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Birdies, Eagles, Albatrosses, Handicaps and Bogeys, are all terminology used in the age old sport of golf.
Golf has evolved over the years, with some speculating that it was first played by the Romans early in the first century BC, while other feel it was the Chinese that played it first between the 8th and 14th centuries, Wherever it came from, it has grown into probably the most popular game around.
Understanding golf can be very confusing, but really isn’t that complicated. Golf courses usually consist of 18 holes, with each hole having a "par" value. What this means, is that if a hole is a par 3, then the golfer has to try finish the hole with 3 strokes or less. Each stroke is given a name.
A Bogey, is when a golfer is playing a par 4 hole, and finishes with one stroke more than par. If he had 6 strokes, then this would be called a Double Bogey, 7 strokes would be called a Triple Bogey, and so forth.
A Birdie is when a golfer finishes the hole in one stroke under par.
An Eagle is when the hole is finished in 2 strokes or less than the par.
Below is a list of the various terminologies for the various values used in golf.
| Number of Strokes from Par | Term | Description |
|---|---|---|
| -5 | Ostrich | 5 strokes less than hole's par |
| -4 | Condor | 4 strokes less than hole's par |
| -3 | Albatros | 3 strokes less than hole's par |
| -2 | Eagle | 2 strokes less than hole's par |
| -1 | Birdie | 1 stroke less than hole's par |
| 0 | Par | Strokes equal to hole's par |
| 1 | Bogey | 1 stroke more than hole's par |
| 2 | Double Bogey | 2 strokes more than hole's par |
| 3 | Triple Bogey | 3 strokes more than hole's par |
| 4 | Quadruple Bogey | 4 strokes more than hole's par |
After a player finishes a particular round, he is then said to have completed the round at a certain amount under or over par. In other words, if the total of all the hole's pars is 70, and he finished the round at 65 (total of the strokes played), then the player is 5 under par. If however, he finished at a total of 74, then the player finished at 4 over par. The winner at then end of the day is the player that finishes the lowest under par for the tournament.
Some of the other terminologies include:
Tee
The area from where the first stroke is played (1)
Ladies' Tee
This is usually the tee that female players start playing from (2)
Hole in One
The player hit the ball into the hole with one shot from the tee
Golf Clubs
In layman's terms, the sticks that the players use to hit the ball with. The various types include irons, putters, woods, drivers and pitching wedges.
Golf Bag
Pretty self explanatory - The bag that contains all of the players golf clubs
Caddie
This is the person that assists the player by carrying his or her golf bag. Most professional players usually have a caddie that accompany them to all tournaments they participate in and depend on them for advice regarding play of the course.
Water Hazards
These are one type of traps that are placed on courses to make holes more difficult for players (6)
Bunker
No, this isn't a place where a golfer can hide if a bad player is playing close by, but another type of trap filled with loose sand that course designers add to hole to increase the difficulty (5)
Putting Green
This the area of grass found around the hole. This grass is usually cut very short so as to increase the rolling distance of the golf ball (4)
Fairway
This is the stretch of short grass between the tee and the putting green and is usually the best place to land the ball for the next stroke (3)
Rough
This is the area on the sides of the fairway where the grass is usually quite longer (7)
Some of the bets available on golf include but are not limited to:
Straight Up Bet
The most common type of bet. Punters place a wager on a specific player to win the tournament
Heads Up Bet
Many sportsbooks sometimes have a match up between two players to finish one ahead of the other. Punters place a wager on the specific order the player will finish
Prop Bets
These wagers are usually placed on which players will be in the lead after the first day, or which one will hit the most hole-in-ones, etc.
Future Bets
This wager is placed on which players will finish in the top five or ten
