How it plays
- 1Both partners play their own ball and hole out.
- 2Combine the team's two scores into a two-digit number, low score first: a 4 and a 6 is 46.
- 3The other team does the same.
- 4The difference between the two numbers is the points swing for the hole.
- 5Total the swings over nine holes; the team ahead wins.
Scoring and handicaps
- Low score always goes first: 5 and 4 is 45, never 54.
- The flip: if any player on the opposing team makes a birdie, your number is reversed — your 46 becomes 64. An eagle flips and doubles in most house rules.
- This makes blow-up holes ruinous. A 4 and a 10 is 410, and that is the point of the game.
- League team weeks pay 8 to each winner, 3 to each loser.
Over nine holes
Vegas over nine holes keeps the numbers survivable while preserving the format's real feature: one hole can erase everything that came before it, which means nobody stops caring on the seventh.
How to actually win it
- Cap the maximum score per player — double bogey or net double — unless you want one hole to decide the round.
- The flip rule means protecting your partner from a birdie matters as much as making one.
- If you are miles behind, the correct play is maximum aggression. There is no such thing as losing by more.
Questions people ask
How does the Vegas golf game work?
Each two-player team combines its two hole scores into a two-digit number with the lower score first — a 4 and a 5 becomes 45. The two teams compare numbers and the difference is the points won on that hole.
What is the flip rule in Vegas golf?
If a player on the opposing team makes a birdie, your team's two-digit number is reversed so the higher score leads — 46 becomes 64. Many groups also double the number for an eagle. The flip is what makes Vegas swing so violently.
Should you cap scores in Vegas golf?
Most groups do. Without a cap, a single 10 produces a three-digit number and effectively ends the match. A double-bogey maximum keeps the format fun without removing the risk.
Watch it played
We film Vegas (2v2) live, badly, every season
Five friends, one camera, nine holes, and a forfeit waiting for whoever finishes last. The full round card for every Vegas (2v2) week is on this site the day the episode drops.