How to Determine Flights in a Golf Tournament

Setting up flights for a golf tournament can feel more complicated than a downhill, sidehill putt, but it doesn't have to be. Creating fair and competitive groupings is one of the best ways to make sure every single player has a fantastic time, regardless of their skill level. This guide will walk you through exactly how to determine flights for your next event, with simple steps and practical advice to make the process smooth and successful.

What is a “Flight” and Why Should You Use Them?

In simple terms, "flighting" a golf tournament means dividing the entire field of competitors into smaller groups of players with similar abilities. Instead of one giant competition where a scratch golfer is playing against a 30-handicap for the same prize, you create several smaller tournaments within the main one. The top players compete in a "Championship Flight" or "A Flight," the next group of players competes in the "B Flight," and so on.

Why go to the trouble? The benefits are immense, and they all lead to one thing: a more enjoyable event for everyone.

• It Creates More Winners: With a single group, only a handful of the best players have a real shot at winning. With flights, you have winners in every division. This spreads the awards around and gives more people that exciting feeling of being in contention on the back nine.
• It Encourages True Competition: A player with a 22-handicap knows they can't realistically beat a 2-handicap for the overall gross title. But if they're flighted with players a_in the 18-25 handicap range, the competition becomes very real and exciting_ for them. Every putt matters.
• It Keeps Everyone Engaged: Higher handicap players can sometimes feel like they're just out for a casual round if the competition seems out of reach. Flighting makes the event meaningful for them, encouraging them to post their best score and keeping an honest count. It turns a casual round into a competitive one.

Ultimately, a well-flighted tournament is a friendlier, more inclusive event. It rewards good play at every level and ensures that the an_n_ouncement of winnings and prizes is something a larger portion of the field is invested in.

The Foundation: How to Get Player Handicaps

Before you can even think about creating flights, you need one piece of information for every player: their handicap. This number is the bedrock of the entire system. Your goal is to get the most accurate, up-to-date handicap possible for everyone in the field.

The Gold Standard: Official Handicap Index

The best and most reliable method is to require an official Handicap Index from a recognized system like the USGA's GHIN (Golf Handicap and Information Network) or the World Handicap System (WHS). These indexes are calculated based on a player's recent scores and are updated regularly, making them the fairest measure of a player's potential ability.

When collecting registrations, make it a requirement for players to provide their Handicap Index or GHIN number. You can then look up these numbers to confirm they are current.

What If a Player Doesn't Have an Official Handicap?

It's a common issue, especially in casual or corporate outings. You'll inevitably have golfers who don't maintain an official handicap. Here are a few ways to handle this fairly:

1. The Callaway or Peoria System (One-Day Handicapping)

These systems are designed to create a handicap for a player based on their score from that day's round. After the round is complete, the tournament committee secretly selects a certain number of holes (e.g., six holes chosen at random). The player's score on these selected holes is used to calculate a rough handicap, which is then applied to their full 18-hole score. This is done after the fact and is a good way to level the playing field for an event with many beginner or infrequent golfers. The downside is that players don't know where they stand during the round, and a few lucky or unlucky holes can drastically skew the outcome.

2. Ask for Recent Scores

Another option is to ask players without a handicap to provide their last five 18-hole scores. You can use a simple average, or better yet, use an online calculator to get an estimated Handicap Index from those scores. While not as precise as a GHIN, it's far better than just guessing. Be clear that providing fraudulent scores will result in disqualification.

3. The "Scratch" Default

Some tournaments use a simple, albeit harsh, rule: "No handicap, you play as a scratch (0 handicap)." This prevents people from "forgetting" their handicap in hopes of getting an advantage. It’s effective, but it can also discourage less serious golfers from participating, so consider your audience before implementing this rule.

For flighting purposes, having an estimated handicap before the tournament starts is much better than figuring it out afterward. Whichever path you choose, communicate it clearly to all participants.

The Step-by-Step Guide to Creating Your Flights

Once you have a handicap for every player, it’s time to organize them. This is where you, as the tournament director, get to draw the lines. A simple spreadsheet is your best friend here.

Let's use an example of a 64-player tournament to walk through the process.

Step 1: Create a Master List and Sort It

Enter every player's name and their Handicap Index into a spreadsheet. Create two columns: "Player Name" and "Handicap Index." Once all 64 players are entered, sort the entire list by the "Handicap Index" column, from the lowest number (the best players) to the highest.

Your list will now look something like this:

• Player 1 | -1.2
• Player 2 | 0.5
• ...and so on...
• Player 63 | 28.1
• Player 64 | 30.5

Step 2: Decide on the Number of Flights

How many flights should you have? There's no perfect answer, but a good g_u_ideline is to aim for flights of similar size, typically between 8 and 16 players each. You want enough people in each flight to make it competitive, but not so many that it feels impersonal.

For our 64-player field, creating four flights of 16 players each is a logical and popular choice. You could also do eight flights of 8 players, but four is more common for this field size.

Step 3: Choose Your Method for Dividing the Flights

Now comes the fun part: dividing the sorted list into different flights. There are two primary methods that work great.

Method A: By Equal Number of Players (The A-B-C-D Method)

This is the most straightforward and easiest method to implement and explain. You simply divide your total, sorted field by the number of flights.

In our example of 64 players and 4 flights:

64 players / 4 flights = 16 players per flight

• Championship Flight: The top 16 players on your sorted list.
• A Flight: The next 16 players (players 17-32).
• B Flight: The next 16 players (players 33-48).
• C Flight: The final 16 players (players 49-64).

You then look at the handicap of the last person in each flight to define the handicap range. For example, if player #16 has a 7.8 handicap, the Championship Flight range is anything up to 7.8. If player #32 has a 15.2, the A Flight range is 7.9 to 15.2, and so on. This method is incredibly transparent and undeniably fair because it's based on pure math.

Method B: By Handicap Breaks (The Natural Cutoff Method)

This method requires a little more art than pure science, but many golfers prefer it. After you've sorted your list, instead of just splitting it into equal chunks, you scan down the handicap column looking for natural gaps or "breaks" in the numbers.

Take a look at a small sample from your sorted list:

...
Player 14 | 8.1
Player 15 | 8.5
Player 16 | 8.9
--- Natural Break ---
Player 17 | 10.1
Player 18 | 10.3
...

You can see there's a significant jump of more than a full stroke between player #16 and player #17. This is a perfect "natural break" to use as the dividing line between two flights. The Championship Flight would include everyone with a handicap of 8.9 or lower.

You would continue scanning down the list to find the next few natural breaks. The advantage of this approach is that you avoid grouping a player at the very top of a handicap range (like the 8.9) with someone significantly better off at the start of that break (the 10.1). The flights might have slightly different sizes - one might have 15 players, another 17 - but each group will feel extremely homogenous in terms of skill.

Final Reminders for a Fair Event

Flighting is as much about communication as it is about mathematics. To ensure your tournament runs smoothly, keep these things in mind.

• Decide on Gross vs. Net Prizes: The great thing about flights is that you can award prizes for both. Often, the top flight (Champ Flight) plays for the Gross Champion title (lowest raw score), while the other flights play for Net prizes (score after handicap is applied). You can even do both in every flight! Figure this out beforehand.
• Be Transparent: Before the event, let all participants know how the flights were created. Post the player list with flight assignments and the handicap ranges for each. This transparency prevents any questions about fairness and builds trust among the players.
• Use the Committee's Authority: In rare cases, you might know a player's listed handicap doesn't reflect their true ability (sandbagging). Tournament committees generally have the right to adjust a player’s tournament handicap to protect the integrity of the field. This should be done carefully and communicated directly with the player.

Final Thoughts.

Determining flights for a golf tournament is all about creating smaller, equitable a_nd more competitive battlegrounds within a single event. By carefully collecting player handicaps, sorting the field, and a_pplying a consistent method like equal numbers or natural breaks, you guarantee more players stay engaged and have a legitimate shot at glory.

While a well-run tournament gets you set up for success, winning your flight ultimately comes down to hitting good shots and making smart decisions. If you're standing over a tough shot and wish you had a second opinion, our Caddie AI is here to help. You can get instant, expert-level advice on everything from club selection to shot strategy right on your phone, giving you the kind of on-course confidence that helps you perform your best when it counts.