On the course
Teeing Area
The area where you play your first stroke on a hole. It is defined by two tee markers. Where may you place your ball? Between the markers or up to two club-lengths behind them; you may use a tee.
From birdie to bunker. The most important golf terms explained in plain English.
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The most useful terms for new golfers.
59 terms
The area where you play your first stroke on a hole. It is defined by two tee markers. Where may you place your ball? Between the markers or up to two club-lengths behind them; you may use a tee.
A shot played towards the green, intended to finish on the green and preferably close to the hole.
Ground outside the boundary of the golf course, usually marked by white stakes or a white line.
Is your ball out of bounds? Add one penalty stroke and play again from where you made your previous stroke. This is called stroke and distance.
Not sure? If your ball might be out of bounds, play a provisional ball before going forward to search.
A specially prepared area of sand on the golf course. If your ball is in a bunker, you normally play it as it lies.
After your stroke: rake your footprints and other deep marks for the players behind you.
A number showing how difficult a particular course and set of tees are for a very good golfer with a Handicap Index of 0.0.
A piece of turf and soil cut out by a golf shot. Repair the area according to the course instructions.
Putting a ball back into play under the Rules by releasing it from knee height so that it falls straight down. You do this, for example, when taking relief.
The group of golfers you play the course with. In the Netherlands this is often called a flight. A group usually has no more than four players.
A person who carries or handles a player's clubs and may give that player advice during the round.
A short shot, usually played close to the green, that flies a short distance and then rolls towards the hole.
A measuring distance used by the Rules, for example to determine a relief area.
How do you measure a club-length? Use the longest club you are carrying for the round, other than your putter. For most golfers, this is the driver. Lay it on the ground and use the distance from the end of the grip to the end of the clubhead as one club-length. For two club-lengths, measure that same distance twice.
The club with the largest head, normally used for long shots from the tee.
A practice area where you can hit many balls from fixed bays or grass without playing a hole. You use it to practise different shots and technique.
Safety: never walk onto the range to collect balls while it is in use. Other golfers may hit a ball at any moment.
The closely mown area between the teeing area and the green, designed as the main route towards the hole.
A way to improve pace of play in stroke play: play when you are ready and it is safe, even if the traditional order would have another player go first.
Safety always comes before speed. Only play when nobody can be hit. If you are unsure whether it is safe, wait.
The warning shout used when your ball might hit someone.
Did you hit a dangerous shot? Immediately shout “FORE!” loudly. Do not wait to see where the ball lands.
Hear FORE? Protect your head and face immediately. Do not first look around to find where the ball is coming from.
The very closely mown area around the hole, where you normally use a putter. On the green you may mark, lift and clean your ball before replacing it.
The amount you pay to play a round or a certain number of holes at a golf course.
An area temporarily marked by the course because it is damaged, being repaired or maintained.
Free relief: if GUR interferes with your ball, stance or intended swing, you may normally take free relief. Find the nearest point where the interference is completely gone, then measure one club-length and drop no nearer the hole.
Important: GUR only gives free relief when it interferes with a stroke you could reasonably make. If your ball is deep in a bush and you could not play it anyway, GUR does not automatically give you free relief.
A number that represents a golfer's demonstrated playing ability and makes it possible for golfers of different levels to play fairly against each other.
Your official handicap is expressed as a Handicap Index. It is not simply the number of extra strokes you receive on every course.
For a particular course, set of tees and format of play, your Handicap Index is converted into a Playing Handicap. That determines how many handicap strokes you receive for that round or competition.
An area of the course marked by red or yellow stakes or lines. It often contains water, but it does not have to. You may play the ball as it lies.
Do not want to or cannot play it?
One part of a golf course, played from the teeing area to the hole in the green. A standard full round has 18 holes.
A ball is embedded when it is stuck in its own pitch mark from your previous stroke and part of the ball is below ground level.
Usually yes, when the ball is embedded in the general area.
What do you do?These are the main exceptions in Rule 16.3. A course can also use a Local Rule that limits embedded-ball relief, so check the local rules when relevant.
A golf club with a relatively narrow, angled clubface, used for many approach and other shots.
In stroke play, the person responsible for entering your score for each hole and certifying your scores after the round.
A format in which each hole is a separate contest against an opponent. The player who completes a hole in fewer strokes wins that hole. The match ends when one player is more holes ahead than there are holes left to play.
If your ball is somewhere you cannot or do not want to play it — for example under a bush — you may declare it unplayable, except when the ball is in a penalty area.
In a bunker: lateral or back-on-the-line relief for one penalty stroke must keep the ball in the bunker. Back-on-the-line relief outside the bunker is available for a total of two penalty strokes.
The score a scratch golfer is expected to make on a hole under normal playing conditions.
A relatively short, higher shot intended to land on or near the green with less roll than a chip.
The indentation a golf ball can make when it lands on the green.
What should you do? When you reach the green, look for your pitch mark and repair it with a pitch-mark repair tool. If possible, repair another pitch mark you see as well.
The number of handicap strokes you actually receive for a particular round or competition. It depends on your Handicap Index, the course and tees, and sometimes the format of play.
Practical tip: check the Playing Handicap table for the course and tees before you start and take a photo so you can refer to it during the round.
An extra ball you play when your original ball might be out of bounds or might be lost outside a penalty area.
Important for a penalty area: under the normal Rule, you may not play an ordinary provisional ball if it is known or virtually certain that your original ball is in a penalty area. A course may use Model Local Rule B-3 for a specific penalty area, allowing a provisional ball in that situation. Check the course's local rules.
The club mainly used on the green to roll the ball towards the hole.
A qualifying course is a golf course where the conditions allow you to play a score that can count towards your official handicap.
The course must be officially rated for handicap purposes and must be in qualifying condition when you play.
Practical: before starting a qualifying round, check with the golf course whether you can play a qualifying score that day.
A score that can count towards the calculation of your official handicap.
For most beginners, this is an individual round in which you play your own ball and record your score on each hole.
Using a Rule that allows or requires you to continue play from a different place instead of playing the ball exactly as it lies.
Relief can be free, for example in certain situations involving an immovable obstruction or ground under repair, or it can cost a penalty stroke, for example when taking relief for an unplayable ball or from a penalty area.
The Rule for the situation determines where your relief area is and how to put the ball back into play.
The area in which you must drop a ball when a Rule allows or requires you to continue from a different place.
The point from which you measure the relief area.
Which point do you use?Depending on the situation, measure one or two club-lengths from that point. Drop the ball in the relief area and make sure it stays there.
Grass or other natural ground outside the closely mown fairway, usually longer and more difficult to play from.
The card — paper or digital — on which scores for each hole are recorded.
For a competition or qualifying score, make sure the correct player, scores and required information are recorded and that the score is properly confirmed before it is submitted. A digital scorecard can perform the same function when the club or handicap system allows it.
A way of continuing play where you add one penalty stroke and play again from where you made your previous stroke.
You play from the teeing area and your ball goes out of bounds. Add one penalty stroke and play again from the teeing area. Your next stroke is your third stroke: your first stroke + one penalty stroke + the new stroke.
When might you use it?A number that indicates how difficult a set of tees is for a bogey golfer compared with a scratch golfer.
A Slope Rating of 113 is the standard reference value. A higher Slope Rating means the course is relatively more difficult for a higher-handicap golfer; a lower value means relatively less difficult.
Slope Rating is used together with Course Rating and your Handicap Index when calculating your handicap for a particular course and tees.
A format in which you score points on each hole based on your result and the handicap strokes you receive on that hole. The better your score, the more points you receive.
Useful for beginners: if you can no longer score a Stableford point on a hole, pick up your ball and continue to the next hole. You do not have to finish that hole. This avoids unnecessary strokes and helps maintain a good pace of play.
An extra stroke added to your score because a Rule requires it.
Example: declaring a ball unplayable or taking relief from a penalty area will normally add one penalty stroke.
Important: not every breach costs one stroke. For some breaches the general penalty applies: two penalty strokes in stroke play or loss of hole in match play.
A number assigned to each hole that is used to determine on which holes a player receives or gives handicap strokes.
If you receive 18 handicap strokes, you receive one stroke on every hole. If you receive fewer, the strokes are allocated starting with the lowest Stroke Index numbers. For example, with 10 strokes you receive one stroke on holes with SI 1 through SI 10.
A format in which you count the strokes you take to complete the round, including penalty strokes. The lowest total score wins regular stroke play.
A small peg used to raise the ball above the ground for a stroke from the teeing area.
One of the two markers that define the front and sides of the teeing area for a particular set of tees.
The movable pole placed in the hole to show its position on the green.
A highly lofted golf club mainly used for shorter shots, pitches, chips and bunker shots.
WHS stands for World Handicap System: the international system used to calculate and maintain official golf handicaps.
A team format in which each player plays their own ball and one or more of the team's best scores count on each hole. The exact format can vary.
A format in which you play each hole against a fixed target score, usually par after handicap strokes are applied. You win, halve or lose each hole against that target.
A two-player team format. Both players tee off, each plays the partner's ball for the second shot, the team chooses one ball, and the players then alternate shots with that ball.
A competition played over several rounds in which your best score on each hole is combined into one final 18-hole score.
A two-player team format in which both partners play their own ball and the lower score of the two counts for the team on each hole.
A two-player team format in which the partners share one ball and play alternate shots. One player tees off on odd-numbered holes and the other on even-numbered holes.
A two-player team format in which both partners tee off, the team chooses one ball, and the partners then play alternate shots with that ball.
A team format in which all players hit a shot, the team chooses the best ball, and everyone plays their next shot from that chosen position.
This process continues until the ball is holed. Scramble is popular for social and team events because everyone contributes and the group can keep moving at a good pace.
The organiser may set additional conditions, such as requiring a minimum number of tee shots from each player, so always check the competition rules.
A format in which one player competes against one other player, rather than playing as a team.
A form of scramble in which all team members play from the selected best position after each shot. Competition conditions often require a minimum number of tee shots from each player.
A team format in which each player plays their own ball and the best score for the side counts on each hole.
A format where your net score on each hole is compared with a fixed target, usually par. You win, halve or lose each hole.
A two-player team format. Both players tee off, play each other's ball for the next shot, then choose one ball and alternate shots from there.
A format played over several rounds in which your best score on each hole is kept to build one best composite round.
Officially Four-Ball: two partners form a side and each plays their own ball. The side's score for a hole is the lower score of the two partners. It can be played as match play or stroke play.
Two partners form one side and play one ball in alternating order. They also alternate which partner tees off from hole to hole. This format is also called Alternate Shot.
Both partners tee off, choose the preferred ball and then play alternate shots with that ball.
A team format in which everyone tees off, the team selects the preferred position and every team member plays the next shot from there. The process is repeated until the hole is completed. Scramble is not a separate official format under the Rules of Golf, so the organizer sets the detailed conditions.
A match or competition in which one golfer plays individually against another golfer or the field.
A common form of Scramble in which all team members tee off, select the best ball and continue from there; additional conditions often require a minimum number of tee shots from each player.
Golf has a lot of jargon. Use this glossary as a quick reference while reading the rest of the site.
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