GOLFING DICTIONARY
[ A ]
ACE... To put the ball in the cup from the tee in one shot.
ADDRESS ... The stance used by a
player preparing to hit the ball. Positioning of your body in relationship to the golf ball.
AGGREGATE ... The score made over
more than one round of play, or by 2 or more players playing as partners.
ALBATROSS... A British term for a
"Double Eagle" or to score 3 strokes under par on a hole.
AMATEUR... A player who does not receive any monetary compensation.
APPROACH... The shot played to the green or pin.
APRON...The grassy area surrounding the putting surface.
ATTACK...To aggressively go after the hole.
ATTEND THE FLAG... To hold the flag stick while another player putts.
AWAY... The ball that is the furthest distance away from the hole when more than one golfer is playing. It is the first ball to be played.
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[ B ]
BACK DOOR... The rear of the hole. If you fly over the green you'll be coming in the back door.
BACK LIP... The edge of the bunker that is furthest from the green.
BACK NINE... The last 9 holes of
an 18 hole course.
BACKSPIN... A reverse spin put on a ball to make in stop on the green.
BACK SWING The beginning of the swing where the club is brought in a backward motion from the ground until it stops over the head.
BAFFY... A term used in the 1800's for a 5 wood. A lofted wooden club developed from the baffling-spoon.
BALL OUT...To avoid trouble purposely, such as a water hazard, by hitting the ball to a safe area.
BALATA... The sap-like substance from the South American Balata tree used to make golf ball covers.
BALL... The round, usually white, dimpled object which is hit with a club hopefully to wards the target. Most balls today are made of a solid compressed synthetic rubber.
BALL HOLED... A shot that goes in the hole from off the green.
BALL IN PLAY... A ball is in play as soon as the player hits it off the tee box. It remains in play until it is holed out unless it is out of bounds, lost, lifted or when another ball is substituted in accordance with the rules.
BALL MARKER... A token or a coin used to mark the position of the ball on the green.
BALL RETRIEVER... A long pole with a scoop on the end used to pull balls from water hazards and other hard to reach areas.
BALL WASHER... A device for cleaning golf balls usually next to the tee area.
BANANA BALL... A slice that curves hard to the right in the shape of a banana.
BASEBALL GRIP... To hold the club with all ten fingers like a baseball bat on the grip.
BEACH...A sand hazard on the course.
BEND... To curve a shot by using side-spin.
BEND ONE...To hook or slice a shot by using side-spin.
BENT GRASS... A hardy and resilient type of grass native to North America and Eurasia that can be cut very short.
BERMUDA GRASS...A type of grass
seen mostly on southern courses in North America.
BEST BALL... A match in which one player plays against the better of two balls or the best ball of three players or the best score of two partners in a four-ball or best-ball match.
BIRDIE- One stroke under par for a hole.
BIRD'S NEST... A lie in which the ball
is cupped in deep grass.
BITE... Backspin put on the ball that
makes the ball stop with little or no roll.
BLACK TEES... Usually the furthest tees from the hole.
BLADE...The style iron that has a smooth back side. Also referred to as muscle backs. The least forgiving iron when miss hit.
BLADE... The hitting part of an iron club head (face).
BLADE PUTTER... A type of putter with straight face on both sides. Can be used right and left handed.
BLAST... A shot that takes a large
amount of sand with it when hitting out of a sand trap.
BLIND BOGEY... A type of competition in which each player tries to come the closest to a score that has been drawn out of a hat.
BLIND HOLE... A hole where the putting
green cannot be seen by the player as he approaches.
BLOCKED SHOT... A shot made by delaying the rotation of the wrists during a swing. This causes the club face not to be square at the point of impact resulting in a sliced shot.
BOGEY...A score of one over par for the hole. To play a hole in one stroke over par.
BOUNDRY... The edge of the golf course that defines the area of play.
BRASSIE... name formerly given to the 2 wood.
BREAK... To make less than a specified score. To break par on a hole or 80 for the course.(2) - The direction which a putt will roll on the green.
BREAK THE WRISTS... To bend the wrists back during a swing.
BRITISH BALL... The type of golf ball specified by the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews. Diameter is not less than 1.620 inches and weighing not more than 1.620 ounces. Now used mostly in amateur play.
BRITISH OPEN... the first open golf tournament ever, first held in 1860. The National Championship sponsored by the Royal And Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, Scotland.
BULGE... The curve across the face of a wood.
BUMP AND RUN... A short chip shot intended to run the ball after landing on the green.
BUNKER... A depression in the ground that is usually filled with sand or "sand trap". It is a hazard under the Rules of Golf.
BURN... The Scottish term for a creek or stream.
BUZZARD... A score of two strokes over par on a hole.
BYE... A tournaments term. A player who draws a "bye" is allowed to advance to the next round without playing an opponent.
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[ C ]
CADDIE OR CADDY... Someone who carries a player's clubs during play and gives assistance in accordance with the rules.
CADDIE MASTER... The manager of the caddies at a course.
CADDIE-CAR... A golf cart.
CALAMITY JANE... The name which Bobby Jones gave to his putter.
CAN... The hole on the green.
CAN A PUTT... to make or hole a putt.
CAP... The top end of the club.
CARD... The scorecard used to record scores at a course.
CARPET... A term used to refer to the surface of the putting green or fairway.
CARRY... The distance of travel by a ball from when it is hit to where it lands.
CART... A two-wheeled trolley which
carries a golf bag and pulled around the course or a golf car.
CASUAL WATER... Any temporary accumulations of water that are visible to a player and is not in a hazard or in a water hazard. A player may lift his all from casual water without penalty.
CAVITY BACK... The style iron that has a cavity on the back side. Also know as perimeter weighted. The most forgiving irons to hit on miss hits.
CENTER SHAFTED... A putter which the
shaft is joined to the center of the head.
CHARGE... To come from behind and play great or to play aggressively.
CHART THE COURSE... Walk and pace each
hole for distances to the green.
CHILI-DIP... To hit the ground before
the ball, producing a weak shot.
CHIP SHOT... A short approach shot of
low trajectory usually hit from near the green.
CHIP AND RUN... A chip shot intended to
run the ball after landing.
CHIP IN... To hole a chip shot.
CHOKE DOWN... To grip down farther on the club's handle.
CHOKE... To play bad under pressure.
CHOP To hit the ball with a hacking motion.
CLEEK... Old term used for a 4 wood.
CLOSED STANCE... The left foot extends
over the balls line of flight while the right foot is back.
CLEAT... The spike on the sole of a golf shoe.
CLOSED FACE... When the club face is pointed to the left of the target when you address the ball.
CLOSED STANCE... A stance taken with
the right foot pulled back away from the ball.
CLUB... The instrument used in golf to
hit the ball. A club is made up of the shaft, grip and club head.
CLUB HEAD... The hitting area of the club.
CLUBHOUSE... The building on the course
housing the locker rooms, pro shop, etc.
CLUBHOUSE LAWYER... A self-appointed
caller or arbiter of the rules.
COCK... To bend the wrists back wards in
the back swing.
COLLER... The grassy fringe surrounding
the putting green.
COME BACK SHOT... The shot made after
overshooting the hole.
COMPESSION... The flattening of the ball against the club face at impact. Balls have different compression ratios or factors.
CONDOR... A four-under par shot or a
hole-in-one on a par 5.
CONTROL SHOT... A shot that is played
with less than full power to hit a target area.
CORE... The center of the golf ball.
COURSE... A place we play golf at. Usually made up of 9 or 18 holes.
COURSE RATING... The comparison of playing one course as opposed to another in terms of difficulty (terrain, distance and hazards). It is expressed in strokes or decimal fractions of strokes. The yardage of the course and the ability of a scratch golfer are the basis for determination.
CRACK... To choke or play bad under pressure.
CROSS-BUNKER... A lengthy bunker that is located across a fairway.
CROSS-HANDED GRIP... A grip where your
left hand is below the right.
CUP... The container which holds the flag stick.
CUT... The score that reduces the field to a pre-determined number and eliminates players from a tournament. Usually made after 36 in a 72 hole tournament.
CUT SHOT... A control shot that stops the ball almost immediately on the green without rolling.
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[ D ]
DEAD PUTT... A putt is said to be dead
when there is no doubt that it will be made.
DEEP-FACED... A club face that is thick from top to bottom.
DEUCE... A hole made in two strokes.
DIMPLE... The round indentations on the golf ball cover which are designed to give a ball a steady, true flight.
DIVOT... A piece of turf removed with
by the club when making a shot.
DOGLEG... A bend in the fairway either to the left or right.
DOUBLE BOGEY A score of two over par for a single hole.
DOUBLE EAGLE... A score of three under par for a single hole.
DOWN... Being a specific number of holes behind your opponent.
DOWN HILL LIE... When addressing the ball and your right foot is higher than your left for a right-handed player.
DOWNSWING... The motion of swinging a
club from the top of the back swing to the point of impact.
DRAIN... To sink or make a putt.
DRAW... The pairing of golfers for a match play tournament.
DRAW SHOT... A controlled shot that curves from left to right. To play a shot so that it curves with to side spin from right to left for a right-handed player.
DRIVE... To hit the ball with from the tee.
DRIVE & PITCH... The type of hole on which the green can be reached with a drive and a pitch shot. Some courses have all the holes of this type.
DRIVE... The longest-hitting club in the bag usually the 1 wood, used primarily from the tee, when maximum distance is needed.
DRIVING IRON... Another name for the one iron.
DRIVING RANGE... An area or indoor building used to hit practice shots.
DROP... To put the ball on the course after you have already had a ball in play, after it has been declared unplayable or lost.
DUB... A missed or badly-hit a shot.
DUFF... To mis hit a shot by hitting the ground behind the ball first and then top the ball.
DUFFER... An unskilled or bad golfer.
DUNK... To hit your ball into the water
hazard.
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[ E ]
EAGLE... To score two strokes under par for a single hole.
EIGHT IRON... An lofty iron club. Also called a pitching niblick.
EXPLODE... To hit the ball from sand using a lofted club with the club hitting the sand behind the ball first and sending a large amount of sand up wards.
EXPLOSION shot... A shot that takes
large quantities of sand out of a sand trap.
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[ F ]
FACE... The hitting area or surface of the club head.
FADE... A shot in which there is a slight turning of the ball from left to right at the end of the balls flight for a right-handed player.
FAIRWAY... The area on the course between the tee and the green that is well-maintained allowing a good lie for the ball.
FAIRWAY WOOD... A loftier wooden club other than a driver used for long shots.
FAN... To swing and miss the ball completely.
FAT SHOT... To hit the ground behind ball first.
FEATHERIE... An old leather ball stuffed with feathers. Later replaced by the gutta percha.
FESCUE... A type of grass used widely
for the rough on golf courses.
FIELD... The players in a tournament.
FIVE IRON... An iron club. Also known as a mashie.
FIVE WOOD... A lofted wooden club.
FLAG... The cloth marker attached to the flag stick.
FLAGSTICK... The marker to show the location of the hole.
FLANGE... The surface of the club head which protrudes at the sole.
FLAT SWING... A type of swing that
occurs when the club head is carried back in a flat manner.
FLEX... The amount of bend or the
degree of stiffness of the club shaft.
FLIER... A ball is hit without spin and
goes further than normal.
FLIGHT... In tournament play, the division of players with equal ability placed in the same flight. Usually there are 16 players in a flight.
FLUB... A badly hit shot caused by hitting the ground before the ball.
FOLLOW THROUGH... The continuation of
the swing after a ball has been hit.
FORE... What is yelled to warn someone
who may be in danger of a ball in flight.
FORE CADDIE... Someone employed by the course or tournament committee to mark the position of a player's ball.
FOUR BALL... A match which the better ball of two players is played against the better ball of their opponents.
FOUR IRON... An iron club. Also called a jigger iron.
FOUR WOOD A lofty wooden. Also called a cleek.
FOURSOME... A group or four players playing together.
FREE DROP... A drop where no penalty stroke is incurred.
FRIED EGG... A ball half-buried in the sand.
FRINGE... The grassy area surrounding the putting surface.
FRONT SIDE The first nine holes of an 18 hole course.
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[ G ]
GALLERY... The group of spectators at a
tournament.
GIMME... A putt that is certain to be made and is conceded by an opponent.
GLOVE... The golf glove is worn on the left hand by a right-handed player, and on the right hand by a left-handed golfer, to improve the grip.
GOOSE NECK... Having the neck of a club
curved so that the heel is slightly offset from the line of the shaft.
GRAIN... The direction in which the
grass on a putting surface lies.
GRAND SLAM... The four major championships: the British Open, the U.S. Open, the Masters and the PGA Championship.
GRAPHITE... A lightweight material used to make shafts and club heads.
GREEN... The putting surface. According to golf rules it is the whole golf course.
GREEN COMMITEE... The members of a golf club who are responsible for the maintenance and management of the course.
GREEN FEES... The fee paid to the course to play golf.
GREEN JACKET... The prize awarded to the winner of the Masters Tournament.
GREENSKEEPER... The employee of the club who is responsible for the maintenance of the course.
GRIP... The part of the shaft by which
the club is held. Covered with leather, rubber or other material. Also, the manner in which you hold the club.
GROOVE... Linear scoring on a club face.
GROSS... The total number of strokes required to complete a round of golf after the player's handicap is deducted.
GROUNDING THE CLUB... Placing the club head behind the ball at address.
GROUND UNDER REPAIR... A part of the course being repaired is considered ground under repair. A ball that lands in such an area must be removed without penalty.
GUTTA PERCHA... Material used in the manufacture of early golf balls made from the sap of Malaysian trees.
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[ H ]
HACK... To chop at a ball or to play bad golf.
HACKER... An unskilled or bad golfer.
HALF... Used in match play when score is tied on a hole. Each side credited with a half.
HALF SHOT... A shot played with less
than a full swing (approximately 50%).
HALVED... When a match is played without a decision. A hole is "halved" when both sides play it in the same number of strokes.
HANDICAP... The number of strokes a player may deduct from his actual score to adjust his scoring ability to the level of a scratch golfer. Designed to allow golfers of different abilities to compete on the same level.
HANGING LIE... A ball resting on a downhill slope.
HAZARD... Any sand trap, bunker or
water on the course that may cause difficulty.
HEAD... The part of the club that makes contact with the ball.
HEEL... The part of the club head
nearest the shaft.
HIT... To play a shot or stroke.
HOLD... To hit the ground or a green
and stay in place with little roll or bounce.
HOLE... (1)... A 4 1/2" round cup in the green which is 4" deep.
(2)... One of the nine or eighteen holes
on a golf course.
HOLE HIGH... A ball that is on the
green even with the hole but off to one side.
HOLE IN ONE... A hole made with one
stroke. Same as an "ace".
HOLE OUY... To complete the play for
one hole by hitting the ball into the cup.
HOME & HOME MATCH... A match made up
of rounds played on the home course of each participant or group.
HONOR... The privilege of hitting first
from the tee. Assigned at the first tee. After which, the privilege goes to the winner of the last hole.
HOOK... To hit the ball in a manner that causes it to curve from right to left in the case of a right-handed player.
HOSEL... The hollow part of an iron
club head into which the shaft is fitted.
HUSTLER... A golfer with who purposely
maintains a higher handicap in order to win bets.
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[ I ]
IMPACT... The instant the club strikes the ball.
IN... A term used when your finished
playing 18 holes, you are said to be "in" the clubhouse.
INSIDE... When your ball is nearer to
the hole than the ball of your opponent.
INSIDE OUT... When, during the swing the swing path of the club head comes from outside the target line and travels across and to the inside of the target line.
INTERLOCKING GRIP... A type of grip
where the little finger of the left hand is intertwined with the index finger of the right hand for a right handed player.
IRON... Any one of a number of clubs
with a head made of iron, steel or some other metal alloy.
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[ J ]
JERK... To hit the ball from a bad lie, rough or sand, with a downward cutting motion causing the club head to dig into the ground beneath the ball.
JIGGER... An obsolete name for the 4 iron.
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[ K ]
KICK... A term for a big bounce. Usually an unpredictable bounce.
KICK POINT... A term that indicating the point on a golf shaft were the maximum bend occurs.
KILL THE BALL... To hit a extremely long shot.
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[ L ]
LAG... To putt the ball with the intention leaving it short to ensure being able to make the next putt.
LATERAL HAZARD... Any hazard running
parallel to the line of play.
LAY UP... To play a shorter shot than normally to achieve a good lie. Usually to leave a ball short of a hazard.
LAYOUT... The manner in which the holes
are placed on the golf course when it is designed.
LIE... The position in which the ball
rests on the ground.
LINE... The correct path of a putt to the hole when putting or when on the fairway, the correct direction which the ball should be played toward the green.
LINE UP... To study the putting surface
or green in order to determine how the putt should be played.
LINKS... Originally meaning a seaside
course, it is now used to mean any golf course.
LINKSMAN... You a golfer.
LIP... The top rim of the hole or cup.
LOP SHOP... A shot that goes straight up and comes almost straight down with very little spin or forward momentum.
LOCAL RULES... A set of rules for a
club determined by the members.
LOFT... The elevation of the ball in the air. Also means the angle at which the club face is set from the vertical and is used to lift the ball into the air. It is measured precisely as the angle between the face and a line parallel to the shaft.
LOFTER... An obsolete name for a lofted
club, now the 8 iron.
LONG GAME... Shots hit with the woods and long irons.
LONG IRONS... The straight-face and longer hitting irons.
LOOSE IMPEDIMENTS... Any natural object that is not fixed or growing. This can include loose stones, rocks, leaves, twigs, branches, molehills, worms or insects. They can be moved.
LOW BALL & TOTAL... A four-ball team bet in which the best ball of each team wins a point and the lowest total of the partners wins another point.
L.P.G.A.... The Ladies Professional Golf Association.
