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Golf Slang
Eagle, birdie, par, bogey? These terms might seem strange to the average person, but they are part of average golfer's vernacular. If you plan on hitting the links, we recommend browsing the list below. It includes all the basic golf terms as well as some of informal slang used on the course by those of us not quite at the PGA level.
| Slang Term | Meaning | Popularity |
|---|---|---|
| Pin-seeker | Golf shot hit straight at the flagstick | 400 |
| Quail high | Very low golf shot | 400 |
| Sand bagger | A golfer who plays better than he claims | 400 |
| Nip it | Hit a golf ball cleanly | 400 |
| Abominable snowman | Golf score of 9 | 350 |
| Alec Guinness | Out-of-bounds | 400 |
| Back-door putt | Putt that spins around a hole and drops in | 400 |
| Botox | Putt that lips out of the hole | 400 |
| Die in the hole | Golf shot that makes it to the hole and falls in | 250 |
| James Joyce | Putt that is hard to read | 400 |
| Joe Pesci | A difficult five foot putt | 350 |
| Shank | To hit the ball poorly | 400 |
| Tight lie | A golf ball laying directly on the ground | 400 |
| Bogey golf | Level of golf play that equals 1 shot over par | 400 |
| Double dogleg | A golf hole with a fairway that has two bends | 400 |
| Dogleg left | A golf hole with a fairway that has a bend to the left | 350 |
| Dogleg right | A golf hole with a fairway that has a bend to the right | 400 |
| Mickelson | To hit a golf ball while it is still moving | 400 |
| Grand Slam | Four major golf tournaments | 267 |
| Eagle | Two strokes under par | 300 |
| Birdie | One stroke under par | 300 |
| Bogey | One stroke over par | 300 |
| Double bogey | Two strokes over par | 300 |
| Triple bogey | Three strokes over par | 300 |
| Snowman | Golf score of 8 | 200 |
| Nineteenth hole | Golf clubhouse bar | 300 |
| Worm burner | Very low golf shot | 200 |
| Rainmaker | High trajectory golf shot | 300 |
| Reload | To take another shot after a bad shot | 350 |
| Nuked | Hit a golf ball a great distance | 300 |
| OB | Out-of-bounds | 300 |
| Hangman | Golf score of 9 | 233 |
| Amelia Earhart | Golf shot that looks good but you can't find | 300 |
| Afraid of the dark | Putt that doesn't go in the hole | 300 |
| Victory lap | Golf ball that spins around the hole then falls in | 250 |
| Danny DeVito | Five foot putt | 250 |
| Saddam Hussein | Golf shot from one bunker into another bunker | 300 |
| Sunday ball | A do-over golf shot | 300 |
| Texas wedge | Putt from off the green | 300 |
| Squirrel | Tee shot into the rough | 300 |
| Tester | A putt that tests a golfer's skill | 300 |
| Velcro | Slow green | 300 |
| Bare lie | A golf ball laying directly on the ground | 300 |
| Chunk | A golf shot that makes a divot | 300 |
| Fat shot | A golf shot that takes a chunk out of the ground | 300 |
| Double eagle | Three strokes under par | 300 |
| Fore | Watch out | 300 |
| Gimme | Easy golf putt | 300 |
| Handicap | Numerical score that represents a golfer's ability | 250 |
| Scratch golfer | A golfer with a handicap of zero | 250 |
| Ready golf | Golfers hit when ready | 300 |
| Honors | Hit first from the tee in golf | 250 |
| Shotgun start | Golfers are sent to each hole to start at the same time | 300 |
| The turn | Halfway point of a round of golf | 300 |
| Outward nine | First nine holes of an 18-hole golf course | 300 |
| Inward nine | Last nine holes of an 18-hole golf course | 233 |
| Ace | Hole in one | 267 |
| Albatross | Three strokes under par | 250 |
| Cup | Hole | 300 |
| Dogleg | A golf hole with a fairway that bends | 300 |
| Mulligan | Redo | 125 |
| Par | Number of strokes to complete a golf course hole | 200 |
| Divot | Chunk of grass and soil | 200 |
| Drop | A ball dropped from a golfer's outstretched arm | 200 |
| Front nine | First nine holes of an 18-hole golf course | 200 |
| Back nine | Last nine holes of an 18-hole golf course | 200 |