Golf Glossary

Advanced and Basic Golf Terms and their Meanings

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by Brent Kelley
Brent Kelley is an award-winning sports journalist and golf expert with over 30 years in print and online journalism.
Updated May 24, 2019

Welcome to the Golf Glossary. Here you'll find common (and some uncommon) golf terms and their definitions.

Golf Glossary Categories

One way to utilize this Golf Glossary is to browse several categories of similar or related golf terms. Click into one of the following categories to browse:

Golf Equipment Terms
This glossary category gathers terms relating to golf equipment, such as bounce angle, cavity back, forgiveness, launch angle, toe-balanced and many more.

Golf Tournament Formats and Betting Games
Do you know your scramble from a shamble? What is Bingo, Bango Bongo? Or best ball, Chapman System, money ball or Peoria System? This section of the Golf Glossary provides explanations of popular golf tournament formats along with betting games or side games that groups of golfers often play.

Golf Course Terms
On this page you'll find terms related to golf courses - features of courses (architectural terms), definitions related to golf course setup and maintenance.

Golf Slang
This is a fun category, with definitions of golf slang terms and expressions. Do you know your chicken stick from a foot wedge? How about Army golf or banana ball?

Golf Glossary: The Full List of Terms and Definitions

If you are looking for the definition of a specific term, browse the following long list. If the word or term appears as a link, then click that link for a detailed definition of the term and explanation of meanings. (Note: If a word appears and is not linked, its definition will be added soon.)