How to Play Snake in Golf
Three-putt and you're holding the snake — until someone else fumbles one too.
What is Snake?
Snake is a side bet just for three-putts (four-putts and worse count the same — no extra penalty). Whoever three-putts is "holding the snake." It stays with them until somebody else three-putts, at which point it passes.
Every three-putt in the round adds the stakes amount to the snake's value — it doesn't double or compound, just adds flat. Whoever's holding it after the last hole pays that full accumulated value to every other player. Nobody three-putts, nobody pays.
How scoring works
- A three-putt (or worse) hands you the snake.
- It stays with you until someone else three-putts.
- Every three-putt adds the stakes amount to the snake's value — flat, not doubled.
- Whoever holds it at the end pays the full value to every other player, not a split share.
Scoring example
Four players, $2 per three-putt.
| Hole | Three-putt | Snake value |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | Deion | $2 |
| 12 | Casey | $4 |
Deion three-putts hole 5 and picks up the snake at $2. Casey three-putts hole 12, takes the snake, and its value climbs to $4. Nobody else three-putts the rest of the round, so Casey pays $4 to each of the other 3 players — $12 total — the full accumulated value, not a split.
No doubling
Some house rules double the snake's value on every subsequent three-putt instead of adding a flat amount. Buddies uses the flat-add version — simpler to track live, and it's the more common version among groups that play it at all.
See it in the app — pick from all 12 games, set your stakes, and Buddies scores it live.
Ready to play?
Download Buddies and let the app track every bet, hole by hole.
Download on the App StoreBuddies Bet Tracker is a scorekeeping and tally app. It does not process payments, hold money, or facilitate gambling. All settlements happen between players outside the app.