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 ensure every 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.
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.
Ultimately, a well-flighted tournament is a friendlier, more inclusive event. It rewards good play at every level and ensures that the announcement of winnings and prizes is something a larger portion of the field is invested in.
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 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.
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:
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.
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.
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.
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.
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:
How many flights should you have? There's no perfect answer, but a good guideline 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.
Now comes the fun part: dividing the sorted list into different flights. There are two primary methods that work great.
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
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.
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.
Flighting is as much about communication as it is about mathematics. To ensure your tournament runs smoothly, keep these things in mind.
Determining flights for a golf tournament is all about creating smaller, equitable, and more competitive battlegrounds within a single event. By carefully collecting player handicaps, sorting the field, and applying a consistent method like equal numbers or natural breaks, you guarantee more players stay engaged and have a legitimate shot at glory.
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