A golf round absolutely can end in a tie, but whether that tie stands or gets broken depends entirely on the setting and the stakes. While you and your friends might happily call it a draw after 18 holes, the professional tours have created some of golf’s most dramatic moments by forcing a single winner to emerge. This guide will walk you through exactly how ties are handled, from the high-pressure playoffs of the PGA Tour to the simple methods used at your local club.
At its core, golf is a beautifully simple game: the person with the lowest score wins. So, what happens when two or more people post the exact same lowest score? In the most common form of golf - your everyday round with friends - a tie is simply a tie. If you and your buddy both shoot a respectable 92, you’ve tied. You can shake hands, split the bragging rights, and head for the clubhouse knowing you played on even terms.
This is called stroke play, where every shot counts toward a final total. It’s the way most of us learn and play the game. In this casual context, there’s no official rulebook that says you must determine a winner. A tie is a perfectly acceptable, and frequent, outcome.
Everything changes, however, when prize money, trophies, and championship titles are on the line. In professional tournaments and most amateur competitions, a tie for first place simply won’t do. The event needs a definitive champion. This is where golf’s various tie-breaking procedures, collectively known as playoffs, come into play.
Watching professional golfers battle in a playoff is one of the most exciting experiences in sports. A four-day tournament marathon turns into a sprint, where a single great shot can win a major and a single mistake can send you home with second-place honors. Here are the most common formats the pros use to break a deadlock.
This is the most common and arguably the most nerve-wracking type of playoff. It’s simple, brutal, and fast. Players who are tied for the lead head to a specific, pre-determined hole (often the 18th) and play it again.
Slightly less “sudden” but no less dramatic, the aggregate-score playoff gives players a small cushion. Instead of a single-hole duel, the tie is decided over a set number of extra holes.
For a long time, the U.S. Open had the most grueling tie-breaker in golf: a full, 18-hole playoff contested the following day. This meant tied players had to return on Monday and battle over another complete round. The most famous example is Tiger Woods defeating Rocco Mediate on the 19th hole of their Monday playoff at the 2008 U.S. Open - after they were still tied after the extra 18 holes.
However, recognizing the physical toll and the demands of modern sports broadcasting, the USGA changed its format in 2018. Now, like the PGA Championship, it employs a two-hole aggregate format. This shift marks the near-end of the full-round playoff in elite professional golf.
While a tie for first place is almost always settled, there are a few interesting exceptions where a tie is the final result.
Team Competitions: Events like the Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup are a different beast. In these match-play competitions, the team needs to reach a certain point total to win. For example, in the Ryder Cup, the winning team needs 14.5 points out of a possible 28. If the final score ends at 14-14, it is officially a tie. In this specific scenario, the team that won the previous Ryder Cup retains the trophy. The Solheim Cup follows a similar rule.
Weather-Shortened Events: On very rare occasions,a tournament might be severely impacted by weather, making a playoff impossible to conduct safely or in a timely manner. In such cases, tournament administrators may declare co-champions, and the tied players will share the title and first-place prize money.
Ties for Other Positions: For any position other than first place, ties are extremely common and are allowed to stand. If three players tie for 10th place, for instance, the prize money for 10th, 11th, and 12th place is added together and divided equally among the three of them.
Okay, let's bring this back from the pro tours to your regular Saturday game. The money and glory might not be the same, but the desire to crown a winner can be just as strong. If a friendly handshake and calling it a draw isn't enough, here are the most common ways to settle a tie in amateur and club golf.
This is the standard way most club tournaments determine a winner without sending everyone back onto the course. It’s a mathematical process of comparing scorecards to see who played better on the most recent, and presumably more pressured, holes. The exact method can vary, but the most common procedure is as follows:
This method rewards the player who finished strongest. Before starting a club competition, it's always a good idea to check the specific countback procedure outlined on the tournament rules sheet.
If you're out with friendly rivals and time and course rules permit, you can create your own low-stakes "playoff." This is less about official rules and more about having fun. Some great options include:
Honestly? This is often the best option. Golf is a hard game. Shooting the same score as your opponent over four-plus hours and thousands of yards is an accomplishment in itself. Acknowledge the duel, celebrate each other's good shots, and agree to settle the score next time. There's nothing wrong with sharing the victory.
So, yes, a golf game can end in a tie, and often does in casual play. But from scorecard countbacks at the club level to heart-pounding sudden-death battles for million-dollar purses, golf has developed fair and exciting ways to produce a single winner when it matters most.
Knowing these rules can help you feel more prepared for a competition or simply add another layer of appreciation when you're watching the pros on Sunday. When you find yourself in these confusing spots - whether it's deciphering a local countback rule or facing a tricky shot you’re not sure how to play - we designed Caddie AI to provide instant, clear answers. Having that expert golf knowledge in your pocket takes away the uncertainty, letting you focus on the shot at hand with complete confidence.
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