Frequently Asked Questions

Creating a pool takes less than two minutes. Click "Create Pool" in the navigation, select your tournament (PGA Championship, Masters, US Open, or The Open), choose your format (Tiered or Salary Cap), set your entry fee, and customize your prize distribution. You'll receive a unique invite code to share with participants immediately.

To join a pool, you need an invite code from the pool commissioner. Click "Join Pool" in the navigation, enter the code, provide your name and email, make your golfer selections, and submit payment if there's an entry fee. You'll receive a confirmation email with your picks and pool details.

The Free tier supports up to 10 participants with manual score entry, perfect for casual pools with friends. Pro tier ($49/tournament) offers unlimited participants, live scoring API that updates every 10 minutes, Stripe payment processing for entry fees, automatic payouts to winners, custom branding, and priority email support. Pro eliminates all manual work.

No traditional account is required. Commissioners receive a unique management link via email when they create a pool. Participants only need to provide their name and email when joining. This streamlined approach means less friction and faster setup for everyone.

We support all four major championships: The Masters (April), PGA Championship (May), US Open (June), and The Open Championship (July). Each tournament is pre-configured with the official field of golfers, accurate tier assignments, and salary cap values. Season passes cover all four majors at a discounted rate.

All four major championships are supported: The Masters (Augusta National, April), PGA Championship (May), US Open (June), and The Open Championship (July). Each tournament features the official field with up-to-date world rankings, tier assignments, and salary cap values. You can create pools for individual tournaments or purchase a season pass for all four majors.

Tiered format divides all golfers into 6 tiers based on world rankings and recent performance. Tier 1 contains the elite players (e.g., Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy), while Tier 6 features longshots. Each participant selects exactly one golfer from each tier. This format levels the playing field since everyone must mix favorites with underdogs.

Salary cap format gives each participant a $50,000 budget to build their team. Elite golfers cost more (e.g., $12,000 for Scottie Scheffler) while lesser-known players cost less (e.g., $2,000). You can pick any number of golfers as long as you stay under budget. This format rewards strategic thinking and contrarian plays.

In Tiered format, you pick exactly 6 golfers (one per tier). In Salary Cap format, you can pick as many golfers as your $50,000 budget allows—typically 4-8 golfers depending on your strategy. Both formats require picks to be submitted before the tournament's first tee time on Thursday morning.

Picks lock at the tournament's first official tee time on Thursday morning (typically 7:00 AM ET for US-based majors). Once locked, no changes can be made. We send reminder emails 24 hours and 2 hours before the deadline. Late picks are not accepted to ensure fairness for all participants.

Yes. The default payout structure is 70% to 1st place, 20% to 2nd place, and 10% to 3rd place. Commissioners can adjust this to any distribution (e.g., winner-take-all, top 5 finishers, or even weekly prizes for daily leaders). Custom structures are available on the Pro tier.

We use Stripe, the industry standard for online payments. Entry fees are collected via secure checkout when participants join. Funds are held in escrow during the tournament. When the final putt drops on Sunday, winners are automatically paid out via ACH transfer or debit card to the bank account or email they provided. No manual Venmo requests required.

Absolutely. We use Stripe for all payment processing, which is PCI-DSS Level 1 certified (the highest security standard in the payment industry). Your credit card information never touches our servers—it goes directly to Stripe's encrypted infrastructure. The same technology trusted by Amazon, Google, and millions of businesses worldwide.

All major credit cards (Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover), debit cards, and digital wallets (Apple Pay, Google Pay) are accepted. Payouts to winners are issued via ACH bank transfer (2-3 business days) or instant debit card transfer (additional fee applies). International participants can use cards in their local currency.

Payouts are initiated automatically within 2 hours of the tournament's official conclusion on Sunday evening. ACH bank transfers typically arrive in 2-3 business days. Instant debit card transfers arrive within minutes (small percentage fee applies). All winners receive an email notification when funds are sent.

Commissioners receive a full refund if requested before the tournament starts (before Thursday 7 AM ET). Partial refunds (50%) are available if the tournament is in progress. No refunds after the tournament concludes. Participant entry fees are refundable only if the commissioner cancels the pool before the deadline.

No hidden fees. The commissioner pays the flat platform fee ($49 for Pro tier). Stripe processes participant entry fees with standard credit card processing rates (2.9% + $0.30 per transaction), which can either be absorbed by the commissioner or passed to participants as a small convenience fee. All pricing is transparent upfront.

Your score is the sum of your selected golfers' tournament scores relative to par. For example, if you pick 6 golfers and they finish at -8, -5, -3, -1, +2, +4, your total is -1 (lowest score wins). Scoring updates automatically every 10 minutes during tournament rounds via live PGA Tour data feeds on the Pro tier.

If your golfer misses the 36-hole cut, their score freezes at whatever they shot through Friday. For example, if they're +6 after two rounds and miss the cut, you're stuck with +6. This is why diversifying your picks across tiers or salary ranges is strategic—it minimizes risk of multiple missed cuts.

If a golfer withdraws before the tournament starts, you'll be notified and given the option to select a replacement. If a golfer withdraws during the tournament (due to injury or other reasons), their score freezes at their last completed round. In extreme cases with multiple withdrawals, the commissioner can decide on a fair resolution.

On the Pro tier, the leaderboard updates automatically every 10 minutes during live tournament play (Thursday-Sunday). Scores are sourced directly from official PGA Tour data feeds. On the Free tier, commissioners manually update scores at their discretion. Push notifications can be enabled to alert you when you move up or down in standings.

If multiple participants finish with identical scores, the tiebreaker is determined by: (1) Lowest score from your single best golfer, (2) Lowest combined score from your top 2 golfers, (3) Earlier submission timestamp. Commissioners can also configure custom tiebreaker rules like "lowest Tier 1 pick" or "most birdies."

Free tier users can access community support via our help center and FAQ. Pro tier users receive priority email support at support@golfpoolmanager.com with guaranteed 24-hour response times. Enterprise customers get dedicated phone and Slack support. All tiers can report critical bugs or payment issues immediately via our emergency contact form.

Yes, you can edit your picks any time before the tournament's first tee time on Thursday morning. Simply revisit the picks page using the link in your confirmation email. Once the tournament starts, all picks are locked and cannot be changed to ensure fair play. Late pick changes are logged with timestamps for transparency.

Yes. Commissioners can cancel a pool at any time before the tournament starts. If any participants have already paid entry fees, full refunds are issued automatically via Stripe. Once the tournament begins, pools cannot be cancelled, but commissioners retain full administrative control over rules and payouts.

On the Pro tier with Stripe payment processing, all participants must pay before their picks are accepted—no payment, no picks. This eliminates the classic "someone didn't Venmo me" problem. On the Free tier (manual payments), commissioners can mark participants as paid/unpaid and send reminder emails to outstanding balances.

Absolutely. Many commissioners run separate pools for different friend groups, offices, or country clubs. Each pool has its own unique invite code, settings, and leaderboard. There's no limit to the number of pools you can create. Season passes apply across all pools you manage for maximum flexibility.

Yes, our Enterprise tier ($199/season) includes full white-label capabilities. Your country club or golf organization can run pools under your own custom domain with your branding, no "Powered by Golf Pool Manager" attribution. Includes API access, dedicated account management, and custom feature development. Contact sales for a demo.