Golf Glossary

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Gameplay

Approach - A shot intended to land on the green.

Concede Hole - Stopping play on a hole and awarding it to an opponent. In WGT, players are able to concede holes in Match Play and Alternate Shot games.

Concede Putt - A putt that counts as made without being played, as decided by an opponent. In WGT, players have the ability to concede putts in Match Play and Alternate Shot games when opponents are on the green.

Dormie - In Match Play, when one player is winning by as many holes as there are left to play. For example, a player is 3-up with 3 holes left to play in the match.

Drive - Also known as the tee shot, this is the first shot of each hole from the tee box in Stroke Play games.

Gimmie - A putt that is counted as going in the hole without being played.

Green in Regulation - When a ball lands on the green with two strokes left to par, it is considered hit in regulation. For example, on a par 3 this would be the first stroke, on a par 4 this would be the second stroke, and on a par 5 this would be the third stroke. This is also represented as GIR.

Green Speed - A numerical value that represents how fast the ball will roll on the green.

Lie - How the ball rests on the ground. In WGT, this is especially important when the player is in the rough or bunker. If the ball is sunken into brush or sand, this is considered a "bad lie".

Lip Out - A putt that touches the edge of the hole and changes direction.

Mulligan - A retry or do-over. In WGT, players can use mulligans in single-player practice games.

Pick Up Ball - Ending the hole before finishing. In WGT, players can pick up the ball after a certain number of shots when playing Skins games to take themselves out of competition for that specific hole.

Scoring

Birdie - Scoring 1 under par. Scored as -1 or with a single circle around the stroke count on a scorecard.

Bogey - Scoring 1 over par. Scored as +1 or with a single square around the stroke count on a scorecard.

Double Bogey - Scoring 2 over par. Scored as +2 or with two squares around the stroke count on a scorecard.

Eagle - Scoring 2 under par. Scored as -2 or with two circles around the stroke count on a scorecard.

Hole in One - Hitting the ball into the cup on the first shot of the hole. This is scored as a 1 for the stroke count on the scorecard.

Par - The predetermined number of strokes required to complete a hole. This number is determined by the strokes needed to land the ball on the green and two putts to finish the hole. For example, on a par 4 the player would need to land the ball on the green in 2 strokes, and 2-putt the ball into the hole (this would score as a "4" on the scorecard). When a player "makes par", they have completed the hole with the same number of strokes as the predetermined number for that hole. Par scores as "E" (even) or the number of strokes in par.

Parts of the Course

Back 9 - The final 9 holes on an 18-hole course.

Brush - A rough surface, usually consisting of tall grass outside the fairway, that can be particularly tricky to hit a ball from.

Bunker - A sand surface on the course.

Fairway - The most ideal place to land the ball as a player moves toward the green. The grass is cut short and easier to hit from.

Fringe - The area directly surrounding the green. The grass on the fringe is cut higher than the green, and is more difficult to putt from.

Front 9 - The first 9 holes on an 18-hole course.

Green - The putting surface of finely cut grass surrounding the hole.

Hazard - An area of the course which provides a difficult obstacle. Bunkers and bodies of water are the most common hazards in golf.

Out of Bounds - Landing the ball out of the playable area. In WGT this is any place outside the map or into bodies of water. Hitting the ball out of bounds adds a one-stroke penalty to the player's score and requires the player to re-hit the shot.

Rough - All areas outside the fairway where the surface or grass is thicker, higher, or naturally growing.

Tee Box - The designated area where a player hits their first shot of the hole.

Shot Types

Chip - A short swing which causes the ball to fly briefly through the air before rolling the majority of the total shot distance.

Flop - A short but high loft shot that gets in the air quickly and lands softly. It is especially useful when a hazard lies between the ball and the hole.

Full - A swing that allows for maximum distance and preferred ball flight with each club.

Pitch - A short swing for a shot that travels about one-third of the distance in the air before bouncing and rolling.

Punch - A 3/4 length swing used to keep the ball low to the ground.

Putt - A stroke from the green or fringe in which the ball does not leave the ground. In WGT, a player can only putt with their putter.