Golf’s strangest jargon and terminology - why is a 7&6 win called a dog licence?
For the casual fan tuning into watch the Ryder Cup or one of golf's four major championships, the sport's laborious rules and curious language can be daunting.
Fear not. We have assembled a glossary of golfing jargon, slang and mid-Atlantic coinages so that you can spend the next few days genning up for the big event.
The list is by no means exhaustive, and remains open to new entries, and we trust that you know the basics like what a seven-iron and bunker are.
Read to the end, and you shall be a master of water-cooler Ryder Cup conversation.
Ace
Another term for a hole-in-one. Paul Casey at the K Club in 2006 and Howard Clark at Oak Hill in 1995 are famous Ryder Cup holes in one.
Anchoring
An outlawed practice since January 2016: wedging the butt of a longer than standard putter into the body to aid a more stable stroke. Long putters are still permitted, but players must not 'anchor' the club into their belly, sternum or chin a la Sam Torrance in days of old. Resting the putter against the inside of the forearm, as American Bryson DeChambeau does, is still allowed.
Break
The amount a putt curves to the left or right depending on the contours of a green. The grain - the direction grass grows on a green - may also play a part in determining the speed of a putt.
Captain's pick
Players who have not qualified for the Ryder Cup team based on points, but are selected by the captain.
Carry
The distance the ball travels in the air. When a green is guarded by a bunker or water in front, players are forced to carry the ball all the way rather than run or bounce it towards the target.
Dance floor
A colloquialism, popular in America, for the green.
Dog leg
A golf hole that curves to the left or right between tee and green.
Dog licence
A colloquialism, originating in the UK, for the resounding matchplay winning margin of 7&6 (winning with six holes to spare). So called because a dog licence used to cost seven shillings and sixpence, seven and six, before decimalisation in 1971.
The analogy does not continue to lesser margins of victory: 5&4 is not called a gerbil licence.
Dormie
The point in matchplay when a player leads by the same number of holes that remain - ergo, they cannot lose. A player two-up walking off the 16th green is said to be dormie two. Their opponent must win the last two holes to halve the contest.
Double cross
When a player tries to hit a fade or draw (see below) but the ball curves in the exact opposite direction to what they intend. Usually spells trouble.
Draw
A shot that curves from right to left in the air for the right-handed golfer; left to right for the left-hander. Goes further than a dead straight shot because the curve is caused by topspin. Think of a forehand in tennis or an in-swinging corner in football. Useful for getting at pins on the left of greens.
Fade
A shot that curves from left to right in the air for the right-handed golfer; right to left for the left-hander. The ball flies shorter than a dead straight shot because the curve is caused by back-spin. Think of a backhand slice in tennis or striking a football with the outside of your foot. Useful for getting at pins on the right of greens.
For those fond of rhyming slang: known in some schools as a Virginia Wade.
Fat
A mis-struck shot caused by the club hitting the turf before the ball, causing the shot to come up short. Also known as a chunk. Fat chip shots around the green are sometimes called chilli dips on the other side of the Atlantic.
Flop
A.K.A trademark Phil Mickelson. A high, soft-landing pitch shot played with the loftiest wedge in the bag, that travels a short distance and stops quickly. Players are forced to play this risky shot when they short side (see below) themselves.
Flyer
A shot from rough the flies further than usual with no spin due to grass being caught between the club and ball. Golfers will sometimes play for a flyer by taking less club - shots from rough will run out more due to a lack of backspin.
Free drop
When a player gets to move his ball away from an impediment without penalty. Usually, the impediment is a man-made object that is not an integral part of the course, such as a grandstand or TV tower.
Fried egg
A ball that plugs, or half-buries, in a bunker. Usually the result of a shot that plummets into the trap from a great height.
Fourball
The form of pairs matchplay where each of the four players use their own ball, with the lowest score winning the hole for their team. There are eight four-ball matches at the Ryder Cup - four on Friday and four on Saturday.
Known in America as better ball.
Foursomes
The form of pairs matchplay where each team play one ball and take each shot alternately. There are eight foursomes matches at the Ryder Cup - four on Friday and four on Saturday.
Known in America as alternate shot.
Fourteen and a half
The magical points tally required to win the Ryder Cup. Holders require 14 points to retain.
Gimme
A putt so close to the hole that the opposition concede or 'give' it, meaning the player can pick his ball up. Gimmes can be used strategically - players will sometimes give a series of putts before making their opponent knock one in unexpectedly to try and unsettle them.
Only a feature in matchplay.
Good-bad one
A poorly executed shot with a fantastic result - for instance, an iron shot that kicks off a bank adjacent to the green and bounces to within a few feet of the hole.
Green in regulation
Finding the green in one on a par three, two or better on a par four, or three or better on a par-five. Percentage of greens found in regulation is a popular statistic to measure ball-striking.
Ham and egging
A colloquialism, originating in the UK, to describe two players who gel well and compliment each other in fourballs, so much so that they go together like ham and eggs.
More specifically, ham and egging is when one player in a pair excels whenever the other mucks up and vica versa, therefore keeping their team alive in each hole.
Heel
The section of the club face closest to the shaft. Shots out of the heel are mis-hits that will not travel as far, and players will complain of catching one out of the neck.
(The) honour
The player or pairing who won the previous hole have the honour on the next tee, meaning they tee off first. If the hole was halved, the player or pair who won the last hole that was one tee off first.
Mid-hole, the player furthest from the flag plays first. However, in fourballs, sometimes a pair will let the player closest to the hole putt first for tactical reasons.
Hook
An exaggerated draw that dives sharply to the left and into trouble. A horror shot that all pros look to avoid.
Lag
A putt from long range that the player is hoping to get within gimme range, or in the dustbin lid (an imaginary two-circle around the hole).
Lay up
When a player decides against taking on a riskier shot at the green, and instead plays short to leave himself a wedge in. Usually this decision comes around over second shots on par-fives, and more ocassionaly on the tee of short par fours.
Lip out
A putt that looks like it is going in, but catches the hole and bounces out. The cruelest form of the lip out is the horseshoe or 360, when the ball runs all the way around the rim of the cup.
Matchplay
The form of the game played at the Ryder Cup, played by holes and not by cumulative score. Rather than playing the course as in typical strokeplay tournaments, players or pairs are playing against each other.
The player or pair with the lowest score win the hole - should this happen on the first hole they go one-up. Should their opponents win the second, the match goes back to all-square are so on.
The match is won when one player or pair builds an unassailable lead: three up with two to play for instance, which would be a 3&2 victory.
Member's bounce
A fortuitous bounce of the ball, or rub of the green, away from trouble back into play.
Military golf
A player struggling to control their driving who is errant from the tee: left, right, left, right....
Mud ball
A ball that has a chunk of mud stuck to one side of it, making its trajectory unpredictable. Players hate mud balls.
One of those
A short putt a player really should make, but one a little outside of gimme range. Sometimes called a knee knocker.
Also known as a Dennis Wise or a Joe Pesci: a nasty five-footer.
OB
The abbreviation for Out of Bounds, the golfing no-mans land usually marked out by white stakes or a white line. Any shots that fly out of bounds must be re-played from their original position under a one-shot penalty.
Penalty drop
When a player is penalised one stroke for hitting his ball in a water hazard, into an unplayable lie or OB. When a player finds water, he can either hit his next shot from the same position or take a drop from where his ball last crossed dry land, keeping the hazard between him and the hole. Alternatively, there may be a designated drop zone to play from.
A little complicated this one, but all you need to remember is if you see a player dropping his ball, that effectively counts as a shot. Unless it is a free drop (see above).
Pin position
Where the hole is cut on the green. Known in America as the hole location.
Pin sheet
Each player and caddie will get one of these before the round, which tells them the pin position on each hole. There will be a vertical and horizontal measurement, in yards or metres depending on the part of the world. For example, you will hear holes described as being 18 on and six from the left. That means it is 18 paces from the front of the green and six paces from the left edge.
Provisional
Players who fear their ball may be lost off the tee, can play a provisional, just in case it does turn out to be lost. They will then play their provisional, saving them the walk back to the tee. Remember though, they will now be playing their fourth short.
Preferred lies
If there has been heavy rain and the fairways are boggy, players are permitted to mark, lift, clean and place their ball. Only if they are in the fairway, of course.
Punch
A shot designed to fly low and under the wind, and a player will use less wrist action to reduce backspin. Also known as a knock down shot. Players playing a punch shot will often abbreviate their follow through, meaning the club does not fly through to around neck high as normal.
When Tiger Woods hits this shot with a long-iron, he calls it a stinger.
Rookie
A player in their first Ryder Cup.
Short-sided
A player is short-sided when they miss a green on the same side the hole is cut, leaving them no room to work with. Professionals constantly talk about the importance of missing on the right side, meaning the opposite side to where the whole is cut.
Starter
The gentleman on the first tee who announces the players: "On the tee from the United States...Tiger Woods!"
Unfortunately, legendary European Tour starter Ivor Robson - with his voice like a silver trumpet - has now retired.
Singles
The format of Ryder Cup Sundays, when instead of playing in pairs the 12 members of each team face each other on a head-to-head basis. Historically, this format is America's strong suit.
Slice
An exaggerated fade that bananas sharply to the right and into trouble. A horror shot all too familiar to the casual golfer.
Stimpmeter
A device used to measure the speed of the greens. A few golf balls are rolled off a mini-ramp on a flat portion of green, and the average distance they roll out in feet and inches denotes the speed of the greens. If the ball releases 12 feet, the greens are said to be running at 12 on the stimp.
The fastest greens in golf, such as those at Augusta National, can run upwards on 13. Greens on the European Tour tend to run closer to 10, and Europe often look to maximise home advantage by keeping the greens slower that the Americans are used to.
Shank
Golf's version of the Scottish Play, some players can barely bring themselves to say the word out loud.
A shot that careers off to the right, almost at a right angle, because the ball catches the hosel of the club - the bit where the shaft meets the club face close to the heel.
The hosel is sometimes known as the socket.
Texas wedge
A colloquialism for the putter. So called, because putting from off the green can be a canny ploy in the gusty conditions frequently encountered in the Lone Star State.
Thin
A mis-hit caused by catching the equator of the ball with the bottom few groves of the club face, often called slapping or skimming it. Instead of flying high and true, the ball will come out low with no spin.
For those fond of rhyming slang: known in some schools as catching one a bit Vera Lynn.
Not always fatal, the thinned shot is a frequent source of the good-bad one (see above).
Toe
The bit of the club face furthest from the shaft. Shots out of the toe are mis-hits and will fly shorter than a flush strike.
The turn
A loosely defined term for the section of the golf course around the end of the front nine and start of the back. Older golf courses were often designed with an out and back layout, with a front nine heading straight out from the club house to the furthest point and the back nice coming straight back.
Up and down
Getting the ball in the hole in two shots after missing the green. The ability to do so is known as scrambling.
Yips
A haunting affliction, when the golfer loses control of their hands and the club, twitching through impact. Most common in putting, and the reason many switch to the long putter or use unorthodox grips. Le Golf National should be a yip free zone.
