Make the round work
Chapman or Pinehurst Golf: Follow a Complete Hole
In the Chapman/Pinehurst version used here, both partners drive, each plays the other’s ball for the second shot, then the side selects a ball and alternates to finish.
Competitive Play · Updated October 22, 2026
Select Ava’s original ball after the swap
Original worked example
Select Ava’s original ball after the swapWhich facts apply?
CASE 01
Two drives
Ava plays ballA; Ben plays ballB.
Each partner then plays the other ball.
CASE 02
Swapped seconds
Ben hits ballA; Ava hits ballB.
The side selects ballA and abandons ballB for this hole.
CASE 03
Alternate finish
Ava plays ballA’s third shot, Ben its fourth, Ava its fifth.
The side completes this fictional hole in 5.
Fictional players, numbers and arrangements. No real booking, measured equipment trial or actual event policy is represented by the example.
The short version
- Read the event’s exact format definition.
- After selecting, the partner who did not hit that ball’s second shot plays next.
- The handicap example uses stated fictional inputs.
Keep each ball’s last player visible
The selected ball is Ava’s original tee ball, but Ben hit its second shot. That makes Ava next in the stated format. Choosing a ball is not permission for either partner to take every subsequent shot.
Do not total the two opening drives as two strokes on the selected ball’s score. Follow the chosen ball’s sequence after the format’s selection step. Event terms should explain penalties, required drives and any variations.
Read the name with the actual instructions
Organizers can use related names or modified versions. A title on a flyer is less useful than a written sequence describing the two drives, swapped seconds, selection and alternating finish. A scramble, shamble and ordinary foursomes begin different records.
Ask the Committee to clarify an unclear instruction before the round, especially who plays after selection and how a penalty affects order.
Use the prescribed allowance and precision
USGA guidance lists a 60% low/40% high allowance for Chapman/Pinehurst. With fictional unrounded inputs 10.0 and 20.0 under that stipulated method, the combined result is 6.0+8.0=14.0 before any required final rounding. This does not establish every event’s allowance.
Compare Course and Playing Handicap and foursomes order.
Official sources
Official provisions checked October 22, 2026. Read their full wording and current event conditions.
Your next move
Read the governing source
Check the complete official procedure and your event conditions before acting.
Read the governing source(Official source), opens in a new tab