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The Nassau Bet Explained
The Nassau is the most popular side bet in golf. It's really three bets in one:
- The front nine (holes 1–9)
- The back nine (holes 10–18)
- The overall 18
Each bet is worth the same amount. A "$5 Nassau" means $5 on the front, $5 on the back and $5 on the 18, so the most you can win or lose without presses is $15.
The beauty of it is that a bad start doesn't ruin your day. Lose the front nine and you've still got the back nine and the overall to play for.
How each bet is scored
The Nassau is usually played as match play: you win, lose or tie (halve) each hole, and whoever wins more holes in that nine (or the full 18) wins that bet.
It can also be played as stroke play, comparing total strokes for each nine and the 18. Match play is more common because it keeps every hole interesting.
A simple example
Alex and Sam play a $5 Nassau, match play.
| Bet | Result | Money |
|---|---|---|
| Front nine | Alex wins 3 holes, Sam wins 1, five halved: Alex wins | Alex +$5 |
| Back nine | Sam wins 4 holes, Alex wins 2: Sam wins | Sam +$5 |
| Overall 18 | Alex 5 holes, Sam 5 holes: tied | No money |
They're all square: Alex wins the front, Sam the back, and the overall is halved.
What is a press?
A press is a new bet, started partway through a nine, usually by the player who's losing. It runs from the next hole to the end of that nine (or the 18) and is normally worth the same as the original bet.
Common press rules:
- You can press when you're 2 down (behind by two holes) in a bet. This is the most common rule.
- Auto-press: some groups agree that a press starts automatically whenever someone goes 2 down, so nobody has to ask.
- Pressing a press: if you're 2 down in the press too, you can press again.
- The winning player can usually decline a press, unless you agreed on auto-presses.
Press example
Sam is 2 down after hole 4 of the front nine and presses. There are now two bets on the front nine:
- The original front nine (holes 1–9), where Sam is 2 down.
- The press (holes 5–9), starting all square.
If Sam wins holes 5–9 by one, he loses the original front (unless he catches up overall) but wins the press. Presses are how a losing player claws money back, and how a $5 Nassau quietly becomes a $25 afternoon.
Handicaps in a Nassau
With players of different abilities, the higher handicapper gets strokes on the hardest holes, ranked by the scorecard's stroke index. In match play, the usual approach is to give the difference between the two players' course handicaps. A 10 playing a 16 gives six strokes on stroke index 1–6.
Some groups split it per nine, but the simplest approach is to use the same stroke holes for all three bets. See golf handicap explained for how course handicaps work.
Nassau for four players
In a foursome, the Nassau is often played as a team bet: two against two, using the better score of each pair on every hole (better ball). The same three bets and press rules apply. Each player wins or loses the bet amount.
Where does the name come from?
The Nassau is generally credited to the Nassau Country Club in Glen Cove, on Long Island, around 1900. The story goes that the club's members came up with the three-part bet so that a heavy loss on one nine wouldn't be too embarrassing, since the worst result in the paper was losing by "3–0".
Quick rules to agree on the first tee
- How much per bet?
- Match play or stroke play?
- Handicaps: full difference, or a percentage?
- When can you press: at 2 down, or auto-press?
- Can a press be declined?
Agree on these before anyone tees off and settling up is easy.
Play a Nassau without a course
You can play a friendly Nassau on Mashy, for bragging rights rather than cash. Play the same course as a friend and compare hole by hole. Each Mashy course is nine holes, so play two courses back to back for a "front" and a "back", or use the daily course, which has the same pins and wind for everyone.
Prefer to keep everyone in it all day? Try Stableford scoring, or wolf and skins for a foursome.