In golf, a half refers to a match play when either players or teams get a tie. If either player or team gets tied, a playoff will result. The playoff will resolve issues related to a tie at the end of the competition or the match.
How Half Works?
Some tournaments allow the players or the teams to break a tie. A playoff is called for by allowing the players to play an extra hole or holes until a winner emerges. However, there are also events such as the Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup that do not allow the match to continue. If both players reach 18 holes and their scores are tied, each team will receive half a point.
Breaking a Tie
When either player or team results in a half or tie, various tie-breaking methods address these results. The players will engage in a playoff, but it depends on the match play that they are currently competing. There are two types of a playoff that the player can engage in. These are the aggregate playoff and the sudden death.
- Extra Holes
If the tournament was an 18-hole match play, the only option to break the tie is to continue playing extra holes. The players are allowed to play until the winner is determined. In some cases, playoffs are played after the completion of the final round. But, for 18-hole, the playoff is held the following day.
- Last 9,6,3,1 Holes
If the players come across a half by having the same scores for the last nine holes, the officials of the game will determine who the winner is based on the scores for the last six holes, three holes, and the 18th holes.
- Last to First Hole
This type of tie break is determined by allowing the players to score from the last hole to the first hole until a winner is chosen. For example, both players experience half and get a score of 81. On the 18-hole, the two winners received the same score of 4s. The two players will then move to the 17-hole. If player one scores 2, while player two scores a 3, the player that scored 2 will win the tiebreaker.