUR Championship.

---

Caddyshanks Picks

Chris Gotterup (+2200, FanDuel)

Gotterup is having the best season of his career, with three wins so far. He also finished T4 last week at the BMW Championship, so unlike someone like Matt Fitzpatrick, we know his recent form is solid.

He finished T10 last year at East Lake. In a limited field, let’s trust Gotterup to get it done.

J.J. Spaun (+4000, DraftKings)

Spaun won the Valero back in April, and he’s added a few top-10 finishes since then. Admittedly, there aren’t any stats that jump off the page.

Last week, he played two great rounds to start but faltered over the weekend. He’s a grinder, and I think he finds a way to keep himself in the thick of things this weekend.

Scottie Scheffler (+350, DraftKings)

You know what’s funny?

If you had bet Wyndham Clark every single week he played this season, you’d be in the black—big time.

Not so much with Scottie. But the captain—that’s me—will go down with his ship.

For the third week in a row, an American under the age of 25 has won on the PGA TOUR.

Has that ever happened before?

It turns out that yes, it has—but only once.

Way back in 2017, Jordan Spieth, Xander Schauffele, Bryson DeChambeau, and Grayson Murray actually made it four weeks in a row.

Murray won the Barbasol Championship, which was played as an opposite-field event during The Open.

That group has gone on to collect seven major championships so far.

Maybe we should start sprinkling a few futures on Jackson Koivun, Michael Thorbjornsen, and Michael Brennan while we still can.

The Wyndham Championship

There must be something in the water at PGA TOUR U, because these kids are making birdies in bunches.

Yesterday, Michael Brennan made five birdies in a row on Nos. 4-8.

That stretch separated him from Beau Hossler, his closest pursuer, and combined with the 63 he shot on Saturday, it was enough to win him the tournament.

Brennan went on to birdie the 72nd hole and win by three strokes.

In the process, he vaulted himself inside the FedExCup top 50.

He was the only player to move into the top 50 from outside the bubble.

Jackson Koivun, who started the week at No. 70, remained there.

Brooks Koepka, Jason Day, and Keegan Bradley saw their seasons come to an end.

What’s Next?

The FedExCup Playoffs kick off this week with the FedEx St. Jude Championship at TPC Southwind.

FedEx St. Jude Championship Odds

• Scottie Scheffler: +450
• Rory McIlroy: +1200
• Xander Schauffele: +1800
• Sam Burns: +2000
• Tommy Fleetwood: +2000
• Cam Young: +2200
• Ludvig Åberg: +2200
• Matt Fitzpatrick: +2200
• Collin Morikawa: +2500
• Hideki Matsuyama: +2800
• Chris Gotterup: +3000
• Patrick Cantlay: +3000
• Viktor Hovland: +3000

The Truist Championship was wide open on Sunday.

Plenty of names were within striking distance. Alex Fitzpatrick had the overnight lead. Rickie Fowler, Cameron Young, Nicolai Højgaard, Tommy Fleetwood, and a handful of others were all close enough to make things interesting.

But it was Kristoffer Reitan, the 28-year-old from Norway, who stepped up, closed the deal, and walked away with the trophy and the signature-event check.

Not bad for a guy still getting settled on the PGA TOUR.

Reitan’s Breakthrough Came Fast

Reitan’s road here has not exactly been smooth.

He had a brief stop at Texas before choosing the professional route, then went through the grind of trying to establish himself in Europe. He has spoken openly about the ups and downs, but eventually found his footing again.

Last year, he finished inside the top 10 on the Race to Dubai, earned his PGA TOUR card, yet hadn’t finished in the Top 10 in a single event this year.

Then came Quail Hollow.

Reitan began Sunday one shot behind Alex Fitzpatrick, but stayed steady while the leaderboard around him got chaotic. He closed with a 2-under 69, finished at 15-under, and beat Rickie Fowler and Nicolai Højgaard by two shots.

That is a life-changing week – good for him.

Alex Fitzpatrick Was Right There

Alex Fitzpatrick started the day with a one-shot lead and had a real chance to win his first solo PGA TOUR event.

Instead, Sunday got away from him.

He shot 2-over on the day and finished solo fourth, which is still a great result, but it will probably sting considering where he stood entering the final round.

Still, Fitzpatrick has been playing well since getting his PGA TOUR card, and this feels more like a sign of things to come than a collapse to worry about.

Meanwhile, his brother Matt cooled off with a T52 finish after his own ridiculous run of three wins in three starts.

Rickie And Nicolai Made Their Sunday Push

Rickie Fowler and Nicolai Højgaard both finished T2, two shots behind Reitan.

For Fowler, it was another reminder that he still has plenty left when the putter cooperates and the ball-striking shows up.

For Højgaard, it was another strong week from a player who keeps looking more and more comfortable on big stages.

Neither one got the trophy, but both made Reitan earn it.

Cam Young Gave Us All A Putting Reminder

Cameron Young has been one of the hottest players on the planet lately.

And yet, on Sunday, he missed multiple putts inside four feet.

You know, just in case you think you should make every four-footer.

Young still finished T10, but the round was a good reminder that even the best players in the world can look human at times.

Other Notable Finishes

• Tommy Fleetwood: T5
• Ludvig Åberg: T8
• Cameron Young: T10
• Rory McIlroy: T19
• Matt Fitzpatrick: T52

What’s Next?

The PGA Championship at Aronimink.

Odds For The 2026 PGA Championship

Odds are subject to change and may vary by sportsbook.

Player	Odds
Scottie Scheffler	+450
Rory McIlroy	+850
Cameron Young	+1200
Jon Rahm	+1600
Bryson DeChambeau	+1800
Xander Schauffele	+1800
Ludvig Åberg	+2000
Matt Fitzpatrick	+2200
Tommy Fleetwood	+2200
Brooks Koepka	+4000
Collin Morikawa	+4000
Justin Thomas	+4000

We’ll see you Wednesday with our PGA Championship picks.

For the second week in a row, the PGA TOUR is hosting a Signature Event.

Hopefully, that is the last time I ever have to write that sentence.

The TOUR’s limited-field, no-cut, guaranteed-money events were basically a LIV-response experiment – a way to financially compensate top players enough to keep them from jumping ship.

And they kinda stink.

In terms of retaining talent, maybe it worked and maybe it didn’t. But I can tell you this: the average golf fan does not care about the purse size.

We watch sports for community, unscripted drama, and meaningful storytelling.

When you remove the cut-line and guarantee the money, it limits the amount of meaningful stories and drama that can play out.

Beyond that, if you’re the type of sicko who watches golf every week, it gets a little stale seeing the same 70 guys over and over again.

Bring back the cuts. Long live the cuts. 

With that tangent out of the way, we get back to the actual golf tournament being hosted at Quail Hollow this week.

Like last week, it’s a brutish course.

Both Doral and Quail Hollow play ~7600 yds, and both have a demanding set of closing holes.

The last three at Quail Hollow are referred to as The Green Mile, but by now, you’re probably pretty familiar with the course. It hosted the PGA Championship last year and the Presidents Cup in 2022, and has been a regular stop on TOUR for some time.

Rory McIlroy has won here four times; he is the odds leader this week, with Scottie Scheffler taking the week off.

The course suits McIlroy’s game perfectly – it requires distance and accuracy off the tee as well as emphasis on ball-striking.

Okay, I could write that about most courses, most weeks, but you get the point.

If you want to win at Quail Hollow, you’ve got to bring your complete game with you.

The Details

Previous Winners

How To Watch

Featured Groups:

Weekly Bets: The Truist Championship

We’ve partnered with Keith Stewart at Read The Line to share his weekly golf betting picks with the Caddyshanks crew. If you’re the type who enjoys breaking down matchups, spotting trends, and hunting for value, you’ll feel right at home in the RTL community.

Keith Stewart’s Picks

Rory McIlroy (+600 FanDuel)

Twelve starts at Quail Hollow, four wins, and nine top 10s. Needless to say, Rory McIlroy will be there on Sunday afternoon. Enjoy the sweat.

Akshay Bhatia (+6600 DraftKings)

Pundits will push the driver narrative this week, and they are right. What will give you an edge is picking players who move the ball right to left. For righties, that’s a draw, but for Akshay Bhatia, that is his patented fade. Complementing his edge off the tee is an approach game that has gained strokes in eight of his last nine starts. One last point, Bhatia is ranked third on the TOUR for strokes gained putting. For the North Carolina kid, this venue is a great fit.

 

Caddyshanks Picks

Xander Schauffele (+1125 Draftkings)

Xander has as good a course history at Quail Hollow as you can have without winning, and he’s quietly been gaining strokes T2G and OTT in his last few starts. He hasn’t truly been in contention on a Sunday yet this year, but it’s coming soon.

Si Woo Kim (+2400 Draftkings) 

Si Woo has been playing really well to start this season, and he has contended, but he hasn’t won yet. He played his way into the final group last week at a similarly demanding golf course, and I like him to do it again this week.

Sepp Straka (+4500 Draftkings)

Sepp won last year, albeit at the Philly Cricket Club and not QH, but that doesn’t matter. What matters most is that he quietly grabbed a back-door Top 10 last week, and he could be a sneaky pick to repeat at champ.

I won’t lie, I’m pretty excited for this one.

First off, Trump National Doral Golf Club – aka The Blue Monster – can be an absolute brute. It stretches over 7,700 yards, and those closing, water-lined holes are one of the toughest finishing stretches we see anywhere in pro golf.

Tiger Woods once put it plainly, talking about the 18th:

“It’s one of the toughest par 4s you’ll ever play if it’s into the wind.”

Good news if you like carnage – wind might be a factor on Saturday, with gusts up to 20mph. Unfortunately, it may thunderstorm on Sunday, but it’s Florida so that could change by the time you’re reading this.

Additionally, there’s some real history here.

The Blue Monster has crowned winners like Jack Nicklaus, Tom Weiskopf, Lee Trevino, Raymond Floyd, Nick Faldo, Ben Crenshaw, and of course, Tiger Woods. Always nice when a course brings a little pedigree with it.

It’s a Signature Event, so a strong field is expected, but this one will be missing a few stars; Rory McIlroy, Matt Fitzpatrick, Ludvig Åberg, Xander Schauffele, and Patrick Cantlay are all sitting it out.

In fairness, it makes sense. The schedule right now is a bit of a gauntlet – Signature Event (Cadillac), Signature Event (Truist), then straight into a major at the PGA Championship. Not exactly a light stretch, and this week is clearly where some guys are choosing to take a breather.

Someone at the PGA TOUR should do a better job with the schedule.

The Details

Previous Winners 

How To Watch 

Featured Groups

PGA TOUR LIVE on ESPN+