This is a latest in a series of posts to help beginners understand the vocabulary of golf. Previously I covered ball flight patterns, club anatomy, and bad shots.

This time, I’m going to cover the golf course. We’ll cover everything you’re likely to see out there. I think you’ll be surprised at the length of this list by the time we reach the end. Golf seems like a simple game and in basic principle it is, but the fact that courses span nearly 200 acres or more means that there can be a lot going on out there.

The Happy Path

• Teeing Ground - This is where it all begins. Also called the tee box or just the tee, it’s the start of every hole. Sometimes there are multiple tees on each hole. Typically, the grass on the tee box is fairly short.
• Fairway - After you tee off, the fairway is where you want to be. Sometimes referred to as the short grass. Fairways are always present on par fours and fives, but par threes may or may not have a fairway.
• Putting Green - The part of the course that contains the hole, your ultimate goal. Greens have the shortest grass on the course and are often rolled so the grass lays flat. This is where you finally get to putt. The hole contains a plastic liner, called a cup. The hole is also marked with a flag stick, also called a pin, that shows the location of the hole from a distance. The pin usually has a flag at the top, but sometimes there are other items like little wicker baskets or other decorative things.

The good news is, if you play a perfect round of golf, that’s all you need to know. There’s nothing else to worry about. The bad news is, a perfect round of golf is extremely rare. Let’s take a look at what’s waiting off the beaten path.

The Not So Happy Path

So you didn’t hit all perfect shots in your round? Then you probably encountered some or all of these things.

• Rough - The rough is a section of higher grass, covering the places off the happy path. Typically, it rings the fairways, greens, and tees. It can range from an inch or two up through almost a foot in height. Sometimes courses have several rough types. For instance, they might keep a strip of rough around the fairway, called the first cut of rough, at a lower height. Then, there may be a second cut of rough that’s much higher. At my home course, the first cut is a few inches in height, but the second cut really isn’t cut at all. It’s left to grow wild all year long and some of the grasses can reach above knee high.
• Bunkers - Most courses have hazards filled with sand in different spots throughout the holes. They’re also referred to as sand traps. Sometimes they’re found along (or in) fairways and are called fairway bunkers. They may be around greens, and called green side bunkers. A pot bunker is a kind of bunker that is usually somewhat small, but very deep.
• Waste Area - This is a sand or gravel filled area, similar to a bunker. The difference is, it is not considered to be a hazard. Therefore, you can ground your club in a waste area.
• Water Hazards - According to the rules, a water hazard is any sea, lake, pond, river, ditch, surface drainage ditch or other open water course (whether or not containing water) and anything of a similar nature on the course. Sometimes, when it’s not feasible to drop behind a water hazard in accordance with the rules, a water hazard is deemed to be a lateral water hazard.
• Casual Water - Water on a course that is not considered to be a hazard. For instance, standing water after rain. You are entitled to relief from casual water.
• Fringe - Also called the apron, the fringe is the narrow strip around the edge of the green, between the green and the rough. Typically, it is about one pace wide (or maybe slightly more) and is mowed to the same height as the fairway. In the past, I’ve also used the word collar interchangeably, but I’ve read that the collar can actually refer to a collar of rough around the fringe. The fringe is mowed to fairway height, but a collar may not be. The apron starts where the fairway narrows down and meets the green. I’ve also heard the term approach for those spots.
• Integral Part of the Course - These are features that are not natural, but that are treated as if they were. For instance, this might include a retaining wall in a bunker or in some other location. No relief is given for interference from these features.

Stakes and Markers

There are a bunch of possible stakes and markers on a course that carry different meanings. Let’s take a look at those.

• On the tees, you’ll find the tee markers. These tell you where you can hit from. You can hit anywhere between them and up to two club lengths behind. Tee markers can range from anything including signs, rocks, pieces of wood, or other more decorative things.
• Water hazards are lined with yellow stakes.
• Lateral hazards are lined with red stakes.
• Yardage Markers - Many courses have yardages printed on sprinkler heads, but also have stakes or markers that show yardages. There may be small stakes or embedded markers in the middle of the fairway, or there may be stakes on either side. Usually, the yardage is denoted by color. I’m not sure this is universal, but at courses I’ve played around here, red stakes denote 100 yards, white stakes are 150 yards, blue stakes are 200 yards, and yellow stakes are 250 yards.
• White Stakes or Fences - When not indicating yardage, white stakes determine out of bounds lines. Many times, courses declare adjacent properties to be out of bounds, to keep players from playing on other people’s property. However, courses may choose to define locations out of bounds internal to the course. They might do this to keep players from playing through another hole that gives an easier angle to their own green (I’ve seen this happen). Sometimes though, there seems to be no reason for it, and I’m not a big fan of those times.
• Directional Flags - Some courses use directional flags to indicate that the hole changes direction, to help players when playing blind shots. They can be similar to flags on greens, but are usually different colors. I don’t seem to see these as much anymore. I think because they can be confusing and players may play to them thinking that’s where the hole is.
• Red Stakes with Green Tops - These denote environmentally sensitive lateral hazards. You usually have the option of playing from a hazard, but in these cases, you must take mandatory relief and not enter the area. Sensitive areas may also be outlined by green stakes, and are usually clearly marked by signs.
• Blue stakes - I’ve read that these may be used to outline ground under repair, but I’ve always seen ropes or even signs used in those spots. White lines also outline these areas.
• Drop Area - Sometimes a course or a tournament committee wishes to specify a drop area for balls hit into a hazard. These areas are often denoted by a white line. Many times there will be a sign as well.

Common Obstructions

Courses have some unnatural features that are considered obstructions and entitle you to relief. These include:

• Signs - For instance, tee signs or cart traffic signs.
• Ropes - Mostly used to guide cart traffic.
• Fences that are NOT used to define out of bounds margins.
• Artificially Surfaced Roads and Paths - Typically cart paths and parking lots. Artificially surfaced can mean asphalt, concrete, gravel, wood chips, or anything that has been applied to the path.

Some Other Features

• Collection Areas - These are mostly found near greens. They’re low lying locations where water is meant to drain as it flows away from the green. There might be a drainage grate at the bottom where the water is collected.
• Irrigation Heads, Control Boxes, and Pumps - These are what keep the course green. The sprinklers are usually flush to the ground when they’re not applying water. The control boxes and pumps are usually in out of the way places. These items are played as obstructions.
• Mounds - Areas of raised ground, usually created and not natural. Many times, greens are raised above the natural contour of the land, and may be encircled with mounds covered with rough. Sometimes there may be mounds along fairways that sometimes are meant to add to the challenge and sometimes are meant to provide a barrier between holes.

See? I told you the list would be long. That covers just about everything you’ll encounter on the course.

If I forgot anything, let me know!

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