Side game · 2–4 players
How to play Deuces
Also called: deuce pot · twos
Make a 2 on any hole and collect from everybody. Unlike skins, deuces never cancel each other out.
The rules
- Any score of 2 collects one unit from every other player, for that hole.
- A par-3 birdie and a par-4 eagle both count — the game cares about the number, not the par.
- Two players making a 2 on the same hole both get paid in full by everyone who did not.
- A player who makes more than one deuce in a round is paid separately for each.
A worked example
Setup. Four players, $2 a unit.
- A makes a 2 on the par-3 third: A is +$6, and B, C and D are each −$2.
- B makes a 2 on the par-3 sixth: B is +$6 for that hole, and A, C and D are each −$2.
Result. Across both holes A is +$4, B is +$4, and C and D are −$4 each. It sums to zero, as it must.
This is exactly how Bagpipe Golf settles it: hole by hole, zero-sum, no arguing at the 19th.
Variations and house rules
- Some groups run a deuce pot everyone contributes to, split at the end among whoever made one. The app pays hole by hole instead, which settles cleanly even if nobody deuces.
- Others pay double for a 2 on a par 5. Not in the app.
How it works in the app
- Add Deuces at setup with a unit value.
- Nothing extra to tap — it reads the scores.
- Settlement lists each deuce, the hole, and what it paid.
Deuces FAQ
- Do two deuces on the same hole cancel out?
- No. That is the difference from skins. Each deucer collects a full unit from each player who did not make one.
- Does a hole-in-one count as a deuce?
- A 1 is not a 2, so no. Most groups have a separate — and considerably larger — arrangement for an ace.