Hacker: Poor player.
Half: Tied hole.
Half Shot: Improvised shot with ordinarily too much club for the distance.
Halve: To tie a hole.
Ham and Egging: When you and partner play well on alternate holes, forming an effective team.
Handicap: For example, one whose handicap is 16 is expected to shoot 88 on a par 72 course, or 16 strokes over par.
Hanging Lie: Your ball is on a slope, lying either above or below your feet.
Hardpan: Very firm turf.
Hazard: Can be either sand or water. Don’t ground your club in hazards — it’s against the rules!
Head cover: Protection for the clubhead, usually used on woods.
Heel: End of the clubhead closest to the shaft.
Hickory: Wood from which shafts used to be made.
High Side: Area above the hole on a sloping green.
Hole: Your ultimate 4 1/4-inch-wide target.
Hole-High: Level with the hole.
Hole-in-One: See ace.
Hole Out: Complete play on hole.
Home Green: The green on the 18th hole.
Honor: When you score lowest on a given hole, thus earning the right to tee up first on the next tee.
Hood: Tilting the toe end of the club toward the hole. Lessens the loft on a club, and generally produces a right-to-left shot.
Hook: Shot that curves severely from right to left.
Horseshoe: When ball goes around the edge of the cup and “comes back” toward you.
Hosel: Curved area where the clubhead connects with the shaft.
Hustler: A golfer who plays for a living. Plays better than he claims to be.
