G
Gallery: Spectators at a tournament. Gimme: A short putt that your opponent doesn’t ask you to hit, assuming that you can’t possibly miss the shot. G.I.R: Slang for greens in regulation — greens hit in regulation number of strokes. Glove: Usually worn on the left hand by right-handed players. Helps maintain grip. Golden Bear: Jack Nicklaus. Golf Widow(er): Your significant other after he […]
F
Face: The front of a club or bunker. Fade: A golf shot played so when a left-handed golfer putts the golf ball flight moves slightly right to left and for a right-handed golfer the golf ball flight moves slightly left to right. Fairway: The prepared surface running from tee to green. Fairway Wood: Any wooden club that’s not your […]
E
Eagle: A score of two under par for a hole. Embedded Ball: Portion of the ball is below ground. Erosion: Loss of land through water and wind damage. Etiquette: Code of conduct. Explode: To play a ball from a bunker moving a large amount of sand. Or what you do if the ball doesn’t get out of the bunker. Extra […]
D
Dance Floor: Slang for green. Dawn Patrol: The players who tee off early in the day. Dead: When there is no possible way out of the shot! Deep: A high clubface from top to bottom. Deuce: A score of two on a given hole. Dimple: Depression on the cover of a golf ball. Divot: Turf displaced by the clubhead during a swing. […]
C
Caddie: The person carrying your clubs during your round of golf. With who may also communicate yardage measurements, rakes bunkers, and provides other information by the golfer’s request. Caddie-Master: The person in charge of caddies. Calamity Jane: The great Bobby Jones’s putter. Carry: The distance between a ball’s takeoff and landing. Cart: A motorized vehicle used to transport golfers around […]
B
Back Door: When the ball drops into the hole, after rolling around the rim of the cup to the far side. Back Lip: The edge of a bunker (a hazard filled with sand) that’s farthest from the green. Back Nine: It is the second half, or last 9 nines holes of an 18-hole course. Backspin: Is when the ball hits the […]
A
Ace: A hole-in-one. Address: The way a golfer positions his or her body right before laying the clubface square to the ball. Each golfer has his or her own unique address. Airball: When a golfer swings and misses the ball. It is counted as a stroke in putting. Albatross: British term for double eagle, which means you scored 3 under […]
Golf has a language all its own. Golf Terminology for beginners brings you the phrases, slangs and terminology to help you understand and make sense of golf.
William J. Miller New York, N.Y.
You have a great service. I’ll pass it around. Thanks,
Mel Rivera Rochester, NY
Just a note to thank you and your staff for job well done on a recent golf outing. Playing Golf while away on business in NYC was totally unexpected. My colleagues and I enjoyed ourselves playing the Black course. We’ll surely contact you on our next business trip. Thanks again.
