Golf was meant to be played with others. Even though it's an individual sport, a casual round is always more fun and memorable when shared with like-minded people. However, finding golf buddies isn't always easy, and even if you have an amazing golf crew back home, maybe they aren't available on the only day you can squeeze in 18 holes.
If that's your case, I have two words for you: golf leagues!
Local golf leagues are a fun and competitive game format that allows players of any level to socialize and compete against each other for prizes in their local golf club or favorite indoor golf venue.
Let's review how to find and join a golf league in your area, how to run your own golf league, and the best golf league management softwares.
What is a golf league?
As mentioned briefly above, a golf league is a prized form of organized competition where local players of any level compete in a social and friendly environment during a scheduled season that lasts several weeks or months.
The playing field is generally leveled with handicaps, and games can be individual or team-based. Following the rules pre-determined by the league secretary, any game format can be played (stroke-play, match-play, Stableford, scramble…).
What are the main advantages?
Golf leagues have several advantages, starting with the social aspect. They connect local, like-minded players with each other. Leagues are also very inclusive because they are open to players of any level who want to compete in a friendly environment.
How to find and join golf leagues near me?
Golf leagues are generally organized by members of golf clubs, or indoor golf venues. You can contact your local golf course or your favorite golf simulator place to find, join, or create a golf league (more about running a golf league later in the article), and discuss with the members in charge of the club's league.
All you have to do is sign up to your local golf league, pay the registration fee, and show up to play during the scheduled rounds. If the game format is team-based, you must find playing partners or join an existing team with the help of the organizer.
However, if you're not a member of a golf club, or a screen golf facility, you can alternatively search for golf leagues with Screengolfers (the site you're on right now!), Spark Golf, or Fringe Golfers.
Let's review each option.
Screengolfers: find indoor golf leagues near you
Screengolfers helps you find and book the best indoor golf venues near you. At the time of writing this article, we have listed 1400 indoor golf venues in the USA and Canada, and many of them organize golf leagues!
Every location page comes with Services & Amenities filters, including golf leagues. Here's how to use the site to find indoor golf leagues near you.
- Use the Screengolfers searchbar on the homepage (also available in the menu if you click on the magnifying glass, or on any city/state/province page),
- Write the name of your city, state, or province (for Canada)
- Click on Filters,
- Select "Leagues",
- Contact the venue by email/phone.
It's that easy. Give it a try by going to the Screengolfers homepage.
With indoor golf's fast-growing popularity, most screen golf places feature one or several golf leagues.
Indoor golf venues offer an ideal environment to run a golf league, especially during winter:
- You can play in any weather condition, any time of the year
- Save money compared to an average green fee
- Play a round of golf in a shorter amount of time
- Enjoy food and drinks (depending on the venue's policy)
- Participate even if you don't own a car (often located in urban areas)
Spark Golf: 9-hole social golf leagues near you
Suppose you need help figuring out where to start, or you don't know many golfers in the local community yet. In that case, you can also check out Spark Golf, a network of social 9-hole golf leagues present in over 2000 golf courses in the U.S.A. and Canada. Spark Golf manages pretty much everything:
- Signups,
- Payments,
- Handicaps
- Live-scoring
- Statistics…
You can use either the mobile website or the app on iOS and Android.
Check out also our article about our top 5 favorite golf apps.
Fringe Golfers: find golf leagues near you in more than 50 countries
FringeGolfers' "Find a League" page is very useful for anyone looking to join a local golf league in an out of the US. With a simple, location-based dropdown list, golfers can easily find leagues in their state, or in more than 50 countries all over the world. As of today, I believe Fringe Golfers is the most comprehensive directory for finding a golf league.
At it's core, Fringe Golfers is a free golf league management software created in 2012. The team uploaded plenty tutorials on YouTube, as host an exhaustive FAQ page on the main site. According to their Changelog, Fringe Golfers is frequently updated.
How to run a golf league?
To run a golf league, here are the main steps you need to follow:
- Find a golf course or an indoor golf venue willing to host your league
- Define the game formats, the rules, and the prizes
- Select a scoring system (generally handicapped)
- Schedule the games
- Fix a participation price
- Communicate to your local golf community
- Gather a minimum number of players (the roster)
- Manage signups and registration payments
- Organize the events and handle the logistics
- Ask for feedback to continually improve your golf league.
Golf leagues are usually managed on spreadsheets (Excel, Google Sheets, Numbers, Airtable, Zoho Sheet, LibreOffice Calc…). Depending on the scale of your league, a spreadsheet could be enough, but we recommend using a dedicated software. In the next paragraph, you will find a curated list of the best ones available.
The best golf league management software
By moving from spreadsheets to software, you can save time by streamlining scheduling, improve communication with participants, provide a better experience to the members, enjoy live-scoring, as well as automated handicap calculation.
Here is a list of the best golf league management software:
While we're in the discussion of software for indoor golf, go check out our top 5 best golf simulator booking softwares.
What's the difference between a league and a tournament?
Golf leagues and tournaments often get mixed up but are very different forms of organized competition.
Compared to tournaments that only happen once during one to four days, golf leagues take place over a more extended period.
Also, tournaments are standalone events where your performance at the end of the event determines your position. In contrast, a golf league comprises several games that distribute points, and your final ranking is based on your cumulative overall performance.
Finally, golf leagues provide a more relaxed social environment, whereas tournaments are generally more competitive.