Golf Betting Golssary
As a game Golf offers many betting options both for the Golfers playing the game itself and for the spectators and fans watching it. This glossary is intended to clarify the terms used when betting on Golf and to show the different betting options usually available with the different Bookmakers. Understanding these terms is a key component for a successful Golf betting career since each bettor has a specific betting method suitable to knowledge and experience of that bettor.
Visit the "How-to bet on Golf" page for getting started with online Golf betting.
You can also visit the "Betting for Golfers" page for more information on how Golfers bet on the game itself.
Shooting three under par on a hole is known as an Albatross. It is very rare to have an Albatross but are most likely gotten on relatively short par 5's wherein a player is able to hole his second shot to the green.
This is a betting system in which bettors take advantage of quotes that differ on the same market amongst bookies, generally spread betting firms, to ensure themselves of a profit. If a spread of 43-45 is quoted on the market by one firm while 47-49 is quoted by another, an attentive bettor could buy at 45 from the first firm and sell right away at 47 to the second to pocket a guaranteed gain of two points.
To is to pick a golfer in a tournament and bet on that player.
A hole score of 1 below par. Getting the ball in the cup in two shots on a par 3 or three shots on a par 4 for example.
A hole score that is 1 over par. A player needing five strokes on a par four, or six on a par five, etc.
A bet that the outcome of a golf tournament will be above that quoted by a spread betting outlet. The higher of the two prices offered in a spread quote is where the bettor always buys.
The one exception to this is in the finishing positions market where you bet on where a player will end up at the conclusion of the tournament. To profitably play the Finishing Positions market, 'Sell' if you feel a player will do fine and 'Buy' if you feel the player will do terrible.
An example: if you thought Sergio Garcia will do well during the British Open and his quote stated 19-21, then you should Sell at the number 19.
To close a running bet, a gambler must place a second bet of the same amount in the opposite direction to the first. Any profits or losses accruals are crystallized when the bettor ends their interest in the event and closes off. In comparison to fixed odds bookmakers, spread betting or betting exchanges offer this advantage; they enable betting positions to be managed during the actual golf tournament.
Back to Top^
This is a score of two over par for a hole. Having 5 hits on par 3 or 7 shots on par 5 for example.
Back to Top^
This is shooting two strokes under par for a hole. This is usually scored on 5 par holes when the green is reached in two shots and a putt is then made. If you score a hole in one on a hole with par 3, this counts as an eagle too.
Back to Top^
To "buy" golf spread betting market means that if you believe your pick will beat what the spread betting firm quoted, then you would 'Go-High'.
There's only one exception: in the Finishing Positions market, you should "Go-High" if you believe your choice will do poorly and finish down-field.
Back to Top^
To 'Sell' in a Golf spread betting market means that you think your choice would not do as well as the quote from the spread betting firm.
The Finishing Positions marker is an exception; here, you would "Go-Low" if you feel your selection will do well, and finish high on the leader board.
Back to Top^
A statistical measure of how consistently a player reaches the greens in the regulation number of strokes is the GIR, which stands for Greens in Regulation. Regulation hits to the green refers to 2 strokes on a par 4, three hits on a par 5 and so on.
Back to Top^
This is defined as the opportunity to bet while a golf tournament is occurring. Even as events unfold, prices will be consistently updated.
Back to Top^
This usually applies to gambling on betting exchanges, and spread betting; however, some fixed odds bookmakers now offer this option as well. This is the exact opposite of backing a selection, and consists of acting as a conventional bookmaker by taking other gamblers' bets on a certain player.
Back to Top^
As applied to a specific market or a whole betting exchange: the overall volume of betting activities and the degree of difficulty it takes to enter a bet. Belfair has the best liquidity of all the betting exchanges.
Back to Top^
The outcome when the spread betting event is finished. A Phil Mickelson versus Padraig Harrington 72 hole match event shows Mickelson being favored by three strokes. Mickelson ends the tournament 8 strokes ahead of Harrington and thus the final result is actually 5 (8-3).
Back to Top^
A match bet is a bet on two golfers and their performance, over 18 holes when paired together or 72 holes.
Back to Top^
The usual number of shots that a player is expected to take for a certain hole. The hole's length, measured in yards is how the par score is determined. Par also applies to an 18 hole round of golf, by totaling up all the individual par scores assigned to each hole. The usual par score for a golf course with 18 holes is 72.
Back to Top^
The practice of laying off an entire bet or a portion of a bet in one direction by placing another bet in the opposing direction. For instance, say you place a bet of $20 at 4/1 odds on Tiger Woods to win the US Masters prior to the start of the tournament. Your total wager would be 90 if Tiger wins. Let's say he is 7 shots behind the leader at the beginning of the final round and his odds have changed to 40/1. Your prospects for winning $20 look probable, but you are cautious that Woods could pull up late in the game.
By having a $3 bet on Woods you effectively guarantee yourself a profit no matter what Woods does in the end:
Result Winning bet Losing bet Net Profit
Woods loses $20 $3 $17
Woods wins $3 x 40/1 = $120 $20 @ 4/1 = $80 $40
Back to Top^
A statistical measure of the profitability of the odds offered by a betting firm on any particular golf event.
To illustrate simply, if you flip a coin, the odds of heads or tails coming up are 50% for each. Fair odds for this coin toss, then, would be even odds for either selection. Bookmakers would probably offer odds of 5/6, or about a 54.54% chance. Summing up the percentage odds on all the selections results in an overall value of slightly above 109% (2 x 54.54%). The percentage in excess of 100% is the bookmaker's potential gross profit (i.e., before subtracting costs) on a given event.
In a golf event, a betting firm will compile odds in such a way as to ensure an overround figure is reached when percentage odds for each selection are totaled up.
Back to Top^
A "sell" is a bet that the result of the event will be below the spread offered by the betting company. The lower of the two prices offered in a spread quote is where a bettor will always sell. The one exception to this is in the Finishing Positions market spread (see "Buy").
Back to Top^
This is the difference between the cost you pay to 'buy' in a spread betting event and the price you pay to 'sell'. For example, suppose you want to place a bet on the 18th hole game between Ernie Els and Jay Haas. Els can be priced at 10-13 odds. Here, the spread is three points. So if you think that Els will win handily you would 'buy' Els at 13. But if you think Haas is going to be the winner, you would 'sell' Els at 10.
Back to Top^
This is the amount of money wagered on a golf event. In the case of fixed odds, bookmakers who intend to back selections on the exchange of a betting, the sum wagered is considered as the maximum that could be lost. But, in spread betting, each stake equals the amount per point bet. The bettor can lose more than the stake since the make-up multiplied by the stake determines how much the bettor wins or loses.
Back to Top^
This is a system by which a punter fixes a predetermined level for attaining maximum loss that he is prepared to accept before choosing his position to close. Spread Betting companies may sometimes limit an event's maximum make-up. For example, because the winning margin of one player over another can be significant, 72-hole match bets typically have a 25 shot stop-loss applied.
Back to Top^
The spread betting firm's expectation of how much one golfer will beat another by in a match bet is known as the supremacy. This is a simple, but well-known and much-used, betting market.
Back to Top^
Three over par for a single hole. For example, shooting seven on a par 4.