How to Follow Your Favourite Golfer Live - Hole by Hole

Following professional golf used to mean sitting in front of a television for five hours or refreshing a leaderboard page hoping for updates. Today, apps like GolfMode let you follow any golfer live, hole by hole, with real-time scoring, detailed stats and smart notifications - so you never miss a moment, even when you are away from the screen.

This guide explains exactly how to track your favourite players during PGA Tour, DP World Tour and major championship events.

Why Hole-by-Hole Tracking Matters

Golf is unique among major sports. With 144 or more players spread across 18 holes simultaneously, television coverage can only follow a handful of groups at any given time. If your favourite player is not in contention or is playing in an early group, you might see just a few shots all day on the broadcast.

Hole-by-hole tracking solves this problem entirely. Instead of waiting for a camera to find your player, you see every score as it happens - birdies, bogeys, pars and everything in between - updated in real time.

Setting Up Player Tracking on GolfMode

Getting started with live player tracking on GolfMode takes just a few steps:

1. Find Your Player

Use the search feature to find any professional golfer. GolfMode's database includes hundreds of players across the PGA Tour, DP World Tour, LIV Golf and other major circuits. Each player has a dedicated profile page with career stats, world ranking history and upcoming tournament schedule.

2. Follow Them

Tap the follow button on a player's profile. You can follow as many players as you like - build a list of your favourites and GolfMode will prioritise their updates across the app.

3. Enable Notifications

Choose which alerts you want to receive:

• Tee time reminders - get notified when your player is about to start their round
• Birdie and eagle alerts - know the moment they make a big score
• Round summaries - a quick recap when they finish their round
• Cut line updates - find out whether they have made the weekend

Understanding the Live Scorecard

When you open a player's live scorecard during a tournament, you will see a detailed breakdown of their round in progress:

• Hole-by-hole scores - each hole shows the score relative to par (birdie, par, bogey, etc.), colour-coded for quick scanning
• Running total - the cumulative score for the round and the tournament
• Position on the leaderboard - where they stand relative to the rest of the field
• Holes completed - how far through their round they are, with an estimate of when they will finish

This level of detail means you can follow a player's momentum through a round. You can see whether they are making a charge on the back nine or grinding to hold on to their position.

The Leaderboard View

While player tracking is brilliant for following individuals, GolfMode's leaderboard gives you the full picture. The leaderboard updates in real time and shows:

• Every player's current score and position
• Thru (holes completed in the current round)
• Today's round score versus tournament total
• Movement arrows showing who is climbing or falling

You can filter the leaderboard to show only your followed players, making it easy to track a group of favourites simultaneously.

Following Multiple Tournaments

Professional golf runs nearly year-round, and it is common for multiple tours to have events running in the same week. GolfMode lets you switch between active tournaments seamlessly, so you can follow a PGA Tour event in the morning (US time) and a DP World Tour event in the afternoon (European time), or keep an eye on both at once.

Check our PGA Tour Schedule 2026 for the full calendar of upcoming events.

Tips for Getting the Most Out of Live Tracking

During Majors

The four major championships - the Masters, PGA Championship, U.S. Open and The Open - are the most exciting weeks of the golf calendar. During these events, GolfMode's tracking becomes especially valuable because the fields are smaller and every shot carries enormous weight. Set up notifications for multiple players to follow the drama across the course.

During the FedExCup Playoffs

The FedExCup Playoffs compress the excitement into three weeks. With elimination-style cuts and massive stakes, hole-by-hole tracking lets you watch the points race unfold in real time. Check our PGA Tour guide for a full explanation of how the playoff format works.

For the Ryder Cup

Team events like the Ryder Cup use match play format, which is perfectly suited to player tracking. Follow individual matches hole by hole to see who is winning each point for their team.

Comparing Player Performance

Beyond simple score tracking, GolfMode lets you compare players head to head. Want to see how Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy stack up over a tournament weekend? The comparison tool shows side-by-side stats including scoring average, greens in regulation, driving distance and putting performance.

The Technology Behind Real-Time Scoring

Modern golf scoring relies on walking scorers who record each player's score hole by hole, which is then transmitted wirelessly to a central system. GolfMode processes this data and delivers it to your device within seconds. The result is a near-instantaneous view of what is happening on the course, no matter where you are.

Frequently Asked Questions

How quickly do live scores update on GolfMode?

Scores are updated within seconds of being recorded on the course. In practice, you will see a player's score appear on your screen within moments of them finishing a hole.

Can I follow golfers on tours other than the PGA Tour?

Yes. GolfMode covers multiple professional tours including the PGA Tour, DP World Tour, LIV Golf, LPGA Tour and Champions Tour. Player tracking and live scoring work the same way across all supported events.

Do I need an account to use live tracking?

Basic live scoring and leaderboard access is available to all users. Creating a free account lets you follow players, set notification preferences and personalise your experience.

How do push notifications work during a round?

When you follow a player and enable notifications, GolfMode monitors their round and sends alerts based on your preferences. You can choose to be notified for every score, only for birdies and better, or just for round summaries - whatever suits your level of interest.

Can I see historical scorecards from past tournaments?

Yes. GolfMode stores detailed scorecards from past events, so you can review a player's hole-by-hole performance from previous tournaments. This is useful for analysing form heading into a big event.

Follow every golfer, every hole, every tour - download GolfMode free.