Club glossary
What Is a Crossover Start in Golf?
A two-tee start in which groups go off the 1st and 10th tees at once and cross over to the other nine at the turn, so the sheet must hold gaps for them to fill.
A crossover start is a two-tee start: the day's first groups go off the 1st and 10th tees at the same time, and when those groups finish their first nine they "cross over" to the other nine — front-nine starters move to the 10th tee, back-nine starters to the 1st. Clubs use crossovers to move more players through the morning than a single tee allows, especially on busy weekend mornings and in the shoulder seasons when daylight is short.
How it works
The sheet runs two columns of tee times — one for the 1st tee, one for the 10th. Both open at the same time and run at the club's interval. The key is the crossover window: at roughly the time the first groups finish nine holes, the club stops booking new starts on the tee they are crossing to, leaving that time free for the groups coming through.
Example
A club runs a crossover on Saturday mornings:
| Time | 1st tee | 10th tee |
|---|---|---|
| 7:00–8:50 | First starts (12 times) | First starts (12 times) |
| 9:00–10:50 | Held for groups crossing from the 10th | Held for groups crossing from the 1st |
| 11:00 on | Regular single-tee times resume | Closed |
With a nine-hole time of about two hours at this club, the 7:00 group off the 1st tee reaches the 10th tee around 9:00, so the 10th tee's times from 9:00 are held for crossing groups. The exact window depends on the club's pace, which is why pace of play and crossover timing are managed together.
Crossover vs. shotgun
A shotgun start sends every group off at once from a different hole and is used for events. A crossover sends groups off two tees at regular intervals and is used for daily play. A crossover keeps the regular booking rhythm; a shotgun blocks the whole course for one field.
Why it matters at a private club
A crossover can add a significant number of morning tee times, but only if the sheet protects the crossover window. If members can book into it, groups coming off the 9th green wait on the 10th tee, and the pace problem spreads through the rest of the day. The starter sheet should show both tees side by side so the starter can see what is coming through.
Related terms
For more on setting intervals and booking windows, see tee time booking policies.
In Bubs: the 1st and 10th tees are separate columns on the tee sheet, each with its own times, shown side by side on the sheet and at the starter's view.