Frequently Asked Questions

Tap the + button on the Games tab, select Quick Game, fill in player names and handicaps, choose a course, and tap Continue. If you have more than four players, Carry splits them into tee time groups — assign a scorer for each additional group. Search for an existing Carry user, or just type a name — if they're not on Carry, tap Add a scorer and choose a QR code or a link, and they score from their browser (see Web Scoring). You can't start the round until every group has a scorer.

Go to the Games tab and tap +. Name your group, set the buy-in amount, search for and select your course, then invite players. You'll be added automatically as the first member. Skins Groups default to "Anyone Can Score" — every player enters their own scores on their own phone.

From your skins group or Quick Game, you have a few ways to invite players: search for existing Carry users by name, send an SMS invite by entering a phone number, or share the group's QR code. To show the QR, open Invite & Manage and tap the QR icon — or shake your phone while viewing the group for a fullscreen version that a whole foursome can gather around. Players who already have Carry installed can point their phone at it and join instantly; everyone else gets the SMS invite. Invited players appear as pending until they accept. You can also add guest players by typing their name and handicap directly — they don't need a Carry account.

Open Carry and tap the QR scan icon in the top-right of the Home or Games tab (or the "Have an Invite? Scan QR" button on the empty Games tab). Point your phone at the creator's QR code and you'll be added as an active member instantly — the group opens automatically, no invite link or SMS needed. Your iPhone's built-in Camera app works too: scan the QR, tap the yellow banner, and Carry takes it from there.

When you have more than 4 players, Carry auto-groups them into foursomes. Set a base tee time, then use Consecutive Tee Times (+8, +10, or +12 min intervals) to stagger each group. All tee times must be set before you can start the round.

Yes — between rounds. Open your Skins Group and tap "Invite & Manage" to add new members anytime before a round starts. Invited players sit in the Pending section of the Manage sheet until they accept. Once accepted, they move to All Members — tap them to add them to today's tee sheet. Once a round is live, the roster is locked for that round; new members can still be invited but won't join until the next round. (Quick Games are one-off and don't persist members, so roster changes only apply to Skins Groups.)

Open your skins group, tap the … (options) button in the top-right, and toggle "Carries" on or off. When on, tied holes carry their skin value to the next hole. When off, tied holes are dead skins.

Yes. In Game Options, choose between net (handicap-adjusted) and gross (raw scores) for both scoring and winnings display. You can also set a handicap percentage (100%, 80%, etc.) to control how much of each player's index is applied.

Carry follows the USGA World Handicap System method, applied to your Carry rounds. Every completed Skins Group round becomes a score differential: (adjusted gross score − course rating) × 113 ÷ slope rating, using the tee you played. Your adjusted gross caps each hole at net double bogey (par + 2 + any strokes you receive on that hole), so one blow-up hole can't wreck your index. Your Carry Index is then the average of your best 8 differentials from your last 20 rounds — with fewer than 20 rounds, the standard WHS table uses a smaller sample of your best rounds, which is why the index unlocks at 3.

Same math, different rounds. Your official index includes every score you post anywhere; your Carry Index is built only from the Skins Group rounds you play in Carry. If you play most of your golf with your Carry crew, the two will track closely — if not, they can drift apart. That's the point: it reflects how you actually score in your money games.

The group creator switches Player Index from Regular to Carry in the group's Game Settings. From then on, stroke allocation uses each member's Carry Index — you'll see the green C next to indexes on the tee sheet, leaderboard, and results. Members who haven't unlocked a Carry Index yet simply play off their regular index until they do.

Junk (a.k.a. dots) pays a fixed value for specific feats on a hole — birdies, sandies (up-and-down from a bunker), greenies (closest to the pin on a par 3), and more. Your group picks the value per dot, and Carry tallies who's up at the end.

Nassau is three match-play bets in one: the front 9, the back 9, and the full 18. Each is won by whoever takes the most holes over that stretch — it's about holes won, not total strokes. Play it two players head-to-head, or four as a two-vs-two four-ball.

Baseball, or Nines, is a points game for three-player groups: 9 points are split among the players on every hole based on their scores — the lowest score earns the most, and ties are shared. Most points after 18 wins.

Hammer is the pressure bet. Either side can throw the hammer during a hole, doubling its value — the other side then plays on at the doubled stake, throws it back to double again (×2, ×4, ×8…), or folds and concedes the hole at the price it was before the throw. No fold, and the hole is decided by play: net better ball, low side wins. Stakes are per man, played two-man or two-vs-two.

Your group picks the rule in the Hammer settings. Squash (the default): the bet dies with the tie and nobody pays. Carry: the hole's full value — multiplier included — rolls into the next hole's base, so the next hammer starts heavy.

Yes — but not alone. Press and hold the hammer button to request an undo; the other team gets the request on their scorecard and confirms or declines it. The chain only changes when both sides agree, and everyone in the group is notified either way.

Each tee group's scorer sets up that group's side bets in the app — turn on Junk, Nassau, Baseball, or Hammer from the group's Side Bets screen and set the stakes. Hammer has one extra requirement: each side needs a Carry user keeping score, since throws and folds are recorded by the people making them. Side bets are app-only, so if a group is playing Junk, that group needs a scorer with Carry installed rather than a web scorer. Bets are per group, so a scorer only controls their own foursome's. Everyone in the group sees the results.

No — just like skins, Carry calculates each side bet's result and shows who owes what, but no real money moves through the app. Players settle up on their own.

When you set up a Quick Game, assign a scorer for each tee group. Type a name that isn't a Carry user and you'll get Add a scorer — tap it and choose how they score: text them a link to install Carry, show them a QR code, or share a scoring link. Pick one of the last two and they score from their browser. The link becomes active once you finish setting up the game.

Anyone you send it to — that's the point, since they have no account for Carry to check. The link works like a shared document link: whoever holds it can score. The first phone to enter a score keeps it. If anyone else opens it after that, they're told it's being used on another phone and can't score. So send it to the person keeping score, and no one else.

If nobody has entered a score yet, nothing has happened — just have the right person score first and the link locks to their phone. If a score has already gone in, you can revoke the link from the scorer's row and issue a fresh one, and you can correct any scores from the scorecard.

They're two different links. The leaderboard link (Share Live Leaderboard, or the round QR) is view-only — anyone can follow the game live, and nobody can change anything. Post it in the group chat freely. Once the round is over, the shared page shows the headline result and the full breakdown lives in the app. The scoring link comes from the scorer's row and lets that person enter scores. Only send that one to whoever is keeping score.

One round, plus a day. The link works through the round and for 24 hours after it ends — long enough to check the results and claim the round into a Carry account. After that it expires, and the next round needs a fresh link from whoever sets the game up. Scorers who'd rather skip the weekly link exchange can just get Carry — claiming keeps the rounds they already scored.

Their own tee group's scorecard — the only one they can score, and the only one they see. They do get the skins row and the money running across the whole field, so they can follow the whole game; they just can't see anyone else's scorecard rows.

Yes. Scores flow both ways, live. You score your group in the app, they score theirs in the browser, and both cards stay in step.

Their taps are saved on their phone and sent as soon as they're back on. They'll see a small note showing how many scores are waiting. Nothing is lost in a dead zone — same as the app.

Their page turns into the results — their own finish and who took the most skins, with the rest of the field behind a Get Carry prompt. They're also offered the chance to claim the round into a real Carry account. If they do, the round they just scored — and their handicap index — come with them, so they start with their history already in place rather than an empty app.

No. The scorer needs nothing but a phone browser — no app, no account, no payment.

The game creator starts the round from the skins group. Once started, all members see a "LIVE Score Card" button on their Home and Skins tabs.

Skins Groups are "Anyone Can Score" — every player in the group enters their own scores on their own phone, so no single person is on the hook.

Quick Games have one dedicated scorer per tee time group. That scorer doesn't need the app — you can send them a scoring link and they keep score from their browser. See Web Scoring. Other players don't need Carry accounts either.

Yes, at any time. Tap any score cell on the scorecard to change it. Skins calculations update automatically. After the round, the creator can still edit scores from the "Edit Scores" button on the results screen.

Circle (green fill) = birdie or better. No border = par. Square outline = bogey or worse. In the skins row, a gold avatar means that player won the skin. A pulsating avatar shows the current leader on an unsettled hole. A pulsating gold dot means no scores have been entered for that hole yet. Skins update live as scores come in from all groups.

No. Scores save to your device instantly and sync to the cloud when you have a connection. You won't lose any data playing in a dead zone. When connectivity returns, all pending scores upload automatically.

No. Everyone is entered by name and handicap, and even the scorer can keep score from a link in their browser without installing anything — see Web Scoring. No sign-ups, no downloads required to play.

Yes. After the round, you'll be asked if you want to play again. Tap "Yes" and your Quick Game converts into a full skins group. You can name it, set up weekly tee times, and invite players to join Carry so they can track their own stats.

A Quick Game is a one-off — the creator sets it up, assigns a scorer per group, and starts in seconds. A Skins Group is a recurring setup where all players have accounts, can score independently, and track their stats over time. You can always convert a Quick Game into a group after the round.

Press and hold the game or group card on your Home tab to open the menu, then tap Delete Game or Delete Group. You'll be asked to confirm. Only the creator can delete — other members will see a Leave option instead.

Deleting removes the group and all its rounds for every member. This can't be undone. If you only want to stop receiving updates, press and hold the group card and tap Leave Group instead — the rest of the group keeps playing without you.

Active games show a live card on your Home tab. When all groups finish, tap "Show Final Results" to see the full breakdown: who won which skins and the total payout per player.

When some groups have finished but others are still playing, results are "pending." You can see which skins are decided and which are still being contested. Final results appear once all groups complete 18 holes.

The final results screen shows exactly who owes what. Use your preferred payment app to settle up based on the amounts shown.

Past rounds appear in the "Recent Games" section on your Home tab. Each group's leaderboard has two tabs: "Last Round" shows the most recent round, and "All Time" shows cumulative skins won, total winnings, and season statistics across all rounds. Both are free to view.

Yes. On the final results screen, tap the share icon (top right) to share a text summary of the round results with your group via Messages, email, or any other app.

Carry uses Apple Push Notification service (APNs) to send real-time alerts, including game-started notifications when the creator starts a round, group invite notifications, round completion updates, and scorer assignment changes. You can also receive tee time reminders and cross-group skin-won notifications. You can manage notification preferences at any time through your iPhone Settings.

Yes. Scores save to your device instantly and skins calculations happen locally. If you lose cell signal during a round, everything keeps working. When connectivity returns, pending scores automatically sync to the cloud and cross-group score syncing resumes.

Yes — any member of a skins group can follow the action live even if they're not playing that day. Spectators see the active round card on Home with live skin wins and running standings, plus the full Results sheet once the round ends. Scorecard entry is reserved for scorers / players in the round.

Go to the Profile tab. Tap your name or photo to open the edit sheet. You can change your display name, avatar photo (take a new one with your camera or pick from your photo library), handicap index, home club, club membership status, and GHIN number.

Home Club is the golf course you designate as your home course. Club Membership indicates whether you're a member or non-member. Both are optional and visible to other players in your groups.

GHIN is the Golf Handicap and Information Network, managed by the USGA. You can enter your GHIN number in your profile for reference. Automatic handicap index syncing via GHIN is coming soon — for now, you can manually set your handicap index in your profile settings.

On the Profile tab, tap your handicap index to open the picker. Select your current index. This is used to calculate playing handicaps for skins games that use handicap-adjusted scoring.