FAQ

Whatever you would like to know about golf holidays in Austria, please ask us. The Golf in Austria holiday advisors will be happy to answer your questions on the phone: +43 662 645153 or by e-mail: office@golfinfo.at!

My golf holiday in Austria
What is so special about a golf holiday in Austria?

• Many different golf courses to choose from in a relatively small area.
• Warm and professional hospitality in the Golf in Austria hotels.
• Golf courses with a high standard of care, beautifully integrated into nature.
• Instead of being isolated in a resort, you will get to know the country and its people, Austrian customs, culinary delights and modern cultural facilities during your flexible golf excursions.
• The Golf in Austria resorts are located in attractive holiday regions with a large number of additional leisure activities.
• Every Golf in Austria hotel fulfils quality criteria in order to offer the perfect golf services.
• Every golf course at Golf in Austria fulfils quality criteria in order to welcome guest players.

Albatross
Playing a hole in three strokes under par (usually only occurs on par-5 holes).

Ace/Ace
Also known as a hole in one, the greatest stroke of luck is when the first shot hits the hole on a par 3.

Bag/golf bag
This is where the clubs and equipment for the round of golf are kept. Every golfer prefers to play with their own equipment. Safe storage is very important for every guest.

Birdie
Playing a hole with one stroke under par.

Bogey
Playing a hole with one stroke over par.

Bunker
An obstacle filled with sand on the fairway and especially around the green. There are also grass bunkers, pits with mostly high, dense grass instead of sand.

Caddie
A person who carries a player's clubs during a round of golf. The bag carrier, usually the tour professional's constant companion, advises on club selection and helps with green reading. Caddie also means golf trolley, see also trolley.

Carry
The pure flight distance of a ball without the rolled distance.

Cavity back
The hollowed-out back of the club head. This design moves the club mass to the outside of the club head, which gives it better stability in the event of poorly hit balls and, positively, gives the club face consistent strength over the entire surface.

Chip
Short and flat approach shot to the green.

Chipping green
Practice green for practising chip shots in various positions and distances or for warming up before a round.

Club
Term for golf clubs and for an association for golfers. Golfers must be registered in a club in order to be allowed to play at most golf courses in German-speaking countries.

Course rating
The difficulty of a course is determined in the course rating so that the exact handicap can be calculated for the respective handicap.

Dimple
Round indentation in the surface of the golf ball. The up to 500 small dimples in the outer skin of the golf ball are used for lift and flight. The deeper the dimples, the flatter the flight curve.

Divot
Piece of turf that the golfer knocks out of the ground when hitting the ball. Not a bad habit, but a must in order to give the ball backspin. The divot must be put back on the spot.

Draw
A shot in which the ball describes a slight curve in the air from right to left (for right-handers). Too much draw is called a hook.

Drive
Shot from the tee zone. The ball should travel as far as possible.

Driving range
Practice area for beginners and professionals to practise and warm up before the round.

Eagle
Playing a hole with two strokes under par.

Honour
The player with the lower handicap (the winner of the draw etc.) may tee off on the first hole, "he has the honour".

Etiquette
Rules of behaviour for golfers. Defined in the Rules of Golf by the Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews, which also lays down all the rules of golf.

Fade
Shot in which the ball describes a slight curve in the air from left to right (for right-handers). Too much fade is called a slice.

Fore
A warning call on the golf course when other players are in danger from a ball that has gone off course.

Fairway
Short mown fairway between tee and green, where the ball usually has a good playing position.

Flight
2, 3 or 4 players colloquially form a flight on the round. The correct term would be "group of players".

Girlie also known as lady's litre or lady
A tee shot that does not make it past the ladies' tee and costs the player who made it a round of drinks for their flight partners.

Green fee
Fee to be allowed to play on a foreign course. Most golf courses in Austria also require their guests to present a club card with proof of handicap or course authorisation.

Handicap
Standard that expresses the playing strength of an amateur golfer. A player with a handicap of 36 (the highest possible) may play a course with an SSS of 72 in 108 strokes and is then just as good as a player with a handicap of 20 who plays the course in 92 strokes. A handicap is acquired in so-called handicap tournaments.

Hole in One
..see "Ace"

Cannon start
In this tournament, the participants are distributed over all the fairways and start simultaneously from all tees after a cannon shot.

Lie
Angle between the shaft and the lower edge of the club head (tall players have a steeper lie, short players a flatter lie).

Hole
This is also the name given to the fairway. The target of all golfers has a diameter of 10.8 cm. The hole insert (cup) for the flag must be at least 2 ½ cm below the green surface. The hole is repositioned daily on many courses because the grass around it is quickly worn down.

Hole competition
In this game format, only the holes won are counted, not the individual strokes. Whoever has won the most holes at the end is the winner.

Longest drive
Special scoring at tournaments or a special competition in which the aim is to hit as far as possible from the tee onto the fairway.

Loft
The inclination of the clubface to the vertical. The driver has the lowest loft (between eight and twelve degrees), the sand wedge the highest (up to 62 degrees).

Nearest to the pin
Special scoring in tournaments, like longest drive. The player whose first shot lands closest to the flag on the predetermined par 3 wins a special prize.

Open tournament
Members of other clubs can also play.

Par
The number of strokes a player should ideally need for a hole (or for a course). There are par 3, par 4 and par 5 holes on a course, for which you may need three, four or five strokes. The par of a hole depends on its length.

Pin
A stick to which the flag is attached, which indicates the position of the hole on the green. English term for flag.

Pitch
Short and high approach shot to the green.

Pitch marker
The hole on the green caused by a high approach shot. This must be repaired and levelled to prevent damage/disease to the turf.

Pitch fork
The depth of the ball's impact on the green is repaired with the aid of a pitch fork.

Pitching green
Practice green to practise from different distances or to warm up before a round of golf.

Pitch and put course
So-called short courses on which the short game is practised.

Course licence (PE)
Also called course licence. The PE is issued by the golf instructor or a member of the playing committee to the new golfer, who must have mastered the basic knowledge of golf in theory and practice.

Course rules
Rules issued by a club. These rules are usually printed on the back of the score cards. They never override official rules.

Course condition
In well-managed clubs, players receive detailed information about the condition of the course before booking their tee time. Information on whether the greens are sanded (putts become difficult to calculate), the fairways are mown or a fairway has to be skipped due to renovation work.

Pot bunker
Pot bunker, deep, small and round bunker, usually found on coastal courses (left), rather rare in Austria.

Pro (female proette)
Abbreviation for professional: a golfer who is paid to play (this is why there are teaching and playing pros). Pros have no handicap, so they always play with 0 and every shot counts.

Pro shop
Golf equipment shop on the golf course where you can buy everything related to golf, from clubs to clothing.

Putt
The shot to hole out on the green, with a special club, the putter. Putting accounts for over 45% of all amateur strokes on average.

Range balls
Practice balls specially designed for the driving range.

Range fee
A fee for the use of the entire driving range.

Rules
Only those who play by the rules play golf. 3 principles must be observed: 1. play the ball as it lies. 2. play the golf course as you find it. 3. if you can do neither, stay fair. The complex set of rules is laid down every 4 years by the R&A GC St Andrews committee.

Ryder Cup
The best golfers in Europe and the USA compete against each other every two years. It is the most important golf team tournament in the world.

Score card
The "score card" is the document on which the result (score) per hole is recorded. It also contains information about the course, length of the holes, degree of difficulty,...

Tee
Both the teeing area for each hole and the small wooden pin on which you can place the ball when teeing off (this makes the shot easier).

Teetime/start time/tee-off time
Time at which players start on the 1st tee, always reserved in advance.

Tiger line
Direct line to the hole, which often leads over dangerous obstacles.

Competition
Every tournament is a competition. It is played according to the R&A St Andrews rules, which are identical worldwide. The local game management may issue additional course rules within the framework of these golf rules.

Euro emergency number: 112 (valid throughout Europe)
Fire brigade: 122
Police: 133
Rescue: 144
Mountain rescue: 140
Emergency call for the deaf: 0800 133 133
ARBÖ 123
ÖAMTC 120