Golf Tutorials

How to Make a Golf Stroke Counter for a Glove

By Spencer Lanoue
July 24, 2025

A simple, glove-mounted stroke counter can be one of the best tools for keeping your mind on your game and off of tedious arithmetic. By removing the need to mentally juggle your score, you can stay focused on the only thing that matters: your next shot. This guide will walk you through a few easy and effective DIY methods for creating your own personalized golf stroke counter.

Why Put a Stroke Counter on Your Glove?

Before we build one, let's talk about why this is such a great little addition to your gear. It’s all about mental clarity. On the course, your brain is already busy judging distance, reading greens, checking the wind, and running through swing thoughts. The last thing you need is a running tally of “was that my fourth or fifth shot?” bogging you down.

A glove-mounted counter outsources that menial task. It’s a physical, tactile system that requires zero mental energy. You hit a shot, you move a bead. Simple as that. This allows you to:

  • Stay Present: Focus entirely on the shot in front of you, not the ones you’ve already hit.
  • Maintain Pace of Play: No more pausing to recount your shots, which helps keep your group moving.
  • Ensure Accuracy: It’s a foolproof way to remember your score on a hole, preventing those frustrating moments on the green when you can’t recall every shot.

In short, it’s a tiny piece of equipment that pays huge dividends in focus and confidence.

Method 1: The Classic Bead Counter

This is the most common and arguably the simplest way to add a stroke counter to your glove. It’s effective, cheap, and you can put it together in about five minutes. It works by having a series of beads that you slide one by one to count your shots.

What You'll Need

  • A large safety pin or a kilt pin. A kilt pin is a bit more robust and looks a little nicer, but a sturdy safety pin works perfectly.
  • Around 10-12 small beads. Plastic pony beads are ideal. You can get them in any color you like. Some golfers use two different colors - one for strokes and one for putts, for example.
  • Needle-nose pliers (optional): Can be helpful for opening and closing the pin securely.
  • Your golf glove.

Step-by-Step Instructions

  1. Prep the Pin: Open your safety pin or kilt pin. If it's a new kilt pin, it might be a bit stiff, so the pliers can help gently bend it open.
  2. Thread the Beads: Slide about 10 beads onto the open pin. Ten is a good number because it covers you even on the worst of Par 5s (we’ve all been there). If your beads have different colors, decide on a system. For example, maybe you have 8 blue beads for total strokes and 2 red beads to track putts once you reach the green.
  3. Position on the Glove: Look at your golf glove. The best place to attach the counter is on the backhand side, near the wrist or on the closure tab. You want it somewhere it won’t interfere with your grip or get knocked around during your swing. The back of the Velcro strap is a very popular spot.
  4. Attach the Counter: Carefully a pierce the pin through a durable part of your glove. On a Velcro strap, you’re just piercing the strap itself. If you’re putting it on the body of the glove, try to go through a seam for extra strength.
  5. Secure It: Close the clasp of the safety pin or kilt pin. Use your needle-nose pliers to gently pinch it shut so it’s extra secure and won’t pop open during a practice swing. That’s it! You're ready to go.

How to Use Your Bead Counter on the Course

It’s incredibly intuitive. At the start of a hole, make sure all the beads are on one side. After your tee shot, use your other hand to slide one bead to the opposite side. Hit your approach shot? Slide another bead. Stuck in the sand? Slide a bead for each attempt to get out. Once you sink the final putt, count the beads you moved. Write down the score, slide all the beads back to the starting position, and head to the next tee.

Method 2: The Silent Velcro Dot Counter

If you find the idea of beads sliding or clicking distracting, a Velcro counter is a fantastic, silent alternative. This method uses small, attachable dots to keep track of your strokes. It's a bit more "integrated" into the glove and has a very clean look.

Gather Your Gear

  • Adhesive-backed Velcro. You will need both the "hook" side (the rough, scratchy part) and the "loop" side (the soft, fuzzy part). This is often sold as a roll of "dots" or a strip you can cut.
  • A pair of scissors.
  • Your golf glove.

Step-by-Step Assembly

  1. Prep Your Velcro: Let's say you plan to use the soft side on your glove and the rough dots as your counters. Cut a strip of a soft "loop" side of the Velcro that is about 1.5 to 2 inches long.
  2. Attach the Base Strip: Peel the backing off your "loop" strip and firmly press it onto a flat area of your glove. Again, the Velcro closure strap is a great spot because it's non-intrusive and reinforced. Press down for 30 seconds to ensure a strong bond.
  3. Prepare Your Counters: Take the "hook" side of the Velcro (the rough dots). If you have pre-cut dots, you’re all set. If you have a strip, cut out 5 or 6 small squares, about half an inch by half an inch each. These are your stroke counters.
  4. Create a "Holder": It's helpful to have a spot to keep the dots you haven't used yet. You can attach another small piece of the "loop" Velcro to the other side of your glove's strap, near your palm, to act as a storage area.

Practical Tips for Using the Velcro Counter

Before the hole begins, place your counter dots on the "holder" piece of Velcro. After each shot, simply peel one dot off the holder and stick it onto the main "counter" strip on the back of your hand. At the end of the hole, count the dogs on the main strip, record your score, and move all the dots back to the holder. It's totally silent, and the dots are surprisingly secure.

Method 3: The Snap Fastener Counter

For those who want a more permanent and sturdy solution, installing snap fasteners directly onto a piece of fabric or leather attached to your glove is a great project. It provides a satisfying "click" for each stroke and feels very professional.

Materials and Tools Checklist

  • A snap fastener kit. These are available at any fabric or craft store and usually come with a specialized set of pliers and all the male/female snap components.
  • A small piece of durable material. A 3-inch strip of thick fabric, nylon webbing, or a thin piece of leather works best.
  • Strong glue or needle and thread. To attach your creation to the glove.
  • An awl or sharp pointed tool (optional). This helps to create the initial hole for the snaps.

Building Your Snap Counter

  1. Prepare your Strip: Take your 3-inch strip of fabric or leather. This will be the base for your counter.
  2. Install the Snaps: This is where the kit comes in. A snap has four parts: a cap and a socket (the female side) and a post and a stud (the male side). We want to install a series of one half of the snaps - let's say 10 "sockets" - in a row along your fabric strip.
  3. Mark Your Holes: Space them out evenly. Use the awl or the tip of your scissors to poke small pilot holes where you want each snap to go.
  4. Set the Sockets: Following the instructions on your snap fastener kit, place the cap on one side of the fabric and the socket on the other, lined up with your hole. Use the pliers to squeeze them together firmly. You should hear a click as they lock in place. Repeat this for all 10 sockets.
  5. Create the "Slider": Now, take the other half of the snap - the "stud." You'll attach a single stud to a small, separate piece of fabric or a ribbon. This will be your mobile counter.
  6. Attach to the Glove: Securely attach your strip of 10 sockets to the back of your glove's strap using either a strong fabric glue or by neatly sewing it on.

How It Works During Your Round

Start each hole with your "slider" (the stud) unattached. After your first stroke, snap it onto the first socket. After the next stroke, unsnap it and move it to the second socket. The tactile "click" you get each time is incredibly satisfying and leaves no ambiguity. Just count which number socket you're on at the end of the hole for your score.

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Coach's Corner: Getting the Most From Your Counter

Building the counter is just the first step. Using it effectively can really help your mental game. As a coach, I tell my students to think of it not just as a counter but as a "reset button" for their focus.

  • Commit to the Process: The counter only works if you use it for every scoreable event. Full shots, chips, putts, and even penalty strokes. That way, there’s no guesswork at the end of the hole.
  • The End-of-Hole Ritual: Develop a routine. After your final putt, walk off the green, count your beads/dots/snaps, record your score on the card, and then reset your counter to zero. That physical action of resetting closes the book on the last hole, good or bad, and gets you ready for the next one.
  • -
    Look After Your Glove:
    When attaching your counter, especially with the pin or snaps, make sure you don't compromise the structure of the glove itself. The closure strap is the safest place as it’s built to handle more stress than the thin leather around the fingers. -
    Don't Be a Score-Watcher:
    The purpose of the counter is to let you
    forget
    your score during the hole. Move the bead and then let it go. Don't constantly look and think, "Oh no, I'm already at 5!" Just play the shot in front of you. That's how this simple device truly helps you play better golf.

Final Thoughts

Creating your own golf stroke counter for your glove is a simple, satisfying project that can significantly benefit your focus on the course. Whichever method you choose, you're building a tool to offload a mental task, freeing you up to concentrate on shot-making and pure enjoyment of the game.

Of course, managing your score is just one part of the mental game. Once you stop spending energy counting, you can start putting that energy toward smarter on-course decisions. Our goal with Caddie AI is to help you with that side of the equation. Just as a bead counter takes the guesswork out of your stroke count, we built our app to take the guesswork out of your strategy - whether that's analyzing a tricky lie you've snapped a picture of, recommending a club for an approach shot, or offering a smart plan to navigate a tough hole. Think of it as your strategic partner, available 24/7 to help you play with more confidence and clarity.

Spencer has been playing golf since he was a kid and has spent a lifetime chasing improvement. With over a decade of experience building successful tech products, he combined his love for golf and startups to create Caddie AI - the world's best AI golf app. Giving everyone an expert level coach in your pocket, available 24/7. His mission is simple: make world-class golf advice accessible to everyone, anytime.

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