Golf Lingo From A-Z
Ace
When a player hits the ball from the tee to the in one stroke. AKA a hole in one!
If your husband ever accomplishes this, prepare yourself. His fellow golfers will have showered him with adoration, the guys in the pro shop will take his picture and maybe even give him a plaque, and all lookers on will hail him as a hero.
He’ll likely expect the same treatment from his loving fans at home.
Back Nine
This refers to the second half of the game, since the full round is 18 holes. This is when you want hubby to call you to give you a heads up about his ETA.
Ball Marker
Players use a coin a small token of some sort to mark their ball’s position before lifting it up off the green.
Personal ball markers are a clever way to keep you on your hubby’s mind during the game and make great little gifts or stocking stuffers.
Birdie
A scoring term that means he played the hole in one stroke UNDER par.
This is a good thing.
Bogey
A scoring term that means he played the hole in one stroke OVER par.
Not such a good thing.
Bunker
Non-golfers call this a sand trap. Don’t ever call it a sand trap. If you don’t want to sound like an outsider, call it a bunker or a hazard.
BTW, if he lands in the bunker, it’s a bad thing.
Caddy
A caddie carries the golfer’s bag around the course. Kind of archaic if you ask me, but that’s the tradition.
Most people use golf carts to get around, but during official tournaments, real golfers walk, and rich golfers hire caddies.
Chip
The chip is a short shot that pops up, spins a bit in the air, then hits the green and rolls toward the hole.
Ideally.
Chunk
When a player’s club head hits the ground before the ball and takes a chunk of grass out called a divot. A little divot is desirable; a big divot is a chunk.
Club
Do I really need to explain this one?
Clubhouse
Sometimes called the pro shop, it’s also a great place to grab gifts for your golfer.
Dimples
You might know them as the little indentations that give golf balls their distinctive texture.
While dimples are cute, they also serve the purpose of reducing drag and allowing the ball to fly higher and longer.
Divot
Kind of like a chunk only smaller and intentional.
Double Bogey
A scoring term that means he played a hole in two strokes OVER par.
Double Eagle
A scoring term that means he played a hole in three strokes UNDER par.
Super!
Driver
This is the first shot from each hole from the tee.
Eagle
A scoring term that means he played a hole in two strokes UNDER par.
Fore!
A warning shout to other players who may be in the path of a killer drive.
Foursome
The typical grouping of players in any given round. If your hubby goes with his buddy, they are a twosome and will be paired with another twosome.
Cute, huh?
Gimme
In casual games, when a player’s ball lands so close to the hole that the next putt can’t possibly be missed, the other players agree to let him tap it in and move on.
Green
The really nice grass surrounding the hole.
Hacker
Nicely put: an unskilled golfer.
Too many hackers on the course will make your husband late for dinner.
Hazard
A hazard is any part of the course that traps the ball like the bunker mentioned above or a lake or pond.
Hole
AKA the cup
Hook
When a right-handed golfer hits a ball that unintentionally curves sharply to the left.
Iron
A flat-faced club with varying degrees of loft.
Lay Up
When a golfer plays the ball intentionally short of the goal in order to set up a nice shot.
Lie
This refers to how the ball is resting on the ground. Nice lie!
Links
Another term for a golf course, though technically it refers to a course situated along a coastline
Loft
The angle between the club’s shaft and face.
Mulligan
Fancy name for a do-over. No penalty.
As if…
Par
This is the standard score for any given hole, like a 3 par. It refers to the number of strokes a reasonably skilled golfer ought to take to finish the hole.
Since a low score in golf is the goal, anything UNDER par is cool.
PGA
Professional Golfers’ Association
You’re DVR is probably jammed with PGA recordings.
Pin
Another name for the flag that sticks in the hole.
Pro Shop
It’s a shop. What else do you need to know?
Putt
The short shot on the green.
This may look simple, but it takes quite a bit of finesse. My husband and my dad both like to say, “Drive for show, putt for dough.”
Putter
The club they use to putt with, duh.
Rough
The rough grass that borders the fairway where it’s hard to hit from.
Shank
A horrible shot.
Short Game
Shots on or near the green.
When your husband says he needs to work on his short game, he will likely be practicing putting, chipping, and pitching..
Slice
The opposite of a hook, but just as embarrassing. This is when a right-handed golfer hits a ball that curves sharply to the right.
Tee
That little wooden peg that rattles around in your dryer.
Oh, it’s used to elevate the ball off the ground on the first shot of a hole, also known as the tee shot.