I’m sure our wives would have something to say about this picture being a little too accurate about golfers’ true natures.

Well, Dear Readers, your responses to the July Poll Question confirm that collectively, we are quite the group of degenerate gamblers.  However, our preference for how we lose money to our friends is as varied as all the games available on a Las Vegas casino floor.

By the slimmest of margins, the classic Nassau proved the most popular side action amongst respondents, which also has become my personal favorite.

In my case, this season has proven that I’m a streaky player at best, and equally capable of carding the unexpected chip-in birdie as I am the three-putt double bogey.

So I think the pressing option, which, in theory, might allow me to catch up in the money race, keeps my attention longer than most of the other golf side games.  And $2.00 a bet is plenty enough for me.

We’ve all been there, where we can’t believe that putt did not go in.

I used to be a big proponent of playing Wolf, until a friend pointed out that if someone is having “one of those days,” they’re likely always going to be relegated to the losing side.  After a while, that kind of repetitive piling on can just become cruel, even if unintentionally.

There’s nothing wrong with the other golf games that received votes, and frankly, mixing it up periodically helps keep the attention span, sharp in my experience.

Though I’ve been a complete flop in my league tournaments to date this year, I still enjoying the side bets with friends on the golf course.  The trick, like with any game or wager, is to never risk more than I can afford to lose, which is generally limited to whatever loose cash I have in my wallet on a given day.

Now that most of the guys I play with either keep a formal handicap or have predictable enough games that we can estimate one with reasonable confidence, all of these games are a nice way for members of our group with disparate skill levels to compete.

Of the “other” responses submitted, I had to look up what “Gammon” involved, and what I found sounded unnecessarily complicated, though I’m sure it’s easier to keep track of once you get into actually playing the game.  This is what I found out there in the Internet:

My favorite game is Gammon.  The group establishes a teeing order and a point value is established. The first player tees off and then picks a partner from the rest of the group. At any time on the hole a group can call Gammon and the other twosome can either decline and lose 1 point or can accept and the bet is doubled.  Once a twosome calls gammon they cannot press again but the other twosome can Re-Gammon at any time. Then the first group has the option to drop for two points or take and double the bet again.

Anyway, as long as money won is twice as sweet as money earned, I’m sure golfers will continue to come up with ways to increase the odds that they can with something on the golf course, even if it’s just bragging rights.

Thanks to everyone who chimed in on the poll this month.  The full results are below.