Scope of this comparison
Left means individual regular stroke play; right means individual match play. Both use the same 2023 edition, effective 1 January 2023, so there is no edition mismatch. The effective date is confirmed in the USGA’s edition announcement.
This compares playing rules, not a tournament’s qualifying stages, draw or eligibility requirements. Stableford, Maximum Score, Par/Bogey and partner formats are outside scope. Both formats can use gross or net scoring. See Rule 3.
What changes in practice
A bad hole affects your stroke-play total; in match play, its margin does not carry into the next hole. Do not carry the match-play habit of accepting conceded putts into regular stroke play.
Not every match-play penalty loses the hole: one-stroke penalties and disqualification also exist in both formats. Apply the penalty specified by the particular Rule. Players must also follow adopted Local Rules and Terms of the Competition. This draft does not establish junior-event eligibility or age-specific competition conditions. See Rule 1.
For fuller explanations, see stroke-play scoring and penalties, match-play rules, and order of play and ready golf.
Governing provisions
- R&A/USGA Rules of Golf, Rule 3: stroke play and match play.
- R&A/USGA Rules of Golf, Rule 1: penalty levels and competition requirements.
- R&A/USGA Rules of Golf, Rule 6: teeing-area errors and playing order.
- USGA announcement confirming the 2023 edition and its effective date.
Rules side by side
| Situation | The R&A and USGA · 2023 Rules of Golf · Individual regular stroke play: Rule 3.3, with the supporting penalty and playing-order provisions identified below. Excludes alternative scoring formats and partner competitions. | The R&A and USGA · 2023 Rules of Golf · Individual match play: Rule 3.2, with the supporting penalty and playing-order provisions identified below. Excludes partner and team competition modifications. |
|---|---|---|
| Scoring across the competition | Stroke play: lowest total strokes, including penalties, across all rounds wins; handicap events use net totals. | Match play: compete hole by hole. A lead greater than the holes remaining wins the match. |
| Completing a hole and concessions | During each round, hole out. Correct an omission before starting the next hole, or before returning the scorecard on the final hole, to avoid disqualification. | During a match, the opponent may concede your next stroke, the hole or the match. A conceded stroke counts; a clearly communicated concession is final. |
| General penalty during play | Two penalty strokes when the applicable Rule prescribes the general penalty. | Loss of the hole when the applicable Rule prescribes the general penalty. |
| Starting a hole outside the teeing area | Two penalty strokes; restart inside the teeing area. The outside stroke does not count. Correct before starting another hole, or returning the final-hole scorecard, to avoid disqualification. | No penalty. The opponent may promptly cancel before either player makes another stroke. If cancelled, restart inside the teeing area; otherwise the stroke counts. |
| Playing out of turn during a hole | Safe, responsible ready golf is encouraged. An agreement to play out of turn for an advantage, followed by that play, gives each agreeing player two penalty strokes. | No penalty, but the opponent may promptly cancel before another stroke and require replay in turn. Agreeing to play out of turn to save time waives cancellation. |
Rule editions and sources
- The R&A and USGA · 2023 Rules of Golf · Individual regular stroke play: Rule 3.3, with the supporting penalty and playing-order provisions identified below. Excludes alternative scoring formats and partner competitions. — Rules of Golf — Rule 3: The Competition
- The R&A and USGA · 2023 Rules of Golf · Individual match play: Rule 3.2, with the supporting penalty and playing-order provisions identified below. Excludes partner and team competition modifications. — Rules of Golf — Rule 3: The Competition