Its just a different way of scoring called Stableford.
Each hole on a golf course has a rating from 1-18 (hardest to easiest) which here in the UK we call the stroke index and in the States they call the hole handicap.
You get 1 point for a bogey, 2 for a par, 3 for a birdie, 4 for a eagle, 5 for a albatros and 6 for a condor (I bet a few of the golfers here didn't know that one)
Example 1. I play of a 7 handicap so on holes stroke index 7 or less I receive a shot e.g. If I get a 5 on a par 4 and the index of the hole is 1-7 I get a par. If the index of that hole was above 7 I would get a bogey ie 1 point.
Example 2. If you are a beginner with a handicap of 28 you get a shot on each hole and then 2 shots on holes 1-10. That would then give you your 28 shots 18+10=28. So if you scored a 5 on the same hole (index 7) you would get a 3 as you receive 2 shots start ie a birdie and 3 points.
The game favours higher handicappers who are likely to have big scores. If in stroke play (count up every shot) you had a 12 that would kill your score but in stableford you would just get 0 ponts on that hole the same as if you had a 8 on a par 4.
Took my brother for his first few games recently and it took him into his third round to understand it but it is very easy once you have played it a couple of times. Ithought it was hard explaining it to him on the course but never realised how difficult it was until I have just done this.
Golf lessons can be quite expensive 1 to 1. You can have a group lesson where the pro will get round all of you as you are hitting shots to put you right. That would be more affordable and I know they do them in Florida. In fact I think they do full days where you are taught then play a round and then finish with another group lesson. Not sure where I saw that?
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