I recently wrote a column entitled “Have I told you about my eagle?" A well-intentioned friend who is utterly clueless about golf, responded, “How nice for you!........... What's an "eagle"?"
It occurs to me that there might be a few other people in the world who would be benefit from my reply. First the basics:
Par = What you're supposed to get on a hole
Birdie = One less than par
Eagle = Two less than par
Albatross (aka Double Eagle) = Three less than par
Then there's the downside of golf scores:
Bogey = One more than par
Double Bogey = Two more than par
Triple Bogey = Three more than par
Snowman = Eight (get it?)
BIPLOI = Ball in Pocket, Loss of Interest
Double Par is self explanatory
"Just shoot me" is whatever tips you over the edge
Some background:
What you're supposed to get on a hole assumes two putts once you've reached the green. The rest of the shots are what it should take a pretty good golfer to reach the green. Let's start with shorter holes -- the par threes: A good golfer should be able to land the ball on the green if it's less than, say, 250 yards away. Personally I don't hit the green very often if they're more than about 180 yards away. But I've certainly played courses with 250 yard par 3s. An eagle on a par 3 is a hole in one. The odds of hitting a hole in one are about 13,000 to 1 against. Birdies on par 3s reflect either 1) really good iron play (you hit your tee shot close to the pin), 2) really good putting ('cuz you didn't need the normal two putts to reach the hole), or 3) really good luck.
A par 4 is a hole in which a pretty good player should be able to reach the green in two shots, and then make two putts. Distance wise, they range from 280 yards all the way to 500 yards. (Some of the par 4s on the Tour can be even longer.) The longest par 4 on the local city course is about 430. An eagle on a par 4 basically means either 1) You're a gorilla and managed to hit your tee shot all the way to the green and then make a single putt, or 2) You got really lucky and managed to hole out your approach shot. I've done this twice, both on the same hole over at the local city course -- #4, a short 360 yard hole. The first time was with a high soft shot from 130 yards from the right rough, over a tree. The second time was a low bump-and-run from the left side of the fairway about 60 yards out.
A par 5 is a hole in which a pretty good player should be able to reach the green in three shots, followed by two putts. Par 5s can range from 470 yards (there's one that short on one of the local courses here) up to around 650 (700 on high-altitude courses). Birdies and eagles are probably more common on par 5s than on the shorter holes because two really excellent shots can sometimes reach the green, leaving you one putt for an eagle (this was what I did at Pole Creek), and two putts for a birdie. An albatross (or double eagle) basically means holing your approach shot on a par 5. The most famous double eagle was made by Gene Sarazen in 1935, which projected him into a tie for first at the Master's. He won the playoff the next day. The sportswriters of the day termed it "the shot heard 'round the world". Chip Beck, a more recent touring pro, made a double-eagle hole-in-one on the par 4 ninth at the Omaha Classic, a Nationwide Tour event, in 2003. Odds of making a double eagle are around 1,000,000 to 1.
Ya gotta be careful what you ask!
