Team Formats — Best Ball & Scramble
Meta Caddie supports two team formats — Best Ball and Scramble — designed for group rounds and tournaments. Both are popular formats for charity events, member-guest tournaments, and casual team competitions. The caddie tracks team standings automatically once formats are selected.
Best Ball
In Best Ball, each player on a team plays their own ball throughout the entire hole. At the end of the hole, the team records whichever player had the lower score. So if Player A makes a 4 and Player B makes a 6 on a par 4, the team score for that hole is 4.
| Hole | Par | Player A | Player B | Team Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 4 |
| 2 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 3 |
| 3 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
Team totals are tracked hole by hole. The caddie maintains a running team comparison so you always know where you stand — for example, "Team 1 leads 4–2 after 6 holes."
Best Ball is great for mixed-ability pairings. A 20-handicap and a 5-handicap can compete as a team — the 5-handicap covers the long holes, the 20-handicap might drain a clutch putt on a short par 3.
Scramble
In Scramble, everyone on the team hits from the same spot. After each shot, the team picks the best ball. Everyone then hits from that spot. This repeats from tee to hole, and the team posts one score per hole.
Scramble is the most popular charity event format because higher-handicap players contribute every time someone has a good shot — there's no passenger on the team.
In Meta Caddie, you log one team score per hole in Scramble mode. The caddie tracks which holes were played and the running total strokes.
How to start a team format round
- Create or join a tournament that uses Best Ball or Scramble format
- The tournament organizer assigns team numbers (1, 2, 3, 4…)
- Players with the same team number are partners
- Start your group round — the caddie automatically knows your team format and tracks accordingly
- Enter scores as normal; the caddie computes team scores in the background
Caddie awareness
In Best Ball, the caddie's post-hole message will reference team standing — for example, "You're 2 UP through 7. Play conservative — protect the lead." In Scramble, the caddie focuses on shot selection and course management for the team's chosen ball position.