Multiplayer, Power-Ups, and Workshop
Golf With Your Friends is designed as a multiplayer experience. While solo play is fully supported, the game's best moments come from chaotic 12-player lobbies with collision enabled and power-ups flying. This guide covers everything beyond the basic shot mechanics: how to host and manage lobbies, how each power-up works, how collision changes strategy, how to customize your ball, and how to access the Steam Workshop's enormous library of community-created courses.
Multiplayer Lobbies
Creating a Lobby
From the main menu, select Play and then Create Lobby. You configure the game before inviting players.
| Setting | Options | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Course | Any unlocked course | DLC courses only require the host to own the DLC. Other players in the lobby can play on the host's DLC courses for free. Workshop maps only require the host to have the map subscribed. |
| Game Mode | Classic, Dunk, Hockey, Speed Golf | Changes the hole target type. See Courses and Game Modes. |
| Max Players | 1-12 | 12 is the maximum for online play. |
| Stroke Limit | 1-20 (default 12) | Strokes allowed per hole before forced completion. |
| Time Limit | Off, 30s-300s | Per-hole timer. Off by default. |
| Collision | On / Off | Enables ball-to-ball contact physics. Off by default. |
| Power-ups | On / Off | Spawns power-up pickups on the course. Off by default. |
| Ball Shape | Normal, Random | Random assigns a random shape (egg, cube, star, etc.) to all players each hole. |
| Gravity | Low, Normal, High | Alters physics globally. Lower gravity = floatier balls, higher = heavier. |
| Turn Order | Simultaneous, Ordered | Simultaneous is default (everyone shoots at once). Ordered enforces turn-by-turn play. |
Joining a Lobby
You can join games three ways:
- Friend Invite: Accept a Steam friend's lobby invitation.
- Lobby Code: Enter a lobby code shared by the host.
- Server Browser: Browse public lobbies and join one with open slots.
Hotseat (Local Play)
Hotseat mode allows multiple players on the same machine. Players take turns using the same keyboard/mouse or controller. This is purely local with no online component. Each player enters their name, and the game rotates control between them at each hole.
Couch Mode
Couch Mode (added in late 2022) simplifies local play even further. It skips the full lobby setup and drops players into a randomized sequence of 9 holes drawn from all available courses. The host can also use the Max Course Length modifier to truncate any course to a custom number of holes (as few as 1), making quick sessions and sudden-death matches possible. See Courses and Game Modes for details.
Collision Strategy
Collision is the single most impactful custom setting. When enabled, balls interact physically.
How Collision Works
- Your ball can push, redirect, and stop other players' balls on contact.
- A fast-moving ball hitting a stationary ball transfers significant momentum.
- The physics are realistic: angle of impact, relative speed, and mass (all balls have equal mass) determine the outcome.
- Your own ball is also affected. If you hit someone else, you lose momentum.
Offensive Strategies
The Sniper: Aim directly at an opponent's ball that is sitting near the hole. A well-timed shot knocks their ball away from the cup while potentially sinking yours in the process.
The Blocker: Park your ball directly in front of the hole to physically block other players from sinking. This costs you a stroke (since you are not trying to sink), but it forces everyone else to waste strokes trying to navigate around you.
The Chaos Agent: On holes with tight corridors or ramps, shoot at maximum power directly into the group. Even if your ball goes wildly off target, the collisions disrupt everyone else's carefully planned shots.
Defensive Strategies
Wait and Watch: Do not shoot first. Let other players commit their shots, then aim for the hole once the chaos settles. Being the last to shoot means no one can hit your ball after it stops.
Use Walls: Position your ball behind walls or inside corners where other players cannot reach you with a direct shot.
Power Down: Near the hole, use the gentlest possible putt. A slow-moving ball is harder to displace than a fast one. If someone hits your barely-moving ball, it might only shift a few inches instead of flying across the green.
In collision games, the best player is often the most patient one, not the most accurate. Let others fight while you calmly putt around the chaos.
Power-Ups
When power-ups are enabled in the lobby settings, glowing pickup items spawn at fixed locations on each hole. Roll your ball over a pickup to collect it. You can hold one power-up at a time. Collecting a new one replaces your current one. Activate your held power-up with the designated button (default: middle mouse button on PC, Y/Triangle on controller).
Honey Trap
Icon: Golden honeycomb
Effect: Drops a line of five honey blobs behind your ball in the direction of travel. If your ball is stationary when activated, it drops a single large blob directly under you.
What it does to opponents: Any ball that rolls through the honey is dramatically slowed. The slowdown effect is severe enough to stop most shots dead. Honey blobs persist for approximately 10 seconds before dissolving.
Strategic use:
- Drop honey in narrow corridors that opponents must pass through.
- Place it directly in front of the hole to slow incoming putts.
- Drop it on boost pads to neutralize their speed benefit.
Your own ball is immune to honey you dropped on the current turn. However, on subsequent turns, your own honey will slow you too if you roll back through it. Clear the area before your next shot.
Double Jump
Icon: Blue upward arrows
Effect: Grants two jump charges instead of the normal one. Each charge launches your ball into the air with the same height and physics as a standard jump.
Strategic use:
- Use the first jump to clear an obstacle and the second to clear a second obstacle, allowing you to take shortcut routes that are impossible with a single jump.
- In Dunk Mode, the second jump is invaluable for reaching high hoops that require a double boost.
- Save both jumps for the end of a long roll where precision matters most.
Double Jump charges expire if your ball comes to a complete stop or if you finish the hole. Use them during the same shot's roll. They do not carry over to your next shot.
Snap Freeze
Icon: Blue ice crystal
Effect: Two-stage activation. First press freezes your ball in place instantly, making it immovable and immune to all external forces (including collision from other players). Second press launches the ball horizontally in the direction you are currently aiming.
Strategic use:
- Freeze your ball on a moving platform to ride it to a specific position, then launch from the perfect spot.
- Use the freeze to stop your ball from rolling into a hazard mid-shot.
- In collision games, freeze your ball near the hole to make it immune to being knocked away, then launch it in on the second activation.
- The horizontal launch ignores slopes and gravity for the initial burst, then normal physics resume. Use this to clear flat gaps.
Randomizer
Icon: Purple question mark
Effect: Changes the shape of every other player's ball to a random object for one turn. Possible shapes include egg, cube, cylinder, cone, icosphere, puck, star, bauble, and acorn.
What it does to opponents: Each shape has different physics properties. Cubes cannot roll smoothly. Eggs wobble unpredictably. Stars bounce erratically. The shape change lasts for the opponent's next shot and then reverts to their normal ball.
Strategic use:
- Activate just before opponents attempt a difficult precision shot. The altered physics will make their shot wildly unpredictable.
- Time it when multiple opponents are about to putt near the hole for maximum disruption.
- Randomizer does not affect your own ball. Use it aggressively without risk to yourself.
The Randomizer is the most disruptive power-up in the game. In competitive lobbies, holding a Randomizer and timing it correctly can swing an entire round in your favor.
Ball Shape Physics
The "Random Ball Shape" lobby modifier and the Randomizer power-up do not just apply a visual skin to your ball. They alter the fundamental collision mesh and center of mass. Each shape has distinct physical properties that change how your ball (or your opponents' balls) behave.
| Shape | Physics Behavior |
|---|---|
| Sphere (default) | Standard rolling physics. Smooth, predictable. |
| Cube | Flat faces resist rolling. Requires much higher power to start tumbling. Stops abruptly when momentum drops below the tipping threshold. Precision putting is nearly impossible. |
| Cylinder | Rolls along its length axis but wobbles unpredictably on turns. Sensitive to surface camber. |
| Egg | Off-center gravity creates an elliptical wobble. Straight approaches curve unpredictably as the egg decelerates. |
| Acorn / Cone | Irregular geometry interacts poorly with ramp physics. These shapes frequently cannot generate enough velocity to clear mandatory gap jumps. Steep incline ascents are often impossible. |
| Star | Bounces erratically on contact with any surface. Extremely difficult to control at any speed. |
| Puck | Low profile with reduced friction. Slides further than expected on flat surfaces. |
| Icosphere | Near-spherical but with subtle flat facets that cause micro-deviations. Behaves almost like a sphere but with occasional unpredictable hops. |
| Bauble | Slightly heavier than the default sphere. Rolls smoothly but with less bounce on impact. |
When the Randomizer power-up transforms opponents into an Acorn or Cone shape on a hole with mandatory gap jumps, the affected player may be physically unable to complete the hole. The irregular geometry prevents the ball from gaining enough airborne distance, forcing a stroke-out penalty. This is a known community frustration point, not a bug.
Ball Customization
Cosmetic Types
| Type | Description | How to Get |
|---|---|---|
| Hats (Toppers) | Small items placed on top of the ball (crowns, antlers, party hats, helmets) | Playtime drops, DLC packs, Steam Market |
| Trails | Visual effects that follow the ball during movement (fire, sparkles, smoke, rainbows) | Playtime drops, DLC packs, Steam Market |
| Floaties | Inflatable ring accessories that wrap around the ball (donuts, rubber ducks, inner tubes) | Playtime drops, DLC packs, Steam Market |
Earning Cosmetics
- Playtime drops: Approximately one cosmetic drops every 45 minutes of active gameplay. There is a daily cap of three drops. The drops are random from the full pool of available items.
- DLC cosmetic packs: Several themed DLC packs are available for purchase. These provide sets of hats, trails, and floaties with a specific theme (e.g., Sports Day, Rock and Roll).
- Steam Community Market (PC only): On PC, cosmetic items can be bought and sold on the Steam Market. Rare items from early drop pools can be more expensive.
Equipping Cosmetics
In any lobby (before starting a game), select the Customize option. Three tabs let you browse your owned hats, trails, and floaties. Select an item and click Apply to equip it. Cosmetics are purely visual and have no effect on gameplay.
Steam Workshop
The Steam Workshop is one of Golf With Your Friends' strongest features. Thousands of community-created courses are available for free download. Custom courses range from faithful recreations of real mini-golf layouts to absurd multi-hour endurance maps.
Downloading Workshop Maps
- Open the game's Steam Workshop page (through Steam or via the in-game Workshop browser).
- Browse or search for maps. Sort by Most Popular or Most Subscribed for quality.
- Click Subscribe on a map. Steam downloads it automatically.
- In-game, select the Workshop course from the course selection menu when creating a lobby.
Hosting Workshop Maps in Multiplayer
Only the host needs to have the workshop map subscribed and downloaded. When other players join the lobby, the game automatically distributes the map to them. Players do not need to manually subscribe to the map.
Some very large workshop maps can cause loading delays for players with slower connections. If players are stuck on a loading screen, give them time. The transfer happens automatically.
The Level Editor
Golf With Your Friends includes a built-in level editor accessible from the main menu.
Getting started with the editor:
- From the main menu, select Editor, then Start.
- You are placed in an empty environment with a toolbar at the top.
- Select a theme (Forest, Dungeon, Lab, etc.) to determine the asset set and visual style.
- Place floor tiles, walls, ramps, and obstacles to build each hole.
- Every hole requires a Spawn point (where the ball starts) and a Flag (where the hole is).
- Use the object inspector to adjust position (X, Y, Z coordinates), rotation, and scale.
- Test your hole using the Play button in the toolbar.
- Save frequently. The editor can be unstable.
Publishing your map:
- Complete and test all 18 holes.
- Use the Preview Camera tool to capture a thumbnail image.
- Go to File > Save and Publish to upload directly to the Steam Workshop.
The level editor is PC-exclusive. Console versions of Golf With Your Friends cannot create or edit custom courses. Console players also cannot access Steam Workshop maps.
Recommended Workshop Maps
The workshop catalog is massive. Here are some well-regarded community maps to try:
| Map Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Hogwarts | A faithful recreation of the Harry Potter castle with magic-themed hazards. |
| Mario Kart Circuit | Racing-track-themed holes inspired by classic Mario Kart courses. |
| Minecraft Village | Block-style terrain mimicking Minecraft's aesthetic. |
| Extreme 1000 | A notoriously difficult 18-hole endurance course designed for experienced players. |
| Pinball | Holes designed to look and play like pinball machines with flippers and bumpers. |
Search the workshop by name or browse the Most Popular (All Time) category for reliably high-quality maps.
Custom Game Modes
Beyond the four official game modes (Classic, Dunk, Hockey, Speed Golf), the lobby settings let you create custom experiences by combining modifiers:
Chaos Mode (Community Name): Collision ON + Power-ups ON + Random Ball Shape. Maximum unpredictability.
Low Gravity Madness: Gravity set to Low. Balls float, jumps reach enormous heights, and every shot becomes a physics experiment.
Putt-Putt Serious: Collision OFF + Power-ups OFF + Ordered Turns. The closest approximation to traditional mini-golf rules.
These community-named modes are not formal game modes. They are just popular lobby configurations that players recreate manually.
The Gravity setting suffers from a known engine bug called "Gravity Bleed." If you play a custom game with altered gravity (e.g., Low) and then join a standard multiplayer lobby without fully restarting the game client, the altered gravity can carry over locally. Your client applies the wrong gravitational constant while the server runs at normal gravity, causing you to massively overshoot or undershoot shots. Always restart the game after playing with custom gravity to reset your local physics.
What to Read Next
- Getting Started. Controls, shot mechanics, and your first game.
- Courses and Game Modes. All 13 base courses, DLC courses, and all four game modes with difficulty breakdowns.
- Achievement Guide. All 83 Steam achievements with unlock conditions, global completion rates, and recommended strategies.