Backspin
The spin on the ball caused by the loft of the club face.
Backswing
The first part of the swing, when the club is taken away from the ball to
behind the shoulder.
Banana ball
A bad slice, so called because the flight of the ball resembles the shape
of a banana
Barber
A player that talks to the point of annoyance.
Birdie
A score of one under par on a hole.
Blind
A hole or shot where you can't see your target.
Bogey
Originally the expected score in which a good player was reckoned to
complete a hole, but now replaced by par. Bogey has come to mean one over
par on a hole.
Borrow
How much you have to aim right or left when putting to allow for the slope
of the green to bring the ball back to the hole.
Bunker
A natural or artificial depression on a fairway or round the green. It is
usually half -filled with sand but can be made of earth or grass.
Caddie
A helper who carries a player's bag around the course and may advise on
the course or the game.
Casual water
Water on the course which is not part of the design, such as rain puddles
or over-watered areas. If a ball is in such water or, to play it, the
player's feet would be, one can take a free drop.. If there is casual
water on the green, a ball on the green may be moved to the nearest place
equidistant from the hole from which the putt will avoid water.
Chip
A lofted shot played from around the green. Usually played with a pitching
wedge or a sand wedge.
Chip and run
A low shot that runs towards the flag played from near the green.
Clubface
The area of the club that you use to hit the ball.
Clubhead
The part of the club attached to the lower end of the shaft, and used for
striking the ball.
Collar
Edge of a sand hazard.
Cup
The tubular lining sunk in the hole. Also the hole itself.
Deep stuff
Grass left to grow so that off-line shots are made more difficult. Also
called 'rough'.
Divot
A chunk of turf removed by the clubhead when you play a shot, usually on
the fairway.
Dog-leg
A hole with a fairway that bends sharply. A hazard is often positioned at
the angle of the dog-leg to put you off driving across it.
Double bogey
A score of two over par for a hole.
Double eagle
A score of three under par on a hole (also called an Albatross)
Downswing
The part of the golf swing from the top of the backswing to striking the
ball.
Draw
A shot with a slight, controlled curve through the air, from right to left
for a right-handed player and right to left for a left-handed player.
Drive
A shot which is played from the tee, usually with a driver (a 1 wood).
Driver
The 1 wood, the most powerful club in the set, used for getting maximum
distance off the tee.
Drop
When a ball must be lifted under penalty or otherwise, the player,
standing erect, holds the ball at arm's length and shoulder height and
drops it making sure that it does not land any nearer the hole.
Face
The surface of the clubhead that strikes the ball.
Fade
A shot designed the curve slightly in the air, from left to right for a
right-handed player and right to left for a left-handed player.
Fairway
The cut grass, and proper route, between the tee and green.
Fairway woods
2, 3, 4, 5, and sometimes higher-numbered woods designed to be used when
the ball is in play after the tee shot.
Flagstick
Also called the pin, flag, or stick, the flagstick marks the hole.
Follow-through
The part of the swing beyond impact with the ball.
"Fore!"
The shouted word by which golfers warn others on the course that they are
in danger of being hit by the ball.
Fourball
A matchplay or strokeplay game of two players on each side, all four
striking their own ball.
Foursome
A matchplay or strokeplay game between two sides of two players each, the
partners striking the ball alternately.
Fringe
The collar of slightly longer grass around the the close-mown putting
surface of the green.
Full set
The 14 clubs which are allowed for playing a round. A full set usually
consists of three or four wooden clubs or metal woods, nine or ten irons
and a putter.
Get legs
A term shouted by a golfer when a shot just made is assumed to be short of
the intended goal.
Gimmee
Baby talk for "give me," a putt of two feet or less that a
friendly opponent declares does not have to be holed out.
Grain
The angle at which the grass of a green grows. Putting "against the
grain" requires more effort than "with the grain."
Green
The closely mown, carefully manicured target area in which the hole is
cut.
Grip
The part of the club you hold, and the way you hold it.
Gross score
The number of shots taken to complete the course before deduction of
handicap to give the net score.
Ground under repair
Area of a course temporarily out of play, from which a ball may be removed
for a drop without penalty. A ball outside the area may also be moved if
the lie would cause the player to stand on it.
Guttie
A ball made from gutta percha. It lost popularity when the wound ball was
introduced at the beginning of the 20th century.
Half set
Either the odd or even irons, two woods and a putter. A half set of clubs
is all a beginning golfer needs to start playing.
Handicap
A system devised to make play between golfers of different standards an
even match. Your handicap is the number of strokes over par you average
over four rounds at a golf course. For instance, if your average score is
88 on a par 72 course, you are given a handicap of 16. In strokeplay, if
you play with a person that has a 2 handicap, you are allowed 14 strokes -
the difference between your handicaps - extra strokes, one on each of the
most difficult 14 holes. In matchplay, the longer handicap player would
receive 11 shots - three quarters of the difference.
Hazard
A bunker, stream, ditch, lake, or pond are all hazards. Hazards are
defined by a course committee.
Heel
The part of the clubhead beneath the end of the shaft.
Hole
This can mean the actual hole that you putt into or the entire area
between tee and green.
Hole Handicap
Each score card indicates a handicap number for each hole. The lower the
number, the harder the hole is to play. Some courses split odd and even
handicap numbers between the front nine and back nine while others
handicap all eighteen holes together. For example, the front nine can have
handicap numbers 1,3,5,7,9,11,13,15 & 17 while the back nine have
2,4,6,8,10,12,14,16, & 18. In this case, the number 2 handicap hole
isn't necessarily the second hardest hole on the course. It's the first
hardest hole for that nine. A lot of golfers prefer to have all eighteen
handicapped together but it is up to the course to decide.
Honor
To play first off the tee, the privilege of the winner of the preceding
hole.
Hook
Faulty stoke when the ball curves to the left for right-handed players and
right for left-handed players.
Iron
Irons are metal-headed clubs used for most shots between tee and green.
Sometimes you can use them from the tee at holes where accuracy is more
important than distance. The sand and pitching wedges are also irons.
Lateral water hazard
A ditch, stream, or pond roughly parallel to the line of the hole. A ball
picked out may be played from either side, with a one-stroke penalty.
Lie
Where the ball is in relation to the ground it is resting on. The more
embedded in the grass or sand the ball is, the worse the lie. Lie also
refers to the angle of the sole of the clubhead to the shaft.
Links
A seaside golf course, typified by sand, turf, and course grass, of the
kind where golf was originally played.
Loft
The angle of the clubface to the ground. The more loft a club has
(indicated by how high the number is on the club) the higher the ball goes
and the shorter distance it travels.
Long game
Shots over about 180 yards (164m) long, played from the tee or on the
fairway with woods or low-numbered irons.
Loose impediments
Twigs and leaves, not actually growing, and not stuck to the ball, which
may be removed from around it without penalty. The ball must not be moved.
Lost ball
If after a five-minute search, a ball cannot be found, a competitor is
penalized one stroke and plays another ball from the spot where the first
one was hit, counting as the third shot.
Mark
To identify the spot on the green where a player has picked up a ball for
cleaning or to clear the way for another player's putt.
Matchplay
A game between two players or two sides which is determined by the number
of holes won or lost.
Mulligan
A second shot permitted without penalty. Usually only one is allowed per
round and is limited to tee shots although the number can be agreed upon
by players before the round begins.
Par
The standard score for a hole, usually based on it's length. Holes up to
250 yards (228m) long are par 3's, up to 475 yards (434m) par 4's and any
longer than that are par 5's. Course committees are now authorized to vary
par when a hole's difficulty warrants not sticking rigidly to the
distances laid down.
Penalty
In strokeplay, a rule infringement usually costs two strokes; in matchplay,
the hole is generally lost.
Pin
Informal name for the flagstick in the hole.
Pitch
A reasonably high shot onto the green, traveling anything from a few yards
to 120 yards (110m). You generally use a 9 iron, a pitching wedge, or a
sand wedge.
Pitching wedge
A short iron with a large degree of loft, used for pitching high but short
shots onto the green.
Play-off
If a competition ends with a tie, the winner is decided by playing further
holes. Currently, the winner is usually the first competitor to win a
hole. The U.S. and British Opens are exceptions.
Provisional
A ball played when it seems likely that the preceding shot is lost or out
of bounds. It will count, plus a penalty.
Putt
The rolling shot taken on the green, with a putter.
Sand wedge
Also called a sand iron, the shortest, most lofted iron used for playing
out of bunkers and for very short pitch shots.
Scramble
Team competition in which all players play from the site of their team's
best drive, best second shot, and so on.
Scratch player
A golfer with a handicap of zero.
Shaft
The length of the club down to the clubhead.
Shank
Area of an iron's clubhead at the hosel; hence a shot hit by the clubface
at this point, which flies off to the right (right-handed player).
Short game
Chipping, pitching, bunker play and putting on the green and around it up
to a distance of 100 yards (90m) away.
Skulling
Hitting a chip or pitch shot too hard and sending the ball past the green.
Slice
Faulty shot which curves left to right in the air (right-handed player).
Square
When the clubface is placed at right angles to the imaginary
ball-to-target line.
Snipe
A sharply hooked ball that dives quickly.
Stableford
A popular system of scoring by points for holes completed: par = 2 points,
1 under par = 3 points, 2 under par = 4 points, 1 over par = 1 point.
Stance
The position of your feet just before playing a shot.
Standard scratch score (SSS)
The score expected of a scratch player on any given course.
Stroke
A shot in golf.
Stroke and distance
The penalty of one stroke and the return to the site of the shot before,
when a ball is unplayable.
Stroke index
The numbers on a scorecard indicating the order of the holes at which a
handicap player receives strokes.
Strokeplay
A competition in which a player's total strokes for a round are recorded
to be compared with the scores of other competitors. 'Strokeplay', the
correct term, is often referred to as 'medal play'.
Swingweight
The weight and balance of a club. All the clubs in your set should be the
same swingweight.
Tagged it
Used to refer to a good golf shot. Usually a tee or fairway shot that is
long and on target.
Takeaway
The start of the backswing.
Tee
The area of a hole from which you play the first shot.
Tee peg
You can put the ball on this device for your first shot to help raise the
ball off the ground. It is then much easier to attain height.
Tempo
The timing and rhythm of your swing, which should be even and smooth
throughout.
Thin
A long, low shot hit by mistake with the leading edge of the club (blade).
Three off the tee
If a ball is lost, out of bounds, or unplayable from the tee shot, the
player is penalized one stroke and tees off again - the third shot.
Tiger
Someone who is playing unusually well.
Top
A shot mistakenly hit with the bottom edge of the club, so that the ball
is embedded in the ground before popping up, and in most cases traveling
only a short distance.
Unplayable
A player may choose to deem a ball unplayable, taking a penalty stroke and
dropping the ball no nearer the hole. A ball that is unplayable in a
bunker must be dropped in the bunker or stroke and distance taken.
Uphill lie
When a ball is positioned on ground sloping up ahead of the player.
Yardage (Distance)
A plan of the holes on a course showing the distance from one point to
another. It can be printed by the course or prepared by the golfer or his
caddie.
