The basics · Golf’s most confusing words

Net vs gross in golf, explained

Your gross score is the strokes you actually took. Your net score is gross minus the handicap strokes you receive. On a hole where you get one stroke, a gross 5 is a net 4.

Turnt Golf game guides · Examples are illustrative, not player results.

A nature-documentary narrator explains gross versus net: he made a five, his handicap gives him a stroke on this hole, so it is a net four. 19 seconds, captions on screen.

One hole, two scores

Handicap strokes are given hole by hole. Each hole on the scorecard has a handicap ranking from 1 (hardest) to 18 (easiest). Strokes go to the hardest-ranked holes first.

So a net score belongs to a specific hole: make a 5 on a hole where you receive a stroke and it is a net 4, a net par on a par 4. Make the same 5 where you get no stroke and it stays a 5.

Where your strokes fall

Your course handicap decides how many strokes you receive over 18 holes. The table assumes every player receives their full handicap.

How an 18-hole course handicap spreads across the card
Course handicap	Strokes received
0	None
9	One stroke on the 9 hardest-ranked holes
18	One stroke on every hole
22	One on every hole, plus a second on the 4 hardest

Which games use which

Net scoring lets golfers of different abilities compete. In Turnt, Skins can be set to gross or net. Match play, Nassau, Stableford, Matches, Wolf, Team Lo-Net, Hi-Lo and Checks compare net scores. Captain’s Choice uses a team allowance.

Some things are always gross: birdie and eagle dots, Chip Chase’s score chips, and Devil Stableford 666’s points, where your handicap sets a quota instead.

Net scores in Turnt

On net games Turnt shows gross and net and applies strokes hole by hole. A round can use course handicaps for its tees, play straight off each index, or play off the low handicap; it can also be set up Straight up, on gross scores with optional strokes given. A Turnt Index is Turnt’s own unofficial estimate, not an official handicap; the explainer linked below says how it works.

Common questions

Is a net birdie a real birdie?

For a net game, it counts as one. For dots and anything scored gross, only the strokes you actually took count.

Do I get a stroke on every hole?

Only with a course handicap of 18 or more over 18 holes. Lower handicaps get strokes only on the hardest-ranked holes.

What is the difference between a handicap index and a course handicap?

An index measures your ability in general. A course handicap converts it for the specific course and tees, so it can be a different number.

How the Turnt Index works (unofficial, not affiliated with any handicap authority). Other publishers may describe different rules or product settings. Turnt-specific explanations above describe Turnt’s version.