How to Play the Golf Card Game

Overview & Objective

Golf is a card game for two or more players in which everyone tries to get the lowest score, just as in the sport it is named after. Each player has a small layout of cards — six in the most common version, laid out in two rows of three — and on each turn you draw a card and either swap it into your layout or throw it away. Low cards are good, kings are worth nothing, twos are worth less than nothing, and two cards of the same rank stacked in a column cancel each other out.

A round is called a hole, and a game is nine holes. On CardCouch you play Six-Card Golf head-to-head against the computer.

The Deal

• Players: 2 on CardCouch (the game works for 2 to 4 with one deck).
• Deck: A standard 52-card deck, no jokers.
• Layout: Each player receives 6 cards face down, arranged in a grid of 2 rows and 3 columns. You may not look at them.
• Stock & discard: The remaining cards form the face-down stock. Its top card is turned face up beside it to start the discard pile.
• First turn: The player to the dealer's left goes first. The computer deals the first hole, so you go first; the deal alternates each hole.

The Two Opening Flips

Before the first turn, each player turns any two of their six cards face up. On CardCouch, tap two of your cards to flip them. The other four stay hidden, even from you, until you flip them or swap them out later in the hole. Those two cards are your only information at the start — choose cards in different columns to learn more about possible pairs.

Taking a Turn

1. Draw one card: either the top card of the stock (face down, unknown) or the top card of the discard pile (face up, so your opponent sees what you took).
2. Swap it in: place the drawn card face up in any position in your grid — replacing a face-up card or a face-down one you have never seen. The card it replaces goes face up onto the discard pile. This ends your turn.
3. Or discard it: if the card came from the stock, you may throw it straight onto the discard pile instead. You must then turn one of your face-down cards face up (if you have any left). A card taken from the discard pile can never be thrown back — it must be swapped in.

Play alternates until someone has all six cards face up. If the stock runs out, the discard pile (except its top card) is shuffled to form a new stock.

Column Pairs

The heart of the game: when the two cards in the same column (one in the top row, one directly below it) have the same rank, they cancel out and the column scores zero, whatever their value. A pair of queens is worth 0 instead of 20. Cards side by side in a row do not pair — only vertical pairs count. On CardCouch a paired column is highlighted so you can see it at a glance.

Scoring Table

Example: your final grid is 7♠ K♣ 2♦ over 7♥ Q♠ 9♣. The sevens pair for 0, the king and queen make 0 + 10 = 10, and the two and nine make −2 + 9 = 7, for a hole score of 17. A grid of two paired columns plus a two and a king would score −2.

Ending a Hole

As soon as a player has all six cards face up (by flipping or swapping their last hidden card), the end of the hole is triggered. Every other player then gets exactly one more turn. After that, any cards still face down are turned over and every grid is scored. Going out first does not earn a bonus — but it does stop your opponent from improving, so timing matters.

The Nine-Hole Game

A game is nine holes. Each hole's score is written on the scorecard and added to a running total, and the player with the lowest total after the ninth hole wins. CardCouch keeps the scorecard hole by hole in the sidebar and shows it in full at the end of the game.

Frequently Asked Questions

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