Ask Mike: Bogeys and birdies and eagles, oh my!
Hey Guys,
I can’t golf my way out of a paper bag, but I do enjoy watching the pros do their thing at The Masters. The tournament is in full swing (pun unintended), and there are sure to be plenty of birdies and bogeys and maybe an eagle or two. I got to wondering — how did these terms originate? Why is a birdie called, well, a birdie?
Fortunately, I didn’t have to go far to find out. The United States Golf Association hosts an excellent FAQ. Apparently, the term “birdie,” which means ‘one under par,’ originated in 1899. A group was playing at the Atlantic City country club. One of the players hit a ball within six inches of the cup. He said, “That was a bird of a shot… I suggest that when one of us plays a hole in one under par he receives double compensation.” The others agreed, and the birdie was born.
But what of the bogey (aka the “anti-birdie”)? Does it have a similar origin? Again, according to the USGA, the term came from an 1890s song called “The Bogey Man.” Apparently, the character in the song was “an elusive figure who hid in the shadows.” Originally, the term “bogey score” meant “the ideal score a good player could be expected to make on a hole under perfect conditions.” Several years later, the “par” concept took over. Par was then used for a good score, and bogey “was applied to the higher score recreational golfers might expect to achieve.”
Of course, golf has all kinds of interesting traditions, many of which have interesting histories. Ask Yahoo! explains why golf course have 18 holes and about.com gets to the bottom of the always controversial “mulligan.” Got a links-related question of your own? Please leave a comment below.
Thanks for reading,
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interesting, though it’ll never help me……
I enjoy watching also. When they say “these guys are good” they are not kidding. I saw Tiger in person once. He stepped onto the tee of a dogleg par 5 and hit an incredible drive. It went straight out for 100 yards, started climbing like a rocket, turned left at the dogleg like it had eyes, and ended up in the middle of the fairway with a short iron shot to the green. That’s not golf. That’s magic. Unbelievable.
hey, great little bit of golf trivia that is always good to hear about if you like the game. To Sarah, glad u found it interesting and if u like golf that would be expected. If u don’t, I’m not sure why u would have read the answer or responded. If u do play the game, what could “help you” would be to know that the bogey was considered “The ideal score a good player could be expected to make on a hole under perfect conditions”. I don’t know about you but that helps build my confidence a little, hope it does urs. Bogey golf is good golf!!!
Ah, the Masters, bringer of Spring Break and lots of traffic…but I have to admit, I can’t resist watching it on tv and at leasttrying to understand all the term…my dad never could explain why “birdie” and “bogey”…good to know!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Par_(score)#Condor
this looks like it’ll cover what you’re looking for.
You know…the first time I tried to hit a golf ball I completely missed. The second time…the club left my hands and narrowly missed the instructor’s head. I really have no idea how Woods does his thing…
help me do you know the answer?
Perhaps, this is why I only aspire to “bogey golf”. I am simply a recreational golfer, and breaking 90 is a good day for me! Ha!
Am I the only one who thinks it is stupid to come on this site to be told go to another site to see the meaning of a term(about.com explains the mulligan) why not just tell me the meaning.
I love golfing but I don’t play enough to actually get good at it.