Golf terms for new parents

How to use this glossary

Golf has its own language, and hearing it for the first time can feel like a foreign language. Here are the words you will hear most at lessons, tournaments and on the course, in plain English. Terms are grouped loosely from the course, to the swing, to the score. For the rules behind them, see golf rules for beginners.

Course and equipment terms

Tee

Either the teeing area where a hole starts, or the small peg that holds the ball up for the first shot.

Fairway

Short, neatly mown grass between the tee and the green.

Rough

Longer grass along the sides of the fairway. Shots are harder from here.

Bunker

A sand-filled area of the course, often called a sand trap.

Green

The smooth, closely cut area around the hole where players putt.

Fringe

The slightly longer grass edging the green.

Pin (flagstick)

The pole with a flag that shows the hole's location.

Cup

The hole in the ground that the ball is aimed at.

Out of bounds

Areas outside the playing boundary. A ball hit there brings a penalty.

Driver

The club made for the longest tee shots.

Iron

A numbered club with a flat metal face, used for many shots from the fairway.

Wedge

A high-lofted club for short, soft shots and sand.

Putter

The flat-faced club used to roll the ball on the green.

Shot terms

Stroke

One swing made with the intent to hit the ball. Strokes are what you count.

Drive

A long tee shot, usually with the driver.

Approach shot

A shot aimed at the green.

Chip

A short, low shot played near the green that rolls toward the hole.

Putt

A stroke made on the green to roll the ball toward the hole.

Mulligan

A friendly do-over of a shot. It is not allowed in official play but is common in casual rounds.

Provisional ball

An extra ball played, after announcing it, when your first one might be lost or out of bounds (not in a penalty area), so play can continue without walking back.

Divot

A piece of turf displaced by a swing, which should be replaced or filled.

Scoring terms

Par

The number of strokes an expert is expected to take on a hole.

Birdie

One stroke under par on a hole.

Eagle

Two strokes under par on a hole.

Bogey

One stroke over par on a hole.

Double bogey

Two strokes over par on a hole.

Hole-in-one (ace)

Hitting the ball into the cup with the tee shot.

Handicap

A number that estimates a golfer's ability, used to even out competition.

Format terms

Stroke play

Total strokes over the round decide the winner. Lowest wins.

Match play

Players or teams compete to win individual holes.

Scramble

A team format where everyone hits and the team plays the best shot.

Honors

The right to hit first from the tee, usually earned by having the best score (or winning the hole in match play) on the previous hole.

Other words worth knowing

Lie

The spot and condition where your ball has come to rest. A good lie sits up nicely on the grass, and a bad lie might be buried in the rough.

Penalty stroke

A stroke added to your score under the rules, for example after hitting out of bounds.

Penalty area

A marked area, often water, where a player may take relief for a penalty stroke or, in many cases, play the ball as it lies without penalty.

Par 3, par 4, par 5

Hole types named for their par. A par 3 is generally the shortest and a par 5 the longest.

Front nine and back nine

The first nine holes and the last nine holes of an 18-hole round.

Scorecard

The card where strokes for each hole are recorded and totaled.

A few words you will hear shouted

"Fore!" is the traditional warning shouted when a ball is heading toward other people. If you hear it, cover your head and crouch low rather than looking up. Ready golf means playing when you are ready rather than waiting strictly for turn order, which keeps the pace moving. For the course layout, see golf clubs and course explained.