Winners & Awards

Gold Coast Cup Champion - The team with the lowest gross score over 72 holes wins the Gold Coast Cup.

Low Net Winner - The team with the lowest net score over 72 holes.

Freedom Cup Champion - At the conclusion of regulation play, the top four (4) Net teams will advance to a Net Championship Shootout to determine the Freedom Cup champion.

Shootout Structure

  • Format: Two-person alternate shot (foursomes)

  • Tees: Same tees used during the tournament

  • Scoring: Net scoring with handicap adjustments

  • Handicaps:

    • Team handicap = 50% of the combined course handicaps

    • Handicap strokes apply only on the holes used in the shootout, based on the hole handicap rating

    • Maximum of one (1) stroke per team per hole

  • Progressive Elimination

    • All four teams compete on Hole #1; the highest net score is eliminated

    • Remaining teams advance to Hole #2, with one team eliminated on each hole

    • The final two teams compete on Hole #3 head-to-head to determine the Net Champion

    • A sudden-death playoff will be used in the event of a tie, first replaying Hole #3, then continuing to Hole #4, if necessary.

*A team winning the Low Gross can only win one format and thus cannot compete in the Net Shootout.

Teams + Handicaps

The tournament uses a player’s 12-month Low USGA Handicap as of January 1, 2026, for the tournament. The Four-Ball format uses 90% of each player’s course handicap. The Scramble format uses 35% of the lowest player’s handicap plus 15% of the partner’s handicap. The Foursomes format uses 50% of the combined course handicap. Any decimal is rounded up to the next whole number.

Players wanting to compete in the “net” contest must have a valid USGA index. If you do not have an index, you will play as a “scratch” golfer – 0 handicap.

The maximum index will be 24.0 per player. Any player over a 24.0 will be adjusted down to a 24.0. In addition to a maximum handicap, there will be a maximum difference in course handicap of 10 strokes amongst team members. Teams with a larger differential will have the higher index player adjusted down to the 10-stroke differential limit.

Stroke Allocation for Mixed Teams:
In team formats, handicap strokes will be applied using the competition stroke index as published on the tournament scorecard. Individual course handicaps are calculated using the tee each player plays. No adjustment is made for differing hole handicap rankings between tees (men’s vs. women’s).

FORMATS

This 72-hole tournament features two-person teams competing in two rounds of four-ball, one round of foursomes, and one round of scramble format.

Four-Ball: This is the most common team competition in golf. It is a competition in which two competitors play as partners, each playing his/her own ball. The lower score of the two partners is the score for the hole. If one partner fails to complete the play of a hole, there is no penalty, but the player whose score is to count must be reflected under that player’s name on the scorecard.

Scramble: This team format allows both players to play a stroke from the same location. After both players play a stroke, the partners determine which ball ended up in the best location; both team members play the next stroke from this location. This process continues until the ball is “holed.” Note – Players must play their stroke from within one club length of the chosen location unless on the putting green. This club length may not be used to improve the condition of the ball (move a ball from a penalty area back into play, from a bunker or waste area back into grass or from off the putting green to the putting green). The club length must also not be nearer the hole. On the putting green, the stroke must be played within six inches of the chosen location without being nearer the hole.

Foursomes: A competition in which the two partners play one ball. In Foursomes, the partners alternate shots. If player ‘A’ tees off, player ‘B’ will play the next stroke. Players continue this process until the ball is “holed.” If Player ‘A’ makes the first stroke on Hole 1, player ‘B’ will make the first stroke on Hole 2 regardless of who holed the previous putt. Note – penalty shots do not take the place of a stroke. If player ‘A’ hits a ball into a penalty area ‘B’ still plays the next shot, but is hitting three.

Tees

Men will compete from the Resort tees.

Women in any flight will compete from the Forward tees.

Rule of 80: We will also be using the Rule of 80, which will be the participant’s Age + Index. If the total is 80 or more, you will have the ability to move up a tee.

Just a reminder, the tees you start the event using will be the tees you will be required to play for the entirety of the event. If anyone wishes to do so, please let us know ahead of time. There will typically be a 2-4 shot difference from one tee to the next, so that is something to consider.

SKINS GAME

There will be an optional, daily skins game that will be paid in cash. If you would like to participate, it's $200 for the Gross and $200 for the Net, $400 total per team for the entire event. We will be awarding skins after each round. To sign up for the skins game, you must pay your cash entry prior to starting your first round of play.

A skin is “won” when your team has the lowest score on a hole during the round. If no one skin is won for a single day, those monies will be carried over to the following day’s skins game and added to the overall pot. If no skins are won on the last day, 25% of the pot will go to the lowest team score for the final day, regardless of finish position. The remaining pot will be divided between 3 teams selected in a random drawing.