Definitions

Below are some useful definitions:



Addressing the Ball - Taking your stance and grounding the club, except that in a water hazard a player simply addresses the ball by taking a stance

Advice - Any suggestion that could influence the way you hit a shot or choose a club

Air shot - Striking at the ball intentionally and missing it. It is counted as one shot

Birdie - Scoring one under par

Bogey - Scoring one over par

Bunker - Sand trap on the course, could be green side or in the fairway

Carry - The distance your ball carries in the air before landing

Casual Water - A temporary accumulation of water on the course where you may take a free drop

Chip - A short and low trajectory shot struck from near the green with a medium lofted club. Doesn’t travel very high or very far in the air and rolls a long way after landing on the green

Course - The whole area within which play is permitted

Divot - Turf that is removed from the ground when a player’s swing hits the grass

Dog-leg - A hole that does not follow a straight line from the tee to the green

Double Bogey - Scoring two over par

Draw - A shot that curves in slightly from right to left

Eagle - Scoring two under par

Etiquette - A specific code of behaviour expected of golfers in relation to the course and other players – see etiquette section

Fade - A ball that curves in slightly from left to right

Fairway - The grass between tee to green that is kept well mown.

Flagstick - Generally a pole and flag on the green to indicate the position of the cup

Fore - A warning shouted to alert other players that a ball in flight is heading in their direction

Fringe - Grass that outlines the green

Green - Closely mown grass we putt on

Gross - The actual number of strokes a player has taken before his handicap is deducted.



Grounding the Club - Touching the surface or ground with the sole of the club at address

Ground Under Repair (GUR) - A damaged area of the course in which you may take a free drop

Halved - A hole that each player or side in match competition has played in the same number of strokes. It means a tie, or one half a hole for either side.

Handicap - A number allotted to a player which reflects their ability or relative ability. It allows them to compete on an equal footing with other players

Hazard - In general use, any natural obstacles on the course, such as trees, ponds, ditches, bunkers etc, but more specifically by rule – bunkers and water hazards

Honour - The right to play from the teeing ground; determined by the lowest score on the previous hole or on the first tee by the flip of a coin

Hook - A ball that starts right of your target and curves left

Lateral Hazard - Water hazard that is generally to the side of the hole and your ball cannot be dropped behind it. Marked with red stakes or lines

Loft of the Club - The amount or degree of loft that is built into the clubface

Loose Impediment - Natural objects that are not fixed or growing, such as twigs, loose rocks, pine cones, leaves

Lost Ball - Any ball that cannot be found within 5 minutes of starting to look for it and wasn’t seen to go into a water hazard of any type.

Marker - Someone appointed to record the score.

Match Play - A form of competition in which each hole is a separate competition. The winner is determined by the number of holes won rather that the total score

Nett Score - A player’s score having subtracted the handicap from the gross or actual score

Obstruction - Anything artificial or man-made whether erected or left on the course, as well as artificially constructed roadways or paths

Out of Bounds (OOB) - Any areas outside the boundaries of the course in which play is prohibited, as defined by white stakes

Par - The allocated number of strokes given to each hole and the full round. Based on the length of the hole and allowing for two putts

Penalty Stroke - A stroke added to the score for an infraction of the rules

Pitch - A short lofted shot from around the green that goes high and doesn’t roll all that far after landing.

Plug Mark - An identification made by a ball landing on a green

Provisional Ball - Another ball that is played when you think your ball might have gone out of bounds or is lost

Pull - A ball that starts left of the target and stays left

Push - A ball that starts right of the target and stays right

Putt - A stroke played on or near the green to roll the ball along the ground, normally with a putter

Rough - Taller grass that lines the fairway

Rub of the Green - The occurrence of a ball that is in motion being deflected by an outside agency

Slice - A ball that starts left of your target and curves right

Stance - The position of the feet when addressing the ball

Stroke - The name given to each attempt to strike the ball

Stroke Play - Competition where only the gross and nett scores are counted. Winner is determined by the lowest score for each round

Take a Drop - The name given to the act of picking up the ball and dropping it in another spot in accordance with the rules

Tee Box - Starting place for the hole to be played

Through the Green - All of the area of the course with the exception of the teeing ground, the green and any hazard

Topped - A rolling or low bounding shot that is caused by striking the ball above the centre line

Water Hazard - Any sea, lake, pond, river, ditch, surface drainage ditch or other open water course (doesn’t have to contain water) Defined by yellow stakes or lines. (Stakes or lines are part of the hazard)

Wrong Ball - Any ball other than the ball in play, a provisional ball or in stroke play a second ball

Scoring

The idea of the game of golf is to send the ball from a starting place (the tee) swinging as many times as it takes you, until you get it to the green and into the hole or cup. The object of the game is to do this in as few strokes as possible. You count every swing, including penalty strokes and air shots.

Each hole has a number, or score listed for it, which is called Par. This is the standard of excellence golfers shoot for when they begin to play golf. Your scores may be much higher than par when you first start, but will go down as you practice and improve your skills. Depending on the length of a hole, a hole may be rated as Par 3, Par 4 or Par 5 and although you may not be shooting for par, you can use the Par standard to help measure your own skill on different holes.

Stableford points is a type of scoring where points are awarded at each hole as follows:

Nett bogey (one over par) – 1 point
Nett par – 2 points
Nett birdie (one under par) – 3 points
Nett eagle (two under par) – 4 points
Nett albatross (three under par) – 5 points
The winner is the competitor who scores the highest number of points.

Here is an example of a typical 18-hole scorecard, which covers scoring for different types of competition.



The hole number is self explanatory.

The column marked 'yards' represents the length of the hole.

The 'index' indicates the relative difficulty of each hole, with 1 generally being the hardest, (a player with a handicap of 18 will receive shots on 1-18, a handicap of 9 on 1-9 and so on).

The 'Par' column is the number of shots an expert aims to have for each hole and is usually determined by length.

When marking a scorecard, players swap scorecards, placing their own scores in the 'markers' column and the players scores for who they are marking in Column A. Most beginners will find that they score over Par at each hole, but set yourself targets against Par and you then have a score to beat next time.

Golfing Etiquette

Below is some basic information on Golfing Etiquette :

Golf is a quiet game - never shout, talk loudly or call out to friends on other holes. If you are too noisy you could distract other golfers and spoil their fun.

Stand quietly and safely away from the player swinging or putting.

No temper tantrums – just grin and bear it (always abide by the principle of fair play)

Step over others putting lines – don’t scuff the greens.

When looking for your ball you may take up to 5 minutes. If your group has slowed down allow the group behind to play through if there is enough space ahead.

Move off the green as soon as the last player holes out and record the scores on the next tee.

Watch your ball until it comes to rest, line it up with a reference point beyond it.

Repair all divots and ball marks, yours and others.

Club throwing, swearing, cheating and littering is unacceptable.
Take no more that one practice swing before your shot.

Put an identification mark on your ball.

You may carry up to 14 clubs in your bag.

Teeing ground – tee off between and not in front of the tee markers. You may tee off up to 2 club lengths behind the front line of the markers.

Do’s & Don’ts:

DO

Enjoy the game

Consider the enjoyment of others

Play without delay

Be ready to play when it is your shot

Allow others to play through if searching for a lost ball

Rake a bunker after playing from it

Repair divot holes and pitch marks

After use place rakes outside bunkers

DON’T

Behave in an unsportsmanlike manner, throw clubs or make unnecessary noise on the course

Play a shot until the group in front are out of range

Stand too close to a person playing the shot

Leave your bag in front of the green

Write down scores while on the green

Take more than one practice swing

Slide, drag feet or lean on putter or flagstick on the green