Trevor Ng
Golf scoring introduces a colourful vocabulary to describe a player's performance relative to par. Par refers to the number of shots it should take a scratch golfer to hole out. The term is derived from the Latin word for equal or like. A score of one stroke under par on a hole is called a birdie, while two strokes under par is an eagle. Conversely, a score of one stroke over par is a bogey, and two strokes over par is a double bogey. These terms are widely recognised even outside the context of golf and add a layer of excitement and tradition to the game.
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What You'll Learn
'Par' is derived from the Latin word for 'equal'
Golf is a sport with a rich vocabulary of scoring terms, such as birdie, bogey, and par. Indeed, the term "par" is derived from the Latin word "par," which means "equal" or "like." The word was borrowed from the Latin "par" to refer to the ground score in golf, or the number of strokes a skilled golfer should ideally take at each hole.
The Latin root "par" is also the origin of the English word "equal." This root is also found in other languages, such as Middle Low German, Old Norse, Old Danish, Old French, and Spanish, all with the same meaning of "equal." The word "par" in Latin is also related to the Latin word "comparare," which means "to compare" or "to liken."
In golf, "par" refers to the expected number of strokes it should take a skilled golfer to complete a hole or a round. This is based on the length and difficulty of the hole or course. For example, a par-5 hole is expected to take five strokes for a skilled golfer to complete.
The term "par" was first used in golf in the late 19th century, and it has since become a widely recognized term in the English language beyond the context of golf. It is used to describe a standard or average, and can also be used figuratively to mean "fairly normal" or "what can be expected."
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'Birdie' is when a golfer scores one less stroke than par
Golf has a unique language of its own, with terms like birdie, bogey, eagle, albatross, and condor being used to describe a golfer's performance on a hole in relation to the hole's par. These terms are now widely recognized in the English language beyond the context of golf.
Birdie
A "birdie" is when a golfer scores one stroke fewer than the par for a hole. For example, on a par-5 hole, a birdie would be scored by completing the hole in 4 strokes. The term "birdie" comes from early 20th-century American slang, where "bird" meant something excellent. The September 1911 edition of Maclean's Magazine described a golf shot as a "bird" flying "straight down the course, about two hundred and fifteen yards." The Country Club in Atlantic City claims to have first used the term "birdie."
Par
The term "par" comes from the Latin word meaning "equal" or "like." It refers to the standard number of strokes that a skilled golfer should take to complete a hole. Par can also be used for multiple rounds of golf. In the PGA Tour, for example, tournaments are played over four days, with 18 holes played each day. On a par-72 golf course, the par for four rounds is 288.
Bogey
A "bogey" is when a golfer scores one stroke over par on a hole. For example, on a par-4 hole, a bogey would be scored by completing the hole in 5 strokes. The term "bogey" was first used in England at the end of the 19th century and was the initial stroke system. The term "ground score" was coined by Mr. Hugh Rotherham, the secretary of the Coventry Golf Club, to refer to the concept of standardizing the number of shots a skilled golfer should take per hole.
Eagle
An "eagle" is when a golfer scores two strokes fewer than par on a hole. For example, on a par-5 hole, an eagle would be scored by completing the hole in 3 strokes. The term "eagle" is a continuation of the bird theme for good scores, with the eagle being the national symbol of the United States.
Albatross or Double Eagle
An "albatross" or "double eagle" is when a golfer scores three strokes fewer than par on a hole. For example, on a par-5 hole, an albatross would be scored by completing the hole in 2 strokes. Albatross is a British term, while "double eagle" is commonly used in the United States. An albatross is a very rare achievement in golf, even rarer than scoring an eagle.
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'Bogey' is when a golfer scores one stroke over par
In golf, a bogey is when a golfer scores one stroke over par on a hole. For example, a golfer would score a bogey if they took 5 strokes to complete a par-4 hole. While a bogey is a bad result for a low-handicap or professional golfer, newer and less skilled golfers are often content with only needing one more stroke than par to complete a hole.
The term "bogey" was first used at the Great Yarmouth Golf Club in England around 1890, based on the phrase "bogey man" and a popular music hall song, "Here Comes the Bogey Man". Players competed against an imaginary player called Colonel Bogey, who scored a predetermined number of strokes on each hole. The winner of the competition was the player who had the best match-play score against Colonel Bogey. As golf became more standardised in the United States, par scores became stricter, and recreational golfers found themselves scoring over par. This led to the evolution of the term "bogey" to refer to a score of one-over-par.
The term "par" refers to the number of strokes an expert golfer is expected to need to complete the play of one hole on a golf course. Golf holes of different lengths will require more or fewer strokes by a golfer. The par number of a hole always allows for two putts. For example, a 150-yard hole is one on which the expert is expected to hit the green with their tee shot, take two putts, and therefore require three strokes to finish the hole.
The terms over par and under par describe a player's score relative to par. A score of "over par" means the player took more strokes than par, while a score of "under par" means the player took fewer strokes than par. For example, if a player took 4 strokes to complete a par-3, 6 strokes to complete a par-4, and 4 strokes to complete a par-5 hole, their score could be described as "two over par" or "+2". Conversely, a score of 2 strokes on a par-3 hole would be described as "one under par" or "-1", also known as a birdie.
In addition to bogey, there are other scoring terms in golf that describe a golfer's performance relative to the hole's par. For example, an eagle is a score of two strokes fewer than par, while an albatross or double eagle is a score of three strokes fewer than par. A condor is a rare score of four strokes fewer than par on an individual golf hole.
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'Eagle' is when a golfer scores two fewer strokes than par
In golf, scores are called by different names depending on the number of strokes played relative to the "par", or the number of strokes an expert golfer is expected to complete a hole in. An "eagle" is a golf score term used to describe when a golfer completes a hole in two fewer strokes than par. This is also known as being "2-under par".
For example, on a par-5 hole, a golfer will achieve par if they use 5 strokes. To achieve a birdie, they would need to use one fewer stroke, or 4 strokes in total. To achieve an eagle, the golfer would need to use two fewer strokes, or 3 strokes in total.
Eagles are most commonly achieved on par-5 holes by reaching the green in 2 strokes and then completing the hole with one putt. However, on par-4 holes, an eagle is a hole-in-one, which is when a golfer hits their ball from the tee-box so that it falls into the hole in just one stroke.
The term "eagle" is considered a more impressive achievement than a birdie and is associated with a sense of majesty in American culture. The concept of the eagle gained popularity after the birdie was introduced and became widely recognized.
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'Albatross' or 'Double Eagle' is when a golfer scores three fewer strokes than par
Golf is a game that comes with a lot of jargon. The most common terms used to describe a golfer's score in relation to a hole's par are "over par" and "under par". "Over par" is when a golfer has taken more strokes than par to complete a hole, while "under par" is when a golfer has taken fewer strokes than par.
However, there are several other terms used to describe a golfer's performance on a hole in relation to the hole's par. These include "birdie", "eagle", "albatross" or "double eagle", "condor", "hole-in-one", and "ace".
An albatross or double eagle is when a golfer completes a hole three strokes under par. This is considered an incredibly rare feat, with odds of about 6 million to 1. It is usually achieved by either scoring a hole-in-one on a par-4 hole or completing a par-5 hole in just two strokes.
The term albatross was first used in a 1929 Scottish newspaper, marking its official entry into golf vocabulary. The term double eagle, on the other hand, emerged in American golf circles during the 1910s and was used in a 1920 issue of The American Golfer magazine. The term albatross is more commonly used worldwide, but due to American cultural influence and the PGA Tour's prominent position in world golf, double eagle is becoming more popular.
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Frequently asked questions
Par is the amount of shots it should ideally take a scratch golfer to hole out. On a standard golf course, there are 18 holes with a mix of par 3s, par 4s, and par 5s.
"Over par" means a golfer's score is higher than the par for the hole, i.e., they took more strokes than expected. Conversely, "under par" means a golfer's score is lower than the par for the hole, i.e., they took fewer strokes than expected.
A "bogey" is a term used to describe a score of one stroke over par. The term originated from the song "The Bogey Man" in the early 1890s, referring to an elusive or unseen entity.
