Golf Games: Trains

The goal of Train is to string together a series of good holes without a break—just like the cars behind an engine.

In the classic game of Train, players are awarded one point for a par, two for a birdie and five for an Eagle. However, if a player gets two bogeys in a row, or a double bogey on a single hole, all of his accumulated points are lost and he begins again. At the end of the round, the winner is the player with the most points.

The points obviously can be adjusted if the group is composed of players of lesser skill. A group of high-handicappers, for example, might try one point for a bogey, two for a par, three for a bird and five for an Eagle, with the break coming at three bogeys or a triple.

Another variation would add an element of strategy to the game: At any time on the front nine, a player can bank his points and step out of the game, gambling that his accumulated points can’t be topped by the players remaining in the game.

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