What Is a 4-Person Scramble in Golf?

A 4-person scramble is one of the most popular and enjoyable formats in golf, turning an individual sport into a collaborative team game. It’s the go-to choice for charity outings, corporate events, and casual weekend rounds with friends because it takes the pressure off and lets everyone contribute. This guide will walk you through exactly how a scramble works, step-by-step, and give you practical strategies to help your team play its best and have a great time doing it.

What Exactly Is a 4-Person Scramble?

In a scramble, a team of four golfers plays as a single unit. The format is elegantly simple:

1. All four players hit a tee shot.
2. The team members compare the results and decide which of the four shots is the best.
3. The other three players pick up their balls and move them to the location of the best shot.
4. All four players then play their second shot from this new spot.
5. This process repeats for every shot - including on the green - until one player gets the ball in the hole.

The team records a single score for the hole. If it took the team three shots to hole out, the score for the hole is a 3. This format is fantastic for groups with a wide range of skill levels. A beginner’s wild slice doesn’t hurt the team if a more experienced player hits a perfect drive down the middle. Everyone gets to hit from great positions, hit more good shots, and feel like they’re making a positive contribution.

The Rules of a Scramble: A Step-by-Step Guide

Understanding the flow of a scramble hole is straightforward. Let’s break down the process from tee to green.

Step 1: The Tee Shot

The hole begins with all four members of your team hitting a drive. Everyone tees off from their appropriate tee box. There’s no pressure to be perfect, the goal is simply for the team to produce at least one good drive to use for the next shot.

Step 2: Choosing the Best Drive

Once all four drives have been hit, the team walks or rides up to the landing areas and analyzes the results. This is the first strategic decision of the hole. What counts as the "best" shot? It’s not always just the longest one. You should consider:

• Distance: How far is the ball down the fairway? Further is usually better, but not always.
• Lie: Is the ball sitting nicely on the fairway, or is it buried in thick rough or a divot? A perfect lie in the fairway is often better than an extra 15 yards from a bad lie.
• Angle: What is the angle to the green? Sometimes a slightly shorter shot from the center of the fairway provides a much better angle to attack the pin than a longer drive that's blocked by trees.

Your team discusses the options and comes to a consensus. Let’s say Player A’s drive is chosen. That’s your spot.

Step 3: Playing the Second Shot

Once the best drive is selected, place a ball marker next to it to mark the official spot. Player A can choose to hit their shot from exactly where their ball lies. The other three players (Players B, C, and D) pick up their own balls and place them within one club-length of the marked spot. A few important rules apply here:

• Stay in the Same Condition: You cannot improve your lie. If the chosen shot is in the rough, everyone must place their ball in the rough. You can’t move it from the rough to the fairway. The same goes for the fringe, sand traps, or fairway.
• No Closer to the Hole: The one club-length placement cannot be used to get your ball closer to the hole.

All four players then hit their second shot from this area. The same process repeats: find the best of the four shots, mark the spot, and have everyone play their third shot from there.

Step 4: On the Green

The scramble format continues right onto the putting green. Once one of your team’s shots is on the green, say a 15-foot putt for birdie, everyone will attempt that same putt.

The player whose approach shot was selected will typically putt first. They should carefully mark their ball an inch or two to the side, allowing the other players to putt from the exact same spot without their coin interfering. As others putt, they will most likely reveal the true line and speed needed. Once any player on the team successfully sinks the putt, the hole is over for the team. You pick up the remaining balls and write down the score.

For example, if the first player misses, the second drains it, your team's score is done. The other two players do not need to putt. You finished in three shots, which is a birdie on a par 4.

Winning Strategy for Your Scramble Team

A fun format still has strategy! Playing smart can easily shave several strokes off your team’s score. As a coach, this is where I see teams separate themselves.

Establish a Batting Order (and Stick to It)

Don't just have players hit whenever they feel like it. Create a consistent order for tee shots and approach shots. A common and effective strategy is:

1. The Consistent Player ("Lay-up"): Have your most reliable, straightest hitter go first. Their job is to get a ball in the fairway - no matter the distance. This takes all the pressure off the rest of the team.
2. The Role Players (B/C): Players two and three can now swing a bit more freely, knowing there’s already a safe shot in play. They can try to hit it a bit farther or be more aggressive.
3. The Long Hitter ("Bomber"): Let your longest hitter always bat cleanup. With a ball safely in the fairway, they have a green light to swing for the fences and give the team a massive distance advantage.

This same logic applies to putting. Let a solid putter go first to show the team the line and speed. The other players can adjust based on what they see. Save your best, most confident putter for last - they now have the most information and the best chance to make a "must-make" putt.

Think Past the Obvious "Best Shot"

The "longest drive" isn’t always the smartest choice. A 280-yard drive in the rough with a bad angle blocked by a bunker is often worse than a 250-yard drive in the middle of the fairway. Before you all rush to the longest ball, pause and look at the next shot. Ask yourselves:

• What’s our ideal yardage for the approach? Some players are deadly with a 100-yard wedge but less so from 75 yards.
• Which angle gives us the best view of the pin and the most green to work with?
• Is the lie truly good? A ball sitting up in the rough can be great, but one in thick, wet grass is trouble.

Play for Birdies and Eagles

The scramble format is designed for scoring. Don’t play too conservatively. Once a safe shot is on the green, other players should be aggressive and fire right at the pin. The same goes for long putts. Once the first player has lagged their putt close to the hole to secure a tap-in par, the other three players have a free run at making the birdie. Tell them to give it enough speed to get to the hole - leaving it short does the team no good.

Common Scramble Variations

You might encounter a few twists on the classic scramble format during an event. Here are the two most common.

Texas Scramble

A Texas Scramble follows the same rules as a standard scramble, with one major twist: the team must use a minimum number of each player's tee shots throughout the round. For example, in an 18-hole tournament, the rule might state that each of the four players’ drives must be selected at least three times. This adds a fantastic layer of strategy, forcing you to use drives from all your players, not just the A-player.

Shamble (or Bramble)

A Shamble starts like a scramble but ends like individual golf. All four players hit a tee shot, and the team selects the best one. From that point, however, each player plays their own ball individually until it's holed out. So if you use Player A’s drive, Players B, C, and D will drop their own balls at that spot and play out the rest of the hole stroke-play style. The team then typically records the one or two best individual scores on that hole.

Final Thoughts

A 4-person scramble is golf at its most cooperative and fun. It builds camaraderie, speeds up play, and allows golfers of every dedication level to feel like part of a team going for a low score. By understanding the simple rules and applying a bit of smart strategy, your group can turn a good day on the course into a great one.

So much of performing well in a scramble comes down to good teamwork and smart decision-making, like picking the right shot to play from or deciding on the best strategy for a tricky par 5. Having an expert opinion can resolve those on-course debates and give your team confidence. I built Caddie AI to serve as that on-demand golf brain, ready to give you instant, personalized advice. If you’re ever stumped on a lie in the rough during a scramble, you can snap a photo and get a recommendation on how to play it. If your team is debating between club choices for an important approach shot, you can get a clear, data-driven answer in seconds, helping you all play with more of a plan and way less second-guessing.