# Medal play or Match play?



## .x.Bethan.x. (Nov 21, 2006)

Which do you prefer?
Medal play or Match play?
I prefer match play but i wondered what everyone else thought.
x


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## blue3715 (Aug 29, 2006)

Match play is the ultimate (then again, 4 rounds of medal play isn't so easy either). Match play requires must more of a mental game, being able to play your game and not get overly consumed by the other players actions.

You also need to fortitude to call out the other player on a penalty, and on yourself as well. I've called myself on two penalties that noone really saw.

Medal play is fun, but I prefer doing that in group events (2 man or 4 man teams). It's makes for more fun.


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## Foster4 (May 2, 2007)

Match Play is king....going 1v1 and seeing your opponent is fun ...Its like a kill or be killed type match...you going after each other with all you got...


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## indiginit (Jun 13, 2007)

i have never played match play formally. only on the video games against computer opponents.

i think i would prefer it for day to day competition, but medal play is the ultimate. its match play against your tee-partner(s), and an underlying drive to go low.

i've never medaled, but i've 'matched' many.


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## Fourputt (Nov 18, 2006)

Match play is the root of the game of golf. It's the only way it was played for a few hundred years. Stroke play has really only taken hold in the last 75 or so. Until 1952 even the PGA Championship was contested at match play. I'd rather play a match than any other form of golf. Even the rules become easier... 1 stroke? 2 strokes? Who cares? You break a rule, you lose the hole... move on.

What really killed match play in professional golf was the advent of television (and then by extension it died out in most club play in the US too). It's hard to schedule live coverage when it might end as much as 2 hours early (as in a match closed out on the 11th hole, 8 and 7). And there is really nothing to watch while the players are walking to their balls, so the last couple of rounds of any match tournament leave lot of time to fill when nothing is happening on the course.


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## 300Yards (Jan 23, 2007)

This is going to stupid..but what the heck is "medal play"? I've never heard of it..


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## Fourputt (Nov 18, 2006)

300Yards said:


> This is going to stupid..but what the heck is "medal play"? I've never heard of it..


That is the other term for "stroke" play. :laugh:


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## 300Yards (Jan 23, 2007)

In that case, medal play for me.


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## Foster4 (May 2, 2007)

Wait how have you not heard of medal play ?


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## .x.Bethan.x. (Nov 21, 2006)

Sorry, stroke play / medal play, same thing! 

I assume a few of you are American? Don't you call your stroke play competitions "medals"? If you don't, what do you call them?


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## Fourputt (Nov 18, 2006)

.x.Bethan.x. said:


> Sorry, stroke play / medal play, same thing!
> 
> I assume a few of you are American? Don't you call your stroke play competitions "medals"? If you don't, what do you call them?


Tournaments.  

So few players over here ever play a real match that most don't really understand the difference between match play and stroke play. They don't know that the rules are different for each. The term "match" is abused all the time here by using it to simply mean a round of golf. Casual golfers here are so casual that they don't even know the difference.

When someone is going to play golf, it is just assumed that it is stroke play, whether it's a tournament or just casual play. You rarely see matches, and you even more rarely see Stableford competitions. Sad but true.


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## .x.Bethan.x. (Nov 21, 2006)

Fourputt said:


> You rarely see matches, and you even more rarely see Stableford competitions. Sad but true.


Oh my Gosh, that is such a shame! Match play is the best. Ane Stableford is the second best! Stableford is better because if you're having a bad hole you can just pick up and pull it back on other holes, one bad hole doesn't completely mess up your round like in "stroke" play.


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## KrudlerAce (Jul 3, 2010)

*Your Own Game*

I personally prefer 'Medal' play or 'Stroke' play. I find it's more of a battle against yourself and testing your game. With match play I find it's difficult not to keep one eye on the other person during the round. I like to stay focused on my game and have found I play better that way.


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## Fourputt (Nov 18, 2006)

Match play is just a different kind of animal. You are supposed to keep one eye on your opponent and to some extent, gauge your play against his. I like match play because it's just one on one. I find I play some of my best golf when playing a match because I always know exactly what I need to do to succeed. If I lose a couple of holes early, I still have time to come back, and usually do. Those bad holes no longer make any difference in the overall match. In my experience, most matches come right down to the wire as long as the players are evenly matched or they carry honest and properly applied handicaps.

In stroke play, if I start with a couple of bad holes, then it's just another throwaway round. That doesn't mean that I give up, but there is no longer any real chance to excel. The only thing left is to try and save the round from total disaster. Those couple of bad holes are like an anchor dragging you down. That just isn't as challenging as still having a chance to turn your game around in midstream and win a match. 


Stroke play is ok if you play alone, but I find it less stimulating than match play. When I'm playing with a friend, I prefer to be playing some sort of match. I prefer the direct interaction of a closely contested match. :thumbsup:


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## Paul09 (Oct 12, 2010)

*Re :*

Thanks for sharing the information here. I love playing Golf. I use to stay with the help of Golf Travel Association in US, after playing.


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## FrogsHair (Mar 4, 2010)

I like both types of competition. In fact I sometimes combine the two (mentally) when playing with someone else. With either scenario, you can't control how your competition is playing. The only difference between the two for me is when doing the match play thing, it's a hole by hole scenario. After each hole, win, or lose, it a new ball game. With stroke play, I play 3 holes at a time, or six groups of three holes if you want to look at it that way. This gives me 6 new starting points during the round. If I have a bad hole, there is always a new starting point coming up. If I play three quality scoring holes in a row, I just continue on with the same focus for the next three holes. My goal now is to play three holes at +2, or better, which is very achievable for me. But still, it's still golf, and the golfer's ultimate goal, or expectation is to play as well as they can on each hole. Reflecting on past holes, good, or bad, should be done at the 19th hole, while enjoying a cold one.


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