Skins Game
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A skins game is a type of scoring for various sports, most notably golf but also for curling.
Contents |
[edit] Golf
In golf, a skins event has players compete for prize money on each individual hole. There is an annual skins game for male professional golfers which takes place in November or December each year after the end of the official PGA Tour season. It is recognized by the PGA TOUR but does not count towards the official money list. It is currently sponsored by LG and is officially known as the LG Skins Game at La Quinta, hosted at the Trilogy Golf Club at La Quinta in La Quinta, California.
The Skins Game differs from most PGA TOUR golf tournaments for several reasons. Only four golfers are invited to the tournament and the golfers play to win individual holes or "skins" in a match play format. Each hole is assigned a different monetary value and the golfer who wins the hole with the best score outright wins the money for that hole. In the event that two or more golfers tie (which is called "halving") on a hole, the skins carry over to the next hole. In the event that two or more golfers halve the final hole, a playoff begins until one golfer wins a hole outright. (In a playoff that requires more than one playoff hole, if a player is not one of those that halve the playoff hole, he is eliminated - it is not "one tie, all tie".)
In 2001, the player winning a hole outright had to tie or win the next hole to collect his skins from the previous hole. This was very tough to do. Greg Norman was the only one that could back up his win on the previous hole. He won the 17th and tied for low on the 18th hole to collect $800,000, the largest skin collected for one hole. He won the $200,000 in a playoff to win the entire $1 million dollar prize money.
For example, in the 2004 Skins Game, the first six holes were worth US$25,000 apiece, seven through 12 were worth $50,000, 13 through 17 were worth $70,000 and the 18th hole, known as the Super Skin is worth $200,000.
Fred Couples is given the nickname of "Mr. Skins" because of his dominance in the Skins Game. He has won $3,515,000 and 77 skins in 11 appearances. He has won five of the Skins Games overall.
[edit] Winners
| Year Played | Winner | Winnings |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Stephen Ames | $590,000 |
| 2005 | Fred Funk | $925,000 |
| 2004 | Fred Couples | $640,000 |
| 2003 | Fred Couples | $605,000 |
| 2002 | Mark O'Meara | $405,000 |
| 2001 | Greg Norman | $1,000,000 |
| 2000 | Colin Montgomerie | $415,000 |
| 1999 | Fred Couples | $635,000 |
| 1998 | Mark O'Meara | $430,000 |
| 1997 | Tom Lehman | $300,000 |
| 1996 | Fred Couples | $280,000 |
| 1995 | Fred Couples | $270,000 |
| 1994 | Tom Watson | $210,000 |
| 1993 | Payne Stewart | $280,000 |
| 1992 | Payne Stewart | $220,000 |
| 1991 | Payne Stewart | $260,000 |
| 1990 | Curtis Strange | $225,000 |
| 1989 | Curtis Strange | $265,000 |
| 1988 | Ray Floyd | $290,000 |
| 1987 | Lee Trevino | $310,000 |
| 1986 | Fuzzy Zoeller | $370,000 |
| 1985 | Fuzzy Zoeller | $255,000 |
| 1984 | Jack Nicklaus | $240,000 |
| 1983 | Gary Player | $170,000 |
[edit] Notes
The popularity of the tournament led to the term "skins game" to be referred to progressive jackpot events where if a prize is not won, it is carried over to the next round, where if a player wins, he wins the combined jackpot.
[edit] Curling
A skins game format has also been adapted to the game of curling. In this format, teams play for ends, not scoring within an end, though points (or in some competitions, prize money as in golf's version) may be assigned to each end. To win an end, the team that has "the hammer" — the one which throws the last stone in the end, an inherent advantage — must score at least two points (under normal scoring rules) to win the end. The other team may win the end by stealing one point. If the team with the hammer gets only one point or the end is blanked, then the game points or prize money associated with that end carry over to the next, as with the golf skins game. If there are unclaimed skins after the eighth end, they are usually played off with a "draw to the button" — each team throws a single stone into an empty house (target), with the stone coming closest to the button (center) winning.
The Continental Cup of Curling is the best-known bonspeil to utilize the skins format. In this bonspeil, the first game in the skins portion is played for a total of 30 points, with point values assigned on an escalating basis to each end as follows: Two points each for the first two ends, three points for the next three ends, four for the sixth end, six for the seventh end and seven for the eighth. The second game is for 40 points (distributed as 2-2-4-4-5-6-7-10), and the third for 60 points (4-4-6-6-7-9-11-13). These points are combined with those earned in earlier matches of mixed doubles, singles skills and traditional team games to determine the winner of the Cup, either the team from North America or Europe.
