From Brent Kelley,
Your Guide to Golf.
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Definition: Four Ball is a match pitting two teams of two players (a total of four balls being played, hence the name) against each other using best-ball scoring.

All four players play their own ball throughout; at the end of each hole, the low score among the two partners on each team is that team's score. For example, Players A and B form one team. On the first hole, A scores a 5, B scores a 6, so the team score is 5.

Four Ball can be played as stroke play or match play and is one of the formats used at the Ryder Cup.

Handicap allowances for various Four Ball competitions can be found in the USGA Handicap Manual, Section 9-4 (www.usga.com).

Tournaments called 2-Person Best Ball are similar but not exactly the same. A Four Ball is team vs. team; a Best Ball tournament might be team vs. team or team vs. field.

Alternate Spellings: Four-Ball