---
title: "Golf glossary: 90 terms explained in plain English"
description: "Birdie, slope, up and down, fade, mulligan, divot, tee time. The whole golf vocabulary organised by topic, with what each term actually means and when it is used."
url: https://www.teeup.es/en/blog/diccionario-del-golf
lang: en
updated: 2026-03-10
---

# Golf glossary: 90 terms explained in plain English

Published: 2026-03-10 · Reading time: 8 min

## Golf glossary

Golf has a vocabulary of its own, half English and half nineteenth-century Scots, which makes your first conversations on a course quietly bewildering.

Here it all is, organised by topic rather than alphabetically, so you can read it straight through and take away the whole picture.

---

### Scores on a hole

| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| **Par** | The reference score for the hole. There are par 3s, 4s and 5s |
| **Birdie** | One under par |
| **Eagle** | Two under par |
| **Albatross** | Three under par. Very rare |
| **Hole in one** | Holing your tee shot |
| **Bogey** | One over par |
| **Double bogey** | Two over |
| **Triple bogey** | Three over |
| **Gross** | Your actual strokes |
| **Net** | Your strokes minus your handicap |

"Net birdie" or "net par" applies the result to your handicap-adjusted par, not the hole's par. It is the basis of Stableford: [how to read a golf scorecard](/en/blog/leer-tarjeta-de-golf-y-stableford).

---

### Areas of the course

| Term | What it is |
|---|---|
| **Tee** | Where you start each hole |
| **Fairway** | The short grass between tee and green |
| **Rough** | The longer grass either side of the fairway |
| **Green** | The very short surface where the hole is |
| **Fringe / apron** | The ring of slightly longer grass around the green |
| **Bunker** | A hollow filled with sand |
| **Penalty area** | Water or other areas marked with red or yellow stakes |
| **Out of bounds (OB)** | Off the course, marked with white stakes |
| **Dogleg** | A hole that turns left or right |
| **Putting green** | The practice green |
| **Driving range** | The practice facility for full shots |

---

### The clubs

| Term | What it is |
|---|---|
| **Driver** | The longest club. For tee shots |
| **Wood** | Large-headed clubs for long shots. 3-wood, 5-wood... |
| **Hybrid** | A wood-iron cross. Replaces long irons |
| **Iron** | 3 through 9. The bulk of the bag |
| **Wedge** | High-loft irons: pitching, gap, sand, lob |
| **Putter** | The green club |
| **Loft** | The angle of the clubface |
| **Lie angle** | The angle between the shaft and the ground |
| **Flex** | How much the shaft bends. L, A, R, S, X |
| **Bounce** | The curve on a wedge sole that stops it digging in |
| **Grip** | The handle |
| **Grooves** | The lines on the face. They generate spin |

The practical detail is in [which golf clubs you actually need to start](/en/blog/que-palos-necesitas-para-empezar).

---

### The shots

| Term | What it is |
|---|---|
| **Drive** | The tee shot with a driver |
| **Approach** | The shot into the green |
| **Chip** | A short shot that flies little and rolls a lot |
| **Pitch** | A short shot that flies high and rolls little |
| **Putt** | A stroke on the green |
| **Lag putt** | A long putt aimed at leaving it close, not holing it |
| **Punch / knock-down** | A low-flying shot, useful in wind |
| **Flop** | A very high, short shot over an obstacle |
| **Up and down** | Saving par in two shots from off the green |
| **Green in regulation (GIR)** | Reaching the green in par minus two |

---

### Ball flights and misses

| Term | What it is |
|---|---|
| **Draw** | A gentle, controlled curve to the left (right-handers) |
| **Fade** | A gentle, controlled curve to the right |
| **Hook** | A sharp, uncontrolled curve to the left |
| **Slice** | A sharp, uncontrolled curve to the right |
| **Pull** | A ball that starts straight but left |
| **Push** | A ball that starts straight but right |
| **Thin / topped** | Striking the top of the ball. It scuttles along |
| **Fat** | Hitting the ground before the ball |
| **Divot** | The piece of turf the club takes |
| **Shank** | A strike off the hosel. The ball shoots right at almost a right angle |

The most searched of all has its own article: [how to fix a slice in golf](/en/blog/como-corregir-el-slice).

---

### Handicap and competition

| Term | What it is |
|---|---|
| **Handicap index** | Your official, single number |
| **Playing handicap** | The strokes you receive at a specific course and tee |
| **Slope** | How much harder a course is for an amateur than a scratch player. 113 is average |
| **Course rating** | The score a scratch player would shoot there |
| **Stroke index** | The 1-18 order in which handicap strokes are allocated |
| **Scratch** | A zero-handicap player |
| **Stableford** | A points format. 36 is playing to your handicap |
| **Stroke play** | Competition by total strokes |
| **Match play** | Competition by holes won |
| **Scramble** | Team format: you play the best ball |
| **Fourball** | Pairs, each their own ball, the better score counts |
| **Foursomes** | Pairs, one ball, alternate shots |
| **Greensomes** | Both tee off, best drive chosen, then alternate |
| **Score outside competition** | A casual round that still counts for handicap |

The formats are developed in [golf formats explained](/en/blog/modalidades-de-juego-golf).

---

### Rules

| Term | What it is |
|---|---|
| **Drop** | Releasing the ball from knee height to put it in play |
| **Relief area** | The area you may drop into |
| **Free relief** | Dropping with no penalty (path, sprinkler, temporary water) |
| **Stroke and distance** | A 1-stroke penalty plus returning to the previous spot |
| **Provisional** | A second ball played in case the first is lost |
| **Unplayable** | A voluntary declaration. 1 stroke and three options |
| **Loose impediment** | A stone, leaf or fallen branch that may be removed |
| **Marker** | The player who records your card |
| **Nearest point of relief** | The closest point free of interference |

The full procedure is in [how to take a drop in golf](/en/blog/como-dropar-en-golf).

---

### Etiquette and pace

| Term | What it is |
|---|---|
| **Fore** | The shout warning that a ball is heading towards someone |
| **Honour** | Who tees off first |
| **Ready golf** | Whoever is ready plays, not whoever is furthest away |
| **Letting through** | Allowing the group behind to pass |
| **Pitchmark** | The dent a ball leaves landing on a green |
| **Pitchmark repairer** | The tool that fixes it |
| **Raking** | Smoothing the bunker sand on your way out |
| **Marking your ball** | Noting its position on the green before lifting it |

---

### Everyday words on the course

| Term | What it is |
|---|---|
| **Tee time** | Your booked starting slot |
| **Green fee** | The price of a round as a non-member |
| **Reciprocity** | Preferential conditions agreed with a course |
| **Buggy** | A two-seat electric cart |
| **Trolley** | A cart to carry the bag, manual or electric |
| **Caddie** | Someone who carries your bag and advises |
| **Round** | A 9 or 18-hole circuit |
| **Mulligan** | Replaying a shot without counting it. **Not in the rules**: a social custom |
| **Gimme** | A short putt conceded by your partners. Also not a thing in stroke play |
| **Nineteenth hole** | The clubhouse bar |

---

### Five terms almost everyone uses wrongly

**(01) A hole's "handicap".** The 1-18 column on the card does not indicate absolute difficulty: it indicates the order of stroke allocation.

**(02) Chip and pitch.** Not synonyms. A chip flies little and runs; a pitch flies high and stops.

**(03) Slice and fade.** A fade is controlled and intended; a slice is not. The difference is degree.

**(04) "Ladies' tees".** Tees are distances, not categories. Women, seniors and any beginner use them.

**(05) Mulligan.** Not a rule, a courtesy among friends. In any competition it does not exist.

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### Frequently asked questions

**What is a birdie in golf?**
Finishing a hole one stroke under par.

**What does "fore" mean?**
The universal warning that a ball is heading towards someone. You shout it loudly.

**What is a green fee?**
What you pay to play a round at a course where you are not a member.

**What is the difference between gross and net?**
Gross is your actual strokes; net is gross minus your handicap.

**What is a course's slope?**
How much harder that course plays for an amateur than for a scratch player. The standard average is 113.

**What is a mulligan?**
Replaying a shot without counting it. It is not in the rules: it is a custom among friends.

**What is an "up and down"?**
Saving par in two shots from off the green: one to get close and one putt.

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With this vocabulary you can follow any conversation on a golf course without getting lost. The rest you learn by playing.

**Teeup** lets you book green fees at over 40 courses in Spain from your phone, plus a rules chatbot for the questions that come up as you go.

**Download the Teeup app** and book your next round.
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