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OB
(also "O.B., out of bounds, Oscar Brown") out of bounds, off the golf course premises (usually marked with white stakes or property fences)
Example: Hitting the ball OB/out of bounds/Oscar Brown will cost you a two stroke penalty.
off the deck
from the fairway or ground (mainly used in reference to hitting a driver off the ground rather than on a tee)
Example: She hit her driver off the deck and very nearly reached the long par 5 in two.
offset
a clubhead where the leading edge is set back from the shaft
Example: She played with offset irons.
on the nut
(also "nutting it, nutted it") hitting it squarely and on the sweetspot (see also "on the screws" below)
Example: Tom announced that he had hit his tee shot on the nut even though, mysteriously, the ball was never found.
on the screws
hitting it on the sweetspot, usually of a wood, or driver in particular (many woods originally had an insert in the center of the face that was attached with screws, thus the expression)
Example: Jim, you really hit that one on the screws; too bad it went out of bounds (he he he).
one-piece takeaway
when the beginning of the backswing is initiated by the torso, arms and hands moving together as one unit or in one piece
Example: Many touring professionals favor a one-piece takeaway.
one-putt
when only one putt is taken on a green to hole the ball
Example: I one-putted six times on the front nine.
open
1. a tournament in which any eligible competitor can play, if they qualify 2. ("open clubface, open stance") refers to the alignment of the body/stance or clubface - for a right-handed player the stance would be open if the body
were aligned to the left of the target and an open clubface would be aimed to the right of the target
Example: 1. The British Open, being the oldest organized tournament in the world, is sometimes simply referred to as The Open. 2. Since I was trying to
hit a big fade, I opened my stance.
Oscar Brown
another phrase for out of bounds
Example: That baby is Oscar Brown, I'm afraid.
out
(also "front, front nine, front side, first nine")
Example: Kathy went out in 36 and came in with 37, for an 18 hole total of 73.
out of bounds
(also "out of play, ob, Oscar Brown") area that is not part of the course, on which play is not permitted (usually marked by white stakes or property fences) -- see also "provisional ball"
Example: Carmichael hit 3 balls in a row out of bounds/ob/Oscar Brown, then finally got his fourth attempt in play and was lying 7.
outside
on the opposite side of the target line from the golfer 2. (also "away") farther from the hole than
Example: 1. If you visualize the target line as a vertical wall of glass, anything on the far side of the wall from the golfer would be considered outside the target line 2. Jim was
away, which meant that his ball was outside of Melanie's.
outside-in
a swing path that cuts across the target line from the far side of the target line, in relation to the player (outside), to the near side (inside) through the impact area
Example: An outside-in swing path generally produces either a slice/fade or a pull, but in extreme cases can cause a pull hook -- ouch!
overall weight
(also "dead weight") the total weight of a golf club (see also "swingweight")
Example: The overall weight/dead weight of clubs is different than the swingweight.
overlapping grip
(also "overlap" and "Vardon grip" after famous player, Harry Vardon) the most common grip in golf, placing the hands on the club such that the pinky finger of the bottom hand rests on the index finger of the top hand, or between the index and
middle fingers of the top hand
Example: The overlapping grip/Vardon grip is the most common.
overseed
to plant new grass seed directly into already existing turf
Example: Bermuda grass courses are commonly overseeded with rye grass in the winter, when the Bermuda goes dormant.
overswing
1. to swing too hard to the point of negatively affecting the result 2. too long a backswing, usually thought of in terms of well beyond the point of the club's shaft being horizontal or parallel with the ground at the end of the backswing
Example: 1. Bill frequently will overswing, and gets wildly erratic results for his trouble. 2. There have been a few successful players with an overswing -- Nancy Lopez and John Daly come
to mind.
over the top
(also "coming over the top") a downswing path or plane above, or over, the correct or desired plane, causing the path of the club through impact to be across from outside to inside the target line
Example: Coming over the top is a very common characteristic of hackers, usually resulting in a slice or pull.