Here’s a primer on Ryder Cup Formats:

The Ryder Cup consists of Four Ball, Foursomes and Singles matches.  There are four Four Ball and four Foursomes each of the first two days. On the third day—Sunday—the Ryder Cup consists of singles matches.

Foursomes consist of two teams of two, and only one ball per team. It’s sometimes also known as “Alternate Shot.” Players alternate shots and alternate on tee shots. As in any match play game, the team with the lowest score on each hole wins that hole for the team.

A “Four Ball” match sometimes also is known as “best ball.” Like foursomes, four ball is played in teams of two. In this format, each team member plays his own ball throughout the hole. Four players; four balls. Then, at the end of each hole, the team’s low score is counted to determine who wins the hole.

There is a great deal of strategy involved in playing these events—particularly for the coach, or captain. As a golf coach, I was faced with a fundamental dilemma whenever my team had to compete in a match play team event: do you combine players with similar, or contrasting skills?

In a foursomes, the first instinct is to combine players with dissimilar, but complementary skills.  You might, for example, combine a long hitter with a short game specialist. Taking a look at the course, a coach then can identify the hole that confers the biggest advantage to the long hitter and assign him to tee off on that hole. This then determines who tees off on all the others, since tee shots are alternated between team mates.

Teaming players with different skills also can help to minimize the damage on any one hole. If a short hitter tees off, then the longer hitter can hit a higher numbered iron into the green, where, presumably, the short game player can make a good putt.

The problem with this, however, is that it takes a player out of his usual game. If the bomber is used to taking wedges into a green, he will be uncomfortable hitting a longer iron after a wedge-and-putter player’s tee shot. So, the other approach to foursomes is to combine players with similar styles. This ensures that players generally are hitting shots that are familiar.

On the course in foursomes, team mates must be constantly aware of the other’s abilities. Each must ensure that his shot puts the other in a position that plays to their strengths. It’s not simply a matter of hitting the best shot that he can.

For example, Phil Mickelson might be able to reach a par 5 in two. In doing so, however, the risk is that the ball ends up in a greenside bunker. If his partner is a sand wizard, that might be an acceptable risk; if not, he should lay up to his partner’s best distance.

Four Ball is a somewhat easier game on the coach. There, I usually combined players with different skill sets, on the theory that each hole would play to at least one of their strengths or weaknesses.

Another way of pairing players is by style. It’s often advantageous to pair a gambler with a cautious player. One can go for birdies, while the other plays for par.

On the course in a four ball match, the partners need to keep a good eye on how the other is doing. If player A has hit a ball to a safe spot, his partner might be able to attempt a riskier shot. If the risk fails to produce reward, the other player at least has a good chance. I like this format because played well, it encourages a gambling style of play.

A word about Match Play also may be in order:

There are a lot of little courtesies in golf, from the obvious (such as not talking while someone is taking their shot) to the obscure (not only avoiding stepping on a player’s putting line, but also on their through-line—where ball might roll if it glides past the hole). Tending the flag lies somewhere in-between.

For the most part, flag tending is a part of the putting rituals. Once everyone is on the green, it is customary for the person pulling the flag to ask if everyone can see the hole. On occasion,  due to distance, shadows, undulating greens or just plain poor eyesight, a player will request that the flag stay in. At this point, tending is necessary because hitting the flagstick while putting constitutes a one-stroke penalty.

Typically, the person closest to the flag does the honors. I also try to make it a point to do the flag tending duties in rotation with the other players. And if I’m playing with older gentlemen who might have trouble bending over to pick up the flag afterwards, I just try to take over the job for the round.

When tending a flag, the thing to do is to grasp the pole at arm’s length and pull it straight up slightly out of the bottom of the cup. Stand still until the putting player makes contact and the ball begins its forward motion. Then, lift the flag straight up out of the cup and quickly step away from the hole. Place the flag on the edge of the green.

A tip: To avoid leaving your wedge or chipping iron behind, rest it on top of the flag. When you replace the flag, you’ll remember to get your club back.

I recommend pulling the flag out slightly before the putt to avoid the embarrassment of being unable to remove a stuck flag before the ball arrives. Also, make sure that you pull it straight up to avoid the embarrassment of pulling the cup out of the hole.

Players just off the green occasionally will request that their partner or fellow competitors tend the flag for their chip. I’m not sure this is a good idea, however. There is some convincing statistical evidence that players make more shots from off the green with the flagstick in.  I suspect it’s something to do with the flag acting as a bit of a backstop.

A final reason for tending a flagstick—rarely used in my experience—is to lift the flag above the hole so that a player taking a shot can see the hole’s location from a blind spot.

When replacing the flag, put it straight back in and before leaving, ensure that it is standing straight up and is secure. A flag that leans against the side of the hole can cause damage. People who cause damage to the greens accumulate bad Golf Karma.

There are some hazards to flag tending. First is that a player must request, or give permission for a fellow player to tend the flag. Unauthorized flag-tending is a two stroke penalty if the tending might have influenced the movement of the ball. Second, if the player’s ball strikes either the flag tender or the stick, it’s a two stroke penalty.

When on the green, player should take care not to stray near the flag. Under the rules of golf, anyone standing near the flagstick while a stoke is being made is deemed to be tending the flag. That’s ok in a friendly round, but in competition, someone might try to take advantage of your proximity. If you are close enough to be considered a flag tender, but don’t have permission to do so, you could get hit with a penalty.

The details of flag tending are found in Rule 17.

What is an Albatross In Golf? is Ask.Com’s ninth most asked golf question. Their answer: Albatross is another term for a double eagle, or 3-under par on any one hole.

Albatross seems to be a relatively recent golf term. Whereas par, bogey and birdie have been used since the 1800s, as late as 1935, Gene Sarazen referred to his double eagle at that year’s Masters as a “dodo.”

I’ve always thought “albatross” a bit strange, for putting an albatross on your scorecard seems unnecessarily similar to having an albatross around your neck. That has a lot of negative connotations, thanks to Samuel Coleridge’s Rime of the Ancient Mariner:

Ah! well-a-day! what evil looks
Had I from old and young!
Instead of the cross, the Albatross
About my neck was hung.”

How do you calculate your golf handicap? is the eighth most asked question on Ask.Com:

After figuring out a golf course’s rating, take the score and subtract it from the course rating before multiplying it times 113 and dividing this number by the slope of the course. Take five scores and multiply the lowest by .96 to get a handicap.

Actually, a handicap is calculated from a golfer’s ten best scores out of the last twenty rounds.

For each of those rounds, calculate a differential based on the following formula:

Differential = ( (Player Score - Course Rating) (113) ) / Slope

Then, use those differentials to average a handicap.

Handicap = (Average of Differentials) (.96)

In English: for each round you’re counting, subtract the course rating from your score. Then, multiply that result by 113. Finally, divide the previous result by the slope of the course that you played. That gives you the differential score for that round.

Handicaps often are misunderstood by players. Handicap is a measure of a player’s potential, and not his average. That’s why you take the ten best out of 20. It’s also why it would not be unusual for a player to perform far below expectations on any given day.

For a much more thorough discussion of handicaps, see this post on calculating handicaps.

How many golf clubs can you carry?—the seventh most asked golf question on Ask.Com. Their answer:

The rules of golf allow you to carry fourteen clubs in your bag, so many golfers add another iron or a specialty wood to the traditional set.

There originally was no limit to the number of clubs a player could carry. Early players (or their caddies) toted just three or four, which they tucked under their arms to carry. However, as the sport progressed, players began to carry a large variety of specialized clubs. Lawson Little won the US and British Amateurs with more than 30 clubs in his bag.

The USGA set 14 as the maximum in 1938. The R&A followed suit in 1939.

Caddies all over the world were grateful.

Under Rule 4-4, the penalty for carrying more than 14 clubs is two strokes for each hole played at the point at which the breach was discovered, with a maximum of four strokes per round.

How do you fix a slice in golf? is the sixth most asked qolf question on Ask.Com

I think that giving up the game is the only sure thing, but Ask.Com answers:

To fix a golf swing slice, it’s important to realize that a slice is caused by the club face being left open when you strike the ball. There are a ton of strategies out there, but most involve learning to close the face upon impact.

They’re right on the mark on this one. A slice generally is caused by the clubface being open at impact. Conversely, a hook is caused by the clubface being closed at impact.

How do you cure it? Lessons. Practice. More lessons. And more practice. And even that likely won’t be enough. The slice keeps the entire golf teaching industry employed.

What percentage of golfers play to a single digit handicap? The USGA says that it’s 1 percent.

If that’s the case why does it seem as though every other golfer I meet claims to be a single digit player?