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Running a Golf Major Sweepstake

By My Wheel Name TeamPublished July 25, 20263 min read

The golf major sweepstake is the best office pool in sport. Four rounds across four days, large fields, and outsiders winning often enough that any drawn player is a live entry.

The four majors are genuinely different

  • The Masters is the only major played at the same course every year, so decades of accumulated knowledge about Augusta genuinely transfers. It also has the smallest field, which improves the odds on any draw.
  • The US Open is set up to be the hardest test in golf, with winning scores often close to level par. The difficulty compresses the field and helps outsiders.
  • The Open is the oldest, first played in 1860, and is contested on links courses where weather can reorder the leaderboard entirely.
  • The PGA Championship has the strongest field by ranking, since a large share of the world's top players qualify automatically.

Which one to run a pool on

The Masters, for two reasons. The field is the smallest of the four, so a group is more likely to cover it, and it's the major with the most casual viewers, so more people want to take part.

The US Open is the best for an even pool, because the brutal setup means nobody runs away with it and survival matters more than brilliance. A drawn player who simply avoids disaster can finish far higher than their form suggests.

Handling a large field

Major fields are considerably bigger than most office sweepstakes can absorb, which means most of the field goes undrawn unless you plan for it.

Three ways to deal it

  1. Several players each: Deal the whole field out so everyone holds four or five. More participants stay involved through the weekend, which is the main failure mode of a one player draw.
  2. Tiered draws: One player from the top twenty and one from the rest, so nobody holds only long shots and nobody holds only favourites.
  3. Cut to the likely contenders: Trim the wheel to a realistic subset before drawing. Faster, though it removes the outsider who occasionally wins these things.

Scoring

Winner takes all is simplest and least interesting. Points for making the cut, then for finishing position, keeps most participants engaged into Sunday.

The cut is worth scoring specifically, because roughly half the field goes home after two rounds and a pool with nothing for surviving it loses half its participants on Friday evening.

Draw the week of the event, deal several players each, and score the cut as well as the finish. Four days is the right length for a pool nobody forgets they entered.

Questions, answered

Which major makes the best sweepstake?

The Masters, because it has the smallest field of the four and the most casual viewers, so more people want to take part. The US Open makes the most even pool, since its difficult setup stops anyone running away with it.

What's different about The Open?

It's the oldest major, first played in 1860, and it's contested on links courses where firm ground and wind matter more than distance. Weather can reorder the leaderboard entirely, which suits a random draw.

Why might a drawn player have no chance?

Past champions receive lifetime invitations to the Masters and many still play long after they're competitive. Drawing one means drawing a ceremonial entry, which is worth explaining before anyone puts money in.

How do I handle a field bigger than my group?

Deal the whole field out so everyone holds four or five players, which keeps more participants involved through the weekend. Alternatively use a tiered draw, giving each person one contender and one outsider.

How should the pool be scored?

Points for making the cut and then for finishing position. Roughly half the field goes home after two rounds, so a pool that scores nothing for surviving the cut loses half its participants on Friday.