# Shotgun starts for league nights

> What a shotgun start is, how many golfers it fits on nine holes, doubling groups on the long holes, how groups score holes out of order, and why it suits twilight leagues.

Canonical: https://golfleaguesoftware.com/guides/shotgun-start

In a shotgun start every group tees off at the same time from a different hole. For a twilight league racing the sunset, it gets the whole field finished together.

*By the Golf League Software team. Updated 2026-11-12.*

## How it works

1. Each group is given a starting hole.
2. At the start time, every group tees off from its own hole.
3. Groups play the holes in order from there, wrapping around: a group starting on 6 plays 6, 7, 8, 9, then 1 to 5.
4. Everyone finishes at about the same time, near the clubhouse.

## How many golfers fit?

One foursome per hole on nine holes is 36 golfers. Courses often double up on the longer holes with an A and a B group (the B group tees off once the A group has hit its second shots), which takes a nine-hole shotgun to roughly 50 to 60.

## Scoring a shotgun

Paper cards are printed hole 1 to 9, so a group starting on the 6th fills them in out of order, and mistakes creep in. Scoring on a phone that follows the group’s own order avoids that: [Golf League Software’s scoring](https://golfleaguesoftware.com/features/golf-league-scoring-app) shows each group its holes in the order it plays them.

## Shotgun or tee times?

|  | Shotgun | Tee times |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Field finishes | Together | Over an hour or more |
| Course needs | Every hole free at once | A block of tee times |
| Late arrivals | Hard to fit in | Can take a later time |
| Results ready | All at once | When the last group finishes |

## Related

- [Golf league scoring app](https://golfleaguesoftware.com/features/golf-league-scoring-app)
- [How to run a golf league](https://golfleaguesoftware.com/guides/how-to-run-a-golf-league)
- [Golf league formats](https://golfleaguesoftware.com/guides/golf-league-formats)