Overview
At a glance
Is this game right for my group?
ABG editorial scores on a 1–5 scale.
Harder to teach
High replayability
Low interaction
Scales well
Deep strategy
How it plays
How does it play?
Golf is a card game played with one or more standard 52-card decks plus jokers, depending on the number of players. Generally, the game is played over 9 or 18 rounds, and the goal is to get the lowest score over those rounds.
Core mechanisms
Key systems that shape the decisions players make.
Read the full game description
Golf is a card game played with one or more standard 52-card decks plus jokers, depending on the number of players. Generally, the game is played over 9 or 18 rounds, and the goal is to get the lowest score over those rounds. Each player is dealt cards in a 2x3 or 2x4 rectangle. On a turn, a player will replace one card out of the draw or discard pile to try to lower their score. A matched pair (top to bottom) is worth 0 points, pip cards are worth their number, face cards are worth 10, but kings are worth 0. When one player decides to stop, the other players get one more chance to lower their score before the round ends. There are restrictions on which cards can be played depending on which version of Golf you are playing. Many versions of Golf have evolved over the years, as happens with many standard card games.