Competition structures
Parful runs thisHead-to-head
Also called Head to head tiebreak, H2H, Direct result tiebreak, Mutual result.
Head-to-head is the tiebreak used in round robin and group tables: when two sides finish level on points, the winner of the match between them ranks above, then net difference (points for minus points against) separates them, and a name sort orders the display only if still level.
- Applies to
- Round robin and group stage tables
- Order
- Points, then the direct fixture winner, then net difference, then name
- Points
- 3 for a win, 1 for a draw by default
- Direct fixture
- A win counts; a halved match between the two falls through
- Net difference
- Points for minus points against
- Name
- Display order only, never a placing
How head-to-head works
A round robin ranks sides on points: 3 for a win and 1 for a draw by default, with a bye worth nothing, a win or a draw as the club chooses. Two sides on the same points are then compared on the match they played against each other. If one of them won it, that side ranks above. The logic is the one every golfer accepts without argument: you beat me, so you finish ahead of me.
If the two sides halved their match, or have not yet played it, the direct fixture cannot separate them and the table moves to net difference: each side's points for less its points against across all its matches. A larger difference ranks higher.
If they are still level after that, there is nothing left in the fixtures to separate them. Parful orders the rows by name so the table is stable, but that order is for display and awards no placing.
What points for and against means
In a match play round robin each fixture records 1 to the winner and 0 to the loser, or 0.5 each for a half. Points for and against are therefore the sum of match results, and net difference reads as wins minus losses across the group: a side with three wins and one loss has a difference of 2.
In a stroke play or Stableford round robin the fixture records each side's total instead, so points for and against are the strokes or points each side posted across its matches. Net difference then depends on the basis: more Stableford points for is better, while for strokes a lower total is the better one, so a club running stroke play fixtures should read the difference with that in mind and prefer the direct fixture rule.
Three-way ties
When three sides finish level, the direct fixture rule is applied pairwise as the table sorts. If A beat B, B beat C and C beat A, the fixtures cannot resolve it and net difference decides. Committees that want a cleaner answer usually adopt the mini-league approach, ranking only the matches among the tied sides, which is a variant Parful does not compute.
Head-to-head in a season standings
Season standings on Parful also offer head-to-head as one of the listed tiebreakers, with a different definition suited to a field rather than a fixture. Over the outings both tied players played, it counts how many each finished ahead of the other in, by finishing position on a points standings and by round result on the others. More outings ahead ranks higher; an equal count, or no shared outings, passes to the next tiebreaker.
How Parful runs it
Head-to-head is the default tiebreaker on every round robin and group stage competition, set by the template rather than chosen per club. The table recomputes from the fixtures whenever a result lands, counting completed, walkover and conceded fixtures and ignoring void ones. Rows sort by points, then the direct fixture, then net difference, then name.
A club can switch the competition to shared position instead, in which case sides on equal points share the rank and the table shows the tie. In a group stage the same table decides who qualifies for the knockout, so the tiebreak is what puts A1 and A2 into the bracket.
Worked example
A worked example: a four-side group
Four sides play each other once. Results: Ash beat Birch, Ash beat Cedar, Ash lost to Dale, Birch beat Cedar, Birch beat Dale, Cedar halved with Dale. Match fixtures score 1, 0.5 or 0.
| Side | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Points | For | Against | Net diff | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ash | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 1 |
| Birch | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 2 |
| Dale | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 0 | 3 |
| Cedar | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0.5 | 2.5 | -2 | 4 |
- Ash and Birch are identical on points and net difference; without the direct fixture rule the table would fall to name order and show a tie.
- Dale beat Ash, the group winner, and still finishes third: head-to-head only compares sides that are level on points.
Common variants
- Mini-league among tied sides
- Ranking three or more tied sides on the results among themselves only. Parful applies the direct fixture pairwise and then net difference; it does not build a mini-league.
- Holes-won difference
- Using holes up and down across all matches as the difference measure, as some knockout leagues do. Parful records match results as 1, 0.5 and 0 for the table, so its difference is wins minus losses.
- Shared position
- Sides on equal points share the rank and no tiebreak is applied. Available on Parful as a competition setting.