Three bets in one round — the front nine, the back nine, and the overall 18. The most classic golf wager there is, played at clubs for more than a century.
One round, three separate bets — front nine, back nine, and total. Lose the front and you can still salvage the day on the back. Add presses when you’re down and the arithmetic gets interesting fast.
A Nassau is three separate wagers played simultaneously in a single round: one for the front nine, one for the back nine, and one for the overall 18. The lowest total score wins each segment, and each segment is independent — a bad front nine doesn't doom your back-nine bet. Duck Hook Golf scores all three segments automatically, with handicap support if you need it.
Lowest total wins. Each of the three Nassau segments is decided by the lowest total score for those holes. The front nine and back nine each cover nine holes; the overall covers all 18.
What about ties? If two players tie for the low score in a segment, that segment splits or pushes per your group's preference. Duck Hook Golf surfaces each segment's leaderboard so you can see ties at a glance.
Per-segment payout math. Within a segment, each non-winner pays the winner the unit cost. With four players and a $10 Nassau, the segment winner collects $30. Sweep all three segments and you collect $90 from each opponent over the round.
Presses (the traditional add-on). A press is a new bet started mid-round when one side is down by enough to want a fresh wager. Traditionally, the trailing side may "press" once they're 2 down in a segment, opening a new bet that covers the remaining holes of that segment. Duck Hook Golf scores them: turn presses on when you set up the game and the app starts the new bet from the next unscored hole, keeps both bets live, and settles each on its own. A new-bet press needs the Nassau scored as match play; a Nassau scored on low total can have a segment doubled instead. The full rules are in the guide to presses.
Gross or net. Nassau works either way. Net scoring applies handicap strokes to the hardest-rated holes per the course's stroke index, then sums the adjusted scores for each segment. Mixed-handicap groups should usually play net.
Individual or team Nassau. Run a standard 1v1 or 1v1v1, or pair up and play 2v2 with team scores per segment.
USGA or relative handicaps. USGA is the default; switch to relative if your group prefers the simpler "lowest handicap plays scratch" model.
Side bets. Closest to the pin on the par 3s, a long drive on the 12th: the app tracks side bets on top of the Nassau and settles them with it.
Set up a nassau game in about thirty seconds, hand out the code, and let everybody watch it play out.
A Nassau is three separate wagers in one round: one on the front nine, one on the back nine, and one on the overall 18. Each bet is worth the same amount and settles independently, so a rough front nine never kills the whole match. It's the most common golf wager in America, named for Nassau Country Club on Long Island where it originated around 1900.
$5 on the front, $5 on the back, and $5 on the overall — $15 of total exposure per opponent before any presses. A “2-2-2” works the same way at $2 per segment.
Both conventions exist. The traditional club Nassau is match play — holes up and down within each nine. Many modern groups instead play each segment as lowest total score, which works better for three or more players. Duck Hook Golf scores it either way: by total score, gross or net, so any size group can play, or as match play, where every pair of golfers is its own match on the front, the back and the overall.
A press is a brand-new bet, usually for the original amount, opened by the side that's trailing — classically when 2 down in a segment. It covers the remaining holes of that nine and settles separately. Duck Hook Golf scores presses on a match-play Nassau: agree on the trigger and amount before the round, and the app starts each one from the next unscored hole and settles it separately. See the guide to presses.
In a net Nassau, each player's handicap strokes are applied on the hardest-rated holes by stroke index, and the adjusted totals decide each segment. Mixed-handicap groups should almost always play net — it keeps all three bets competitive for everyone.
Same energy, different game. Everything below has a full rules guide of its own.
Duck Hook Golf