Bogey
A bogey in golf is a score of one stroke over par on a single hole. A golfer who takes 5 strokes on a par-4 hole, for example, has made a bogey.
What is a bogey in golf?
A bogey is the name for any score that finishes a hole one stroke above the hole’s par. Par is the number of strokes a skilled golfer is expected to need from tee to cup, so a bogey sits exactly one stroke worse than that benchmark. The word comes up constantly during a round and in broadcast commentary, which is why understanding it matters even before a new golfer plays a full 18.
That math carries through every hole on a standard course. A 4 on a par-3 is a bogey, and so is a 5 on a par-4. On a par-5, a score of 6 does the same job. The rule holds regardless of how those strokes happened, whether the ball reached the green cleanly or spent half the hole ricocheting through the trees. A bogey simply records the number.
A bogey is a common outcome for players at every level. According to handicap data compiled by MyGolfSpy and TheGrint, golfers with a Handicap Index of 16 to 20 average roughly 7 bogeys per round, and even scratch players tend to pick up around 2 bogeys on a full 18.
Bogey scoring examples by hole type
The math is identical on every hole: par plus one equals bogey. Since nearly every hole on a standard course is a par-3, par-4, or par-5, the table below covers what a bogey looks like on each.
| Hole type | Par | Bogey score |
|---|---|---|
| Par-3 | 3 | 4 |
| Par-4 | 4 | 5 |
| Par-5 | 5 | 6 |
| Par-6 (rare) | 6 | 7 |
Par-6 holes exist but are uncommon. A full 18-hole par-72 course with a bogey on every hole produces a round score of 90.
Bogey vs. par vs. birdie
Most confusion around bogey comes from mixing it up with the other basic scoring terms. Each one describes the result of a single hole relative to par, and each one moves the overall scorecard in a different direction.
| Term | Relative to par | Par-4 example | Effect on scorecard |
|---|---|---|---|
| Birdie | One stroke under par | 3 strokes | Score improves by 1 |
| Par | Equal to par | 4 strokes | Score unchanged |
| Bogey | One stroke over par | 5 strokes | Score worsens by 1 |
A birdie is better than par, and par is better than a bogey. Lower is always better in golf, so a scorecard full of bogeys produces a higher total than a scorecard full of pars or birdies.
Types of bogey: double, triple, and worse
Not every over-par hole is a single bogey. When a golfer takes more than one extra stroke, the bogey gets a prefix:
| Type | Strokes over par | Par-3 score | Par-4 score | Par-5 score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bogey | +1 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
| Double bogey | +2 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
| Triple bogey | +3 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
| Quadruple bogey | +4 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
Scores higher than four over par usually lose the dedicated name and get called by the number. An 8 on a par-4 is often nicknamed a “snowman” because of the shape of the numeral. Rare slang terms exist for the others (a double bogey is sometimes a buzzard, a quadruple is sometimes a turkey), but most players stick with the straightforward “double” or “triple.”
How bogeys appear on a scorecard
On a traditional paper scorecard, a bogey is recorded by writing the actual number of strokes taken, then drawing a single square around that number. A 5 on a par-4 gets a square. A double bogey gets two concentric squares, a triple bogey three. The opposite convention applies on the good side: birdies get a circle around the number, eagles get two.
Most digital scoring apps apply the same shapes automatically. In competitive play the symbols matter because they make a scorecard easier to scan at a glance during verification.
What is a bogey golfer?
A bogey golfer is a player whose average score works out to roughly one stroke over par on every hole. The USGA defines a male bogey golfer as a player with a Course Handicap of approximately 20 on a course of standard difficulty, and a female bogey golfer as a player with a Course Handicap of approximately 24. On a par-72 course, that typically means a round score of around 90.
A bogey golfer almost never actually makes 18 bogeys in a row. The round tends to look more like a mix of pars, bogeys, a few double bogeys, the occasional birdie, and maybe one triple bogey, all averaging out to roughly +18. The USGA uses the bogey golfer as one of the two model players (along with the scratch golfer) when calculating a course’s Slope Rating, which is why the standard Slope number of 113 reflects the difficulty a bogey golfer faces compared to a scratch player.
Reaching bogey-golfer level is a meaningful milestone. The National Golf Foundation reports that a bogey golfer is better than nearly two-thirds of all golfers, and only around 10% of players break 80 with any regularity, according to data cited by GolfNow.
Origin and history of the term
The word “bogey” arrived in golf before “par” did, and it originally meant something closer to what par means today.
In 1890, Hugh Rotherham, the Secretary of Coventry Golf Club in England, proposed standardising the number of strokes a good golfer should take on each hole, calling that number the “ground score.” Dr. Browne, Secretary of Great Yarmouth Golf Club, adopted the idea soon after. During a match at Yarmouth, a player named C.A. Wellman described the imaginary standard-score player as “a regular Bogey man,” a nod to a popular Edwardian music hall song titled “Hush! Hush! Hush! Here Comes the Bogey Man.” The phrase caught on, and “ground score” was gradually replaced by “bogey score.”
In 1892, Colonel Seely-Vidal of the United Services Club at Gosport adapted the system for his course. Because the club’s members all held military rank, it felt wrong to measure themselves against a mere Mister, so the imaginary standard player was promoted to Colonel Bogey. Lieutenant F.J. Ricketts immortalised the name in 1914 with the “Colonel Bogey March,” which later became the whistled theme of the 1957 film The Bridge on the River Kwai.
Bogey only shifted to its current meaning, one stroke over par, during the early and mid-20th century. American courses adopted tighter par ratings based on standardised distances, and as scoring dropped, the old British bogey score began to look generous by comparison. American golfers started using bogey to describe a score of one over par, and the newer meaning eventually stuck on both sides of the Atlantic.
Related Golf Terms
- Birdie — A score of one under par on a single hole.
- Par — The standard number of strokes a scratch golfer is expected to take on a hole.
- Eagle — a score of two strokes under par on a single hole..
- Blade — A type of iron with a thin, flat clubhead preferred by skilled players.
- Best ball — A team format where the best score among team members counts on each hole.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a bogey a good score?
It depends on the golfer. For a tour professional, a bogey is a dropped stroke and a disappointment. For a beginner or mid-handicap amateur, a bogey on a tough hole can be a solid result and a sign of steady course management.
Why is it called a bogey?
The name comes from a late-19th-century British music hall song, “Hush! Hush! Hush! Here Comes the Bogey Man.” Early golfers began to think of the imaginary “standard score” player as a kind of Bogey Man they were trying to match, and the nickname replaced the earlier term “ground score.”
Is a bogey better than a birdie?
No. A birdie is one stroke under par and a bogey is one stroke over par. Lower scores are always better in golf, so a birdie beats a bogey by two strokes on the same hole.
What is the difference between a bogey and a double bogey?
A bogey is one stroke over par on a hole. A double bogey is two strokes over par, so on a par-4 it means walking off the green with a 6 instead of the 5 that a bogey would produce. Double bogeys are harder to recover from over a full round.
Has any golfer ever played a whole tournament without a bogey?
Bogey-free tournament rounds happen, but a full four-round event without a single bogey is a rarity. Lee Trevino was the first player to win a PGA Tour event bogey-free when he claimed the 1974 Greater New Orleans Open, according to Golf Monthly. The longest known bogey-free streak in professional golf belongs to Jin Young Ko of the LPGA, who went 114 holes without a bogey in 2019, a run longer than Tiger Woods’ 110-hole PGA Tour streak from 2000.
Sources
- United States Golf Association. “USGA Handicap Manual, Section 2: Definitions.” usga.org.
- United States Golf Association. “FAQ: Golf History Questions.” usga.org.
- Scottish Golf History. “Meaning of Golf Words: Par, Bogey, Birdie, Eagle, Albatross.” scottishgolfhistory.org.
- Golf Monthly. “What Is A Bogey In Golf?” golfmonthly.com.
- GolfNow. “Average Golf Score: What is a Good Golf Score?” golfnow.com.
- MyGolfSpy & TheGrint. “Birdies, Pars, Bogeys Per Handicap” data set.
- Wind Band Literature. “Colonel Bogey by Kenneth Alford.” windliterature.org.
