Terms of use

These terms cover your use of Fourball St Andrews, run by William McGill Caiola (“Fourball”). By signing up you agree to them. They're written to be read, so please do.

What Fourball is

Fourball is a place for golfers in St Andrews to find people to play and practice with. It is free to use. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by St Andrews Links Trust, the University of St Andrews, or any golf club: “St Andrews” in its name only says where it is.

What Fourball isn't

• We never book or sell tee times. The host books with the course (at a walk-on course like the New, the starter gives out times on the day). Check the booking yourself before you travel.
• We never handle money. Everyone pays their own green fee and any other costs directly to the course or venue.
• We don't organise the rounds. Hosts and players do, and arrangements are between them.
• We don't enter the Old Course ballot for you. A ballot group's organiser enters it through St Andrews Links and must follow their rules (duplicate entries are disqualified). Being in a group on Fourball doesn't mean you're in the ballot. Joining someone else's group gives its organiser the entry details St Andrews Links asks for (see the privacy policy).

Who can use it

• You must be 18 or over, and you can have one account. If we find an account belonging to someone under 18, we'll remove it.
• Give your real name, and keep your details (like your handicap) honest. Handicaps are self-reported: Fourball has no way to check them, so don't rely on anyone's handicap shown here. Courses that need one (like the Old Course) check it themselves.
• Verified student badges are only for people with a University of St Andrews email. A badge only means someone confirmed a University of St Andrews email address. It doesn't confirm anything else about them. New badges are paused from 28 October 2026 while we move the codes to Fourball's own email address; badges already given stay.

How to behave

• Treat everyone with respect. No harassment, bullying, hate, threats or sexual content.
• No spam, advertising, selling, gambling or asking for money.
• Don't post anything illegal or that belongs to someone else, or pretend to be someone you aren't.
• If you ask to join or host a round, turn up on time, or leave the round in good time if you can't. After a round, the players say who turned up. If two or more say you didn't, it's recorded privately (nobody else sees it); two in 60 days and our administrator takes a look, and we'll send you a note. If a record is wrong, you can ask us to correct it (see “Complaints and appeals”).
• Don't share other people's private details (including from group chats).
• Don't copy, collect or export other members' details, by hand or with automated tools, or use them to contact people outside Fourball.
• If you organise an Old Course ballot group, use the players' entry details only to enter that ballot, and don't keep or share them.

Meeting people safely

You'll be playing with people you may not know. Use your judgement: read profiles, meet at the course, tell a friend where you're going, and leave if something feels wrong. You can block or report anyone from their profile. If you're in danger, call 999.

Golf has everyday risks, like stray balls and slippery ground. Follow the course's safety rules and play within your ability.

How we keep Fourball safe

Illegal content, and anything that breaks these terms, isn't allowed. This is how we deal with it:

• Reporting: anyone can report a profile, round or chat message with its Report button. A report keeps a copy of what was said, even if it's later deleted.
• Automatic checks: new chat messages, round notes and profile details are checked automatically for words linked to scams, threats and abuse. A match is sent to our administrator to look at; nothing is removed automatically.
• What we do: every report and automatic flag alerts our administrator straight away, by email and on their phone. We look at urgent safety concerns first, such as threats. When we become aware of illegal content, we remove it swiftly. We can remove rounds or messages and suspend or close accounts that break these terms or put others at risk, and we'll usually tell you why. If someone may be in danger, or a crime may have been committed, we may tell the police.
• Blocking: you can block anyone from their profile. You then won't see each other on Fourball.

You can delete your account at any time in Settings. If your account is suspended, Settings can't delete it, but you can ask us by email and we will, keeping only what we need for an ongoing safety matter or to comply with the law (the privacy policy explains).

Complaints and appeals

To complain about something on Fourball, about how we handled a report, or about a decision we made about your account or your posts (such as a suspension or a removal), email us at williammc1221@gmail.com. Tell us what happened. We'll reply within 14 days with our decision or, if we need longer to look into it, with what we're doing and when you'll hear from us. If you ask, we'll look at a decision again and tell you the outcome. If you think a no-show record about you is wrong, tell us the same way: we'll look into it and correct it if it is. Complaints about how we handle your personal information are covered in the privacy policy.

Your content

What you post stays yours. You give us permission to store, show and use it as needed to run Fourball, in the ways the privacy policy describes. We delete content on the timetable in the privacy policy, though we may keep some information where we need it to handle a report, protect members or comply with the law. If you send us feedback or ideas, we may use them to improve Fourball without owing you anything for them.

Only upload photos you have the right to use. If other people are in a photo, make sure they're happy to be on Fourball.

If you choose to be featured on Fourball's Instagram, you can switch it off at any time in Settings. The privacy policy explains what happens to earlier posts.

Our responsibility

Fourball helps golfers find each other, but we don't organise, book or supervise rounds. You're responsible for your own arrangements, behaviour and safety, and for following the rules of the course or venue.

We don't guarantee that members' information is accurate, that rounds will go ahead, or that Fourball will always be available. We aren't responsible for other members' actions simply because they use Fourball.

Weather forecasts, sunset times, course details, green-fee links and ballot times are there to help. They come from other sources or our own calculations and can be wrong or out of date. Check with the course before you play, and decide for yourself whether it's safe to play.

Nothing in these terms excludes or limits our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or for anything else that can't legally be excluded or limited.

Changes and law

We may update these terms. If we change them in a way that matters, we'll tell you in the app or by email before the change applies. If you don't agree, you can delete your account. If we ever close Fourball, we'll give you at least 30 days' notice where we can, so you can download your data.

Scots law applies, and the Scottish courts can settle any dispute. If you live elsewhere in the UK, you can also use the courts where you live.