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People who are just getting into golf might have a hard time getting used to certain scoring terms. When you hear people say things like “I managed to get a birdie,” you might be confused about what that means. Don’t worry about not knowing yet because it’s going to be simple to keep these terms straight in your head once you’ve learned about them. Read on to learn the definitions of certain golf scoring terms.
Par
You’ve probably heard the term par being thrown around a lot during golf games. This is the most basic term that you need to understand so that you can score your golf games. Each hole that you play has a par number associated with it. A hole that is said to be a par 3 should be completed within three shots to stay at par and par keeps your score at zero.
Birdie
The term birdie is the next one that you’ll want to become acquainted with. A birdie is scored when you finish a hole one shot under par. If you’re playing a par four hole, then you can get a birdie by finishing the hole in three shots. This will give you -1 to your score and that’s a very good thing.
Bogey
The dreaded bogey is something that you want to avoid, but you need to know about it all the same. A bogey is scored when you finish a hole above par. If you’re playing a par 4 hole, then taking five shots to complete that hole will be scored as a bogey. This gives you a +1 to your score for the hole and with practice, you’ll hopefully avoid getting too many of these.
Eagle
An eagle is something that you’ll have to work to get. To score an eagle on a hole, you’ll need to finish a hole two under par. So, on a five par hole, you’ll need to finish the hole in three shots to get the eagle. This will give you a -2 to your scorecard and you’ll also gain some bragging rights.
Double Bogey
Double bogeys are pretty easy to understand once you know how bogeys work. You will get a double bogey by being two shots above par. If you’re playing a par 3 and take five shots to finish it, then the double bogey is yours. You’ll have to add a dreaded +2 to your scorecard.