How do you play Wolf in golf?
In Wolf, one player each hole is the Wolf and chooses a partner after watching the tee shots — or goes it alone for double. Here are the rules, the rotation, Lone Wolf, Blind Wolf and scoring.
The rotation and the pick
Players set a tee order and take turns being the Wolf, one hole each, rotating through the group. The Wolf usually tees off last.
As each other player hits their drive, the Wolf decides whether to take that player as a partner. The decision has to be made right after that player's shot — pass on someone and you cannot go back to them.
Partner, Lone Wolf or Blind Wolf
If the Wolf picks a partner, the hole is two against the rest, using each side's best score. If the Wolf picks nobody, they are a Lone Wolf against everyone. Declaring Lone Wolf before anyone tees off is a Blind Wolf — the riskiest and most rewarding call.
| Call | Teams on the hole | Stake |
|---|---|---|
| With a partner | Wolf + partner v the rest | ×1 |
| Lone Wolf | Wolf alone v everyone | ×2 |
| Blind Wolf | Wolf alone, called before tee shots | ×3 |
Scoring a hole
The side with the better score wins the hole and each winner collects the stake from each loser, multiplied for Lone or Blind Wolf. A halved hole pays nothing.
Wolf works with three, four or five players. With four, the rotation means each player is Wolf on the same number of holes over the first 16; groups decide how to handle 17 and 18 — often the player in last place is Wolf.
Doing this on BirdieConnect
BirdieConnect runs Wolf for three to five players. Set the tee order at the start, then tap the Wolf's call on each hole — a partner, Lone Wolf (×2) or Blind Wolf (×3). The card shows whose turn it is to be Wolf, the points, and any hole still missing a call, and it scores net when the round is net.
Common questions
- How many players do you need for Wolf?
- Three to five. Four is the classic Wolf game.
- What is a Lone Wolf?
- The Wolf plays the hole alone against everyone else, for double the stake.
- What is a Blind Wolf?
- A Lone Wolf declared before anyone has teed off, usually for triple the stake.
- Is Wolf played with handicaps?
- It can be. Played net, each player's strokes are applied on the hardest holes before the sides' best scores are compared.