Side game · 4 (2v2) players
How to play Scotch
Also called: Six-Point game · Scotch foursome bet · Umbrella
Two-person teams fight for six points every hole across four small bets. Sweep all six and the hole doubles: an Umbrella.
The rules
- Four points are available on every hole: low ball worth 2, low total worth 2, closest to the pin in regulation worth 1, and a birdie worth 1. Six in all.
- Low ball compares each team's best individual score; low total compares the two-player sums. Ties on any sub-bet wash, nobody gets that point.
- Birdie is gross. If both teams make one it washes.
- Umbrella: a team that takes all six points on a hole doubles it to twelve.
- Points times the unit settle at the end. With the net toggle on, low ball and low total use net scores; proximity and birdie stay gross.
A worked example
Setup. $5 per point, par 4.
- Team A: 4 and 5, total 9, low ball 4. Team B: 4 and 6, total 10, low ball 4.
- Low ball ties and washes. Low total: A by one, 2 points to A.
- B1 was closest in regulation: 1 point to B. Nobody made birdie: washes.
Result. A 2, B 1 on the hole. A is up a point, $5, split $2.50 to each A player.
This is exactly how Bagpipe Golf settles it: hole by hole, zero-sum, no arguing at the 19th.
Variations and house rules
- Five-point Scotch drops the birdie point. Play it in the app and ignore birdie, or ask us for the variant.
- Some groups pay the Umbrella triple rather than double. The app doubles.
How it works in the app
- Add Scotch at setup with exactly four players in two teams and a unit per point.
- After each hole the scorekeeper taps proximity and birdie; low ball and low total come from the scores automatically.
- The live screen shows the points race and flags Umbrellas. Settlement shows every sub-bet by hole.
Scotch FAQ
- What is an Umbrella in Scotch?
- Winning all six points on a hole: low ball, low total, proximity, and birdie. The hole doubles to twelve points.
- Is Scotch played net or gross?
- Groups do both. In the app the net toggle applies handicap strokes to low ball and low total only; proximity and birdie are always gross, because you either hit the shot or you did not.