How to Play the Flaggies Game
In Flaggies, every time a golfer in your group makes a putt that is longer than the length of the flagstick, that golfer earns a point.
Before we go on, let's note that this game goes by many different names. It can be called Flagsticks, Poley, Polees, Pinnies and Sticks, among others. (But some of those other games also come in variations that differ from Flaggies.)
The basics of Flaggies we've already stated: Make a putt longer than the flagstick, earn a point. At the end of the round, the golfer with the most points wins the game and, if you had money riding on it, the wager. (Or you can make Flaggies part of those larger games that combine multiple side bets, such as Dots/the Dot Game.)
But you can add more to Flaggies if you wish, putting more points (and potentially more money) on the line. For example, you can make sinking a putt for birdie longer than the flagstick worth 2 points. If your group wishes, you can add points for longer putts: 2 points for a putt longer than two lengths of the flagstick; 3 points for one longer than three lengths of the flagstick, and so on.
That latter option, though, can cause disagreements if the players in the group are just eyeballing the lengths. Or they can cause very slow play if one member of the group insists on taking out the flagstick and actually measuring.
As always with such side games, it is up to your group to agree on what version you are playing. But it's easy enough to keep Flaggies very, very simple: 1 point for any putt longer than the flagstick.
Also note that there is a game completely unrelated to the one described above that some golfers call Flaggies: Hitting your approach shot closer to the hole than the length of the flagstick earns a point. (Some groups limit this to tee shots on par-3 holes only; if you are using all approach shots, set a minimum length of the shot — say, 150 yards — that has to be met to earn the point).
More golf games:
