What to Expect at a Drive, Chip and Putt Local Qualifier

Drive, Chip and Putt scores nine total shots: three drives, three chips, and three putts. It is not an 18-hole round, so a lot of what defines a normal tournament day, a scorecard to sign, pace of play to manage, hole after hole of pressure, simply is not part of this format. For the full mechanics of how entry and scoring work, see our Drive, Chip and Putt qualifying guide. This one is about the experience of the day itself.

Because the actual scored portion is nine shots, your golfer's time in front of the judges is short by tournament standards. The family's total time on site is usually longer once you count check-in, warm-up, waiting for your child's division to be called, and results.

Registration is completed online in advance by a parent or guardian, so there is no day-of sign-up. Read your specific local qualifier's own confirmation details closely. Check-in time, exact site location, and any format notes are set by each local host facility, not standardized nationally the way a tee sheet is, so treat that confirmation as the real schedule rather than a general script.

Pack what you would bring to any day at a golf course:

• Your golfer's own clubs, the ones they already play with.
• Comfortable golf attire appropriate for the host course.
• Water and a snack, especially if there is a wait before your child's group is called.
• Sunscreen, a hat, and a layer for weather.

Competitors are grouped by division, split into the four age bands and by gender, so your child competes only against players in their own bracket. Our guide to the age divisions explains exactly how those groups are set.

Because the entire scored test is nine shots, most of the actual time on site is the gathering, waiting, and watching around it, not the competing itself. The exact schedule, including whether there is a warm-up window before scoring starts, is set by the local host and detailed in your qualifier's own information. If you are unsure of anything about the day's flow, the confirmation email or local site listing is the source to check, not a generic assumption based on other tournaments you have attended.

For many competitors this is the first time performing a golf skill in front of people outside their normal practice group. One genuine advantage of the format is worth pointing out to a nervous first-timer: because it is nine shots and not 18 holes, a single missed shot cannot spiral into a bad back nine the way it can in stroke play. Each attempt stands on its own.

Keep the goal low-key for a first year: comfort with the format, not a top finish. Our guides on keeping golf fun for young juniors and etiquette for a first competitive round both cover the emotional side of a first competition in more depth.

Advancement is decided by the top finishers in each division at that stage, and scores do not carry over between rounds of the ladder. A rough day at one qualifier says very little about the next attempt, and if your golfer wants to try again, entry reopens the following year. The full ladder, from local qualifying up through the National Finals, is laid out in our qualifying guide.