In this section, I have included as many golf terminology definitions as I could, but my aim is to update this section with more terms and definitions as I come across them.
Ace: Into the hole in one stroke. Also referred to as a hole-in-one.Address: The stance position taken by a player before hitting the ball.
Air shot: Shot which missed the ball completely, when a player actually intends to hit the ball.
Albatross: A score of 3 under par achieved on one hole, e.g. a score of 1 on a par 4.
Amateur: A golfer who does not earn any money for playing golf.
Approach shot: Short or medium distance shot played to the putting green.
Attending the flag: To hold the flag and remove it while another golfer is putting.
Back door: The back-end of the hole.
Back nine: Holes 10-18 of an 18 hole golf course.
Backspin: Reverse spin placed on the ball to help it stop quickly on the putting surface.
Backswing: The backward swinging of the club to the top of the swing, before starting the downswing.
Ball marker: A coin or other small device to mark the ball on the putting green, before lifting it.
Birdie: A score of 1 under par on a hole, e.g. 4 shots on a par 5.
Bogey: A score of 1 over par on a hole, e.g. 5 shots on a par 4.
Borrow: To aim to the left or right of the hole in order to compensate for the slope of the green.
Break: The line on which the ball will run during a putt. If it runs straight to the hole, there is no ?break? on the ball.
Bump and run: A chip shot causing the ball to fly lower than normal and making it run after it has landed.
Bunker: A relatively big hole covered with sand, which is meant to make a golf hole more difficult if the ball lands in it. Some bunkers are located in the fairway and others closer to the putting green.
Buried lie: When a big part of the golf ball is buried under the sand in a bunker. Also known as a plugged lie.
Carry: The distance that the ball travelled through the air, from the point where it was struck to the first point where It landed on the ground.
Chipping: Shots which are hit as low approach shots, from a position near to the green.
Closed stance: When the left foot extends over the target line, while the right foot is behind it.
Cock: Bending of the wrists backwards during the backswing.
Divot: A piece of turf removed by the club when hitting a shot.Dogleg: The hole is said to be a ?dogleg?, when the fairway bends to the right or left.
Double bogey: A score of 2 over par for a hole, e.g. a score of 6 on a par 4.
Draw shot: A controlled shot where the ball flies from right to left for a right-handed player and flies from left to right for a left-handed player.
Drive shot: Usually referred to as the first shot on a hole, from the tee.
Driver: The club which hits the ball the furthest and mostly used for playing from the tee.
Drop: To drop a ball back into play once it has been declared unplayable or lost.
Eagle: A score of 2 under par on a hole, e.g. a score of 3 on a par 5.
Etiquette: Showing consideration for other golfers and for the golf course.
Fade: A controlled shot where the ball flies from left to right for a right-handed player and flies from right to left for a left-handed player.
Fairway: The area of well maintained grass connecting the tee and the green.
Fairway club: A club (also know as a fairway metal) used to get the maximum distance from a position on the fairway.
Flier: A ball that travels further than it would normally ? often happens when hitting from the ?rough?.
Follow-through: The upwards and finishing motion of the swing after the ball is connected.
Fore: A warning shouted out to tell someone that to ball that has just been hit, is coming in their direction and that they should try and get out of the way.
Four ball: Four golfers playing together in a group. Also known as a match where the better ball of two of the golfers, play against the better ball of the other two golfers.
Free drop: When the ball is dropped back into play without a penalty stroke being added.
Fried egg: When a ball is half-buried in a bunker.
Fringe: Area around the putting green between the green and the fairway ? usually, cut a bit longer than the green and a bit shorter than the fairway.
Gimme: A term used to describe a short putt, which is conceded by your opponent.Green: Another name for the putting surface.
Green fee: The money charged by a club allowing a golfer to play their course.
Hacker: A golfer who hacks at the ball with a bad technique and usually produces a poor round of golf.
Handicap: The number of shots a golfer may deduct from his actual score, in order to try and compete with a scratch handicap golfer, e.g. a golfer with a 16 handicap, my deduct 16 shots from his actual score, whereas a scratch golfer may deduct no shots.
Hole high: When a ball is positioned at even level with the hole, but positioned to the right or left.
Hole in one: Hitting the ball into the hole from the tee, with one stroke.
Hole out: To finish the play on a hole, by hitting the ball into the hole.
Honour: Having the right to hit first off the tee, given to the winner of the previous hole.
Hook shot: Usually an uncontrolled shot, when the ball moves a lot from right to left for a right-handed player and from left to right for a left-handed player.
Interlocking grip: The grip where the small finger of the right hand interlocks with the forefinger of the left hand for the right-handed player and the other way around for the left-handed player.
Iron: A club of which the head is made of steel or iron.
Lie: The position of the ball, when it comes to rest after being hit.
Links: Originally referred to as a course situated on the strip of land next to the sea, but nowadays a term used to refer to any golf course.
Lip: The top edge of the hole.
Lob shot: A short-range shot that is hit with a higher ball flight and lands softly, with minimum roll.
Long game: The shots which are hit with long irons, fairway metals and drivers.
Long irons: Irons used for hitting longer distances, typically from a 1-iron to a 4-iron.
Mid irons: Irons used for hitting middle distances, typically from a 5-iron to a 7-iron.
Nineteenth hole: Usually referred to as the bar at the clubhouse.
One-wood: Another name used for the driver.
Open stance: When the left foot is dropped behind the target line, while the right foot remains on it.
Out of bounds: The area outside the course in which play is prohibited ? a penalty will be incurred if the ball lands in this area.
Overlapping grip: With this grip the small finger of the right hand sits on top of the gap between the forefinger and middle finger of the left hand for the right-handed player and the other way around for the left-handed player.
Peg: A golf tee used for teeing the ball up on the tee box of a hole.
Penalty stroke: A stroke added to a golfer?s score for breaking the rules.
Pin: Also known as the flagstick.
Pin placement: The position of a hole on a putting green.
Pitch: A short-range shot going through the air with a high arc and landing softly with backspin.
Pitch and run: Short-range shot going through the air with a lower arc than a normal pitch shot and landing so it runs for a few yards on the putting green.
Pitch fork: An implement used to repair a pitch mark or divot left by the ball after landing on the green.
Pitching wedge: An iron club designed for hitting pitch shots.
Playing through: Passing a group of golfers who are playing ahead. This usually happens when the group ahead are playing at a slower pace, asking the group behind them to ?play through?.
Preferred lie: When a player is allowed to improve his lie under the local rules, without incurring a penalty.
Pull shot: A shot which causes the ball to move to the left of the target when hit by a right-handed player. The ball will go to the right, if a pull shot is played by a left-handed player.
Punch shot: A shot played hitting the ball with a short swing, so it flies on a low trajectory, usually into the wind.
Push shot: A shot which causes the ball to move to the right of the target when hit by a right-handed player. The ball will go to the left, if a push shot is played by a left-handed player.
Putt: A Scottish term, which means to push the ball gently or nudge it. Also referred to the shot made on the putting surface.
Reverse overlap grip: When the index finger of the right hand overlaps with the little finger of the left hand for a player putting right-handed. The converse applies for the left-handed player.
Rough: The long grass next to the edge of the tee-off area, fairway, hazards and greens.
Sand wedge: A very lofted iron used mainly to play out of sand traps.
Scratch: Also referred to as ?level par?, e.g. a scratch player does not have a handicap and may not subtract any strokes from his score.
Shank: A shot causing the ball to fly off at an angle roughly 45 degrees to the intended target line. Usually happens when the ball is struck in the area where the clubhead joins the shaft of a club.
Short game: Pitching shots, chip shots, short bunker shots and putting.
Short irons: The clubs which are highly lofted ? typically from an 8 iron to a sand wedge.
Slice shot: Usually an uncontrolled shot, when the ball moves a lot from left to right for a right-handed player and from right to left for a left-handed player.
Sweet spot: The middle of the clubface which will cause the purest contact with the ball when struck in this area.
Takeaway: The start of the backswing.
Tap in: A very short putt.
Tee: The area from which the first shot is played on a hole. Also refers to the devise on which the golf ball is placed in order to drive from the tee box.
Teeing off: The first shot hit on a hole, from the tee box.
Teeing up: Placing a golf ball on a tee peg before driving off the tee box.
Texas wedge: The other name for the putter, when it is used to hit the ball from of the putting green.
Topspin: The forward spin applied to the ball when it leaves the clubface.
Triple bogey: The term used to describe a score of 3 shots over par on a hole, e.g. a score of 7 on a par 4.
Under clubbing: Using a club which does not supply the required distance on a shot.
Unplayable lie: When the ball is in a position where it is impossible to play, e.g. in very thick grass.
Up and down: Getting the ball from an unfavourable position on the course, into the hole.
Water hazard: A body of water on the course, which players need to hit over in order to avoid incurring a penalty.
Wedge: An iron with a lot of loft, used or pitching, chipping or sand shots.
Wooden club: A club made from wood or metal with a large head and low loft. Typically, players use woods ranging between a 5-wood and a driver.
Yips: When a player's right hand develops a mind of its own and behaves in an erratic and jerky way at the impact point of the putt.
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