Par 3, 4 and 5 Lengths: Yards by Par, Men and Women

The Rules of Handicapping recommend par 3 for holes up to 260 yards for men and 220 for women, par 4 from 240 to 490 yards for men and 200 to 420 for women, and par 5 from 450 to 710 for men and 370 to 600 for women. The ranges overlap, and a hole that sits in two of them can be set either way.

The ChartPar by hole length, in yards and metres

These are recommended lengths for setting par on each hole. The scorecard at your course shows the par that club or committee actually chose, and Appendix F asks for a par to be set for both men and women.

FinderWhich par is my hole?

Type a hole length in yards and pick men or women. The finder reads the chart above and tells you every par range the length falls in.

Enter a length to see its par range.

OverlapWhy the ranges overlap

Par reflects the score a scratch player is expected to make on a hole, so length is only the starting point. Appendix F says that where a length falls within two par ranges, for example 470 yards (men) or 400 yards (women), the par may be allocated as 4 or 5, depending on the difficulty of the hole.

The overlaps in the chart:

• Par 3 and par 4. Men: par 3 runs up to 260 yards and par 4 starts at 240. Women: par 3 runs up to 220 and par 4 starts at 200.
• Par 4 and par 5. Men: par 4 runs to 490 and par 5 starts at 450. Women: par 4 runs to 420 and par 5 starts at 370.
• Par 5 and par 6. Men: par 5 runs to 710 and par 6 starts at 670. Women: par 5 runs to 600 and par 6 starts at 570.

Appendix F lists what else can push a par up or down from the plain length:

• The playing difficulty of the hole, including effective length corrections such as elevation changes, forced lay-ups and prevailing wind.
• The way the hole is designed to be played.
• Standardising par across tee sets where that is appropriate, and giving weight to the tees most commonly played by men and by women.

Using itHow to use this chart

Find the hole length in the column for your tees. If it sits in one range, that is the recommended par. If it sits in two, the hole could be set either way, and the card tells you which one your course chose.

Use the yard columns if your scorecard is in yards and the metre columns if it is in metres. The chart lists both for every band, so you do not need to convert.

For a hole in an overlap, look at the slope, the wind and any forced lay-up. They are the reasons Appendix F gives for tipping a hole one way or the other. To work out how a hole plays on the day, see the plays-like yardage chart, and to pick tees that suit your distance, see which tees should I play.

Watch forCommon mix-ups

Men and women have different bands. A 230-yard hole is a par 3 length for men, whose range runs up to 260 yards, but not for women, whose par 3 range stops at 220 yards. Read the column for the tees in play.

The chart is a recommendation, not a ruling on your card. Appendix F says it is recommended that par be established in line with these lengths. The par printed on your scorecard is the one your course set.

Par 6 exists. The chart lists it from 670 yards (610 metres) for men and 570 yards (520 metres) for women.

High courses are a different case. The guidelines assume an altitude less than 2,000 feet/610 metres above sea level. If your course sits higher, ask your club how it set par.

Par also feeds into your handicap. Appendix F says the Rules of Handicapping use par in the Course Handicap calculation (with a Course Rating minus par adjustment where an association has chosen it), in net double bogey and in net par. For scoring numbers, see average golf score by handicap.

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