Golf Card Game Glossary
Every Golf card game term explained in plain English — from holes and column pairs to flips, swaps, going out and the final turn.
Golf borrows half its vocabulary from the sport and the other half from ordinary card games, so a few words carry special meanings. If a term here is new to you, the how-to-play guide shows it in context, the rules page gives the exact restrictions, the scoring page puts numbers on it, and the strategy guide explains how to use each idea to win.
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- Ace
- Worth 1 point in Golf. Aces are low and are a perfectly good card to keep, though a King (0) or a two (−2) is better.
B
- Birdie
- Borrowed from the sport: informal slang for a hole scored below zero, thanks to twos and paired columns. Not an official term, but you will hear it at the table.
- Blind Swap
- Swapping a drawn card into a face-down position you have never seen. You lose an unknown card (average value about 5.5) for a known one — usually a good trade when the drawn card is low.
- Bottom Row
- The three cards in the lower row of your grid. Each pairs with the card directly above it in the same column.
C
- Cancel
- What a pair does: two cards of the same rank in one column cancel each other and the column scores 0, however much the cards are worth individually.
- Column
- One of the three vertical pairs of positions in a 2×3 grid. Column pairs are the only pairs that count in Six-Card Golf.
- Column Pair
- Two cards of equal rank in the same column, scoring 0 together. Suits do not matter. A pair of Queens goes from 20 to 0; a pair of twos goes from −4 to 0, which is why you keep twos apart.
D
- Deal
- Six cards face down to each player in two rows of three, followed by the first upcard. The deal alternates each hole, and the non-dealer plays first.
- Discard
- To throw a card face up onto the discard pile. Every turn ends with a discard — either the card you replaced in your grid or, if you drew from the stock, the drawn card itself.
- Discard Pile
- The face-up pile started by the first upcard. Its top card may be drawn instead of a stock card, but a card taken from the discard pile must be swapped into your grid — it can never be thrown back.
- Draw
- The first action of every turn: taking either the unknown top card of the stock or the visible top card of the discard pile.
F
- Face-Down Card
- A card in your grid that has not yet been turned over. You may not look at it; its value is unknown even to you until it is flipped or swapped out. Face-down cards are revealed and scored when the hole ends.
- Face-Up Card
- A card in your grid that has been revealed, whether by an opening flip, a swap, or a flip after discarding. Both players can see it.
- Final Turn
- The one extra turn the other player receives after someone has turned all six of their cards face up. When it is over, remaining hidden cards are revealed and the hole is scored.
- Flip
- To turn one of your face-down cards face up. You flip two cards at the start of every hole, and you must flip one card whenever you discard a card drawn from the stock.
- Four-Card Golf
- A variant with a 2×2 grid and one opening flip, played in many households. CardCouch plays the six-card version.
G
- Going Out
- Having all six of your cards face up, which triggers the end of the hole. The other player gets a final turn, then the hole is scored. There is no bonus for going out first.
- Grid
- Your six cards laid out in two rows of three. Also called the layout or tableau. Positions never move: a card swapped in takes the exact place of the card it replaced.
H
- Hole
- One round of Golf, from the deal to the scoring. A game is nine holes, and each hole's score is added to your running total.
J
- Jack
- Worth 10 points, like a Queen or a ten. Jacks and Queens are the cards you most want to swap out or cancel with a pair.
K
- King
- Worth 0 points — the second-best card in the deck. A King never needs to be swapped out, and pairing two Kings gains nothing because each is already free.
L
- Layout
- Another name for your grid of six cards.
N
- Nine-Card Golf
- A variant played with a 3×3 grid and two decks, in which three of a kind in a row or column score 0. Not played on CardCouch.
O
- Opening Flips
- The two cards each player turns face up before the first turn of a hole. They are your only information about your own grid at the start; choosing cards in different columns tells you more about possible pairs.
Q
- Queen
- Worth 10 points, the same as a Jack or a ten.
R
- Reshuffle
- When the stock runs out, the discard pile (except its top card) is shuffled to form a new stock and play continues.
- Round
- Either a single hole or, more often, a full game of nine holes — as in a round of golf. On CardCouch a game is nine holes.
S
- Scorecard
- The running record of each player's score hole by hole. CardCouch keeps it in the sidebar and shows the full card at the end of the game.
- Six-Card Golf
- The most popular form of the game, and the one played on CardCouch: a 2×3 grid, two opening flips, column pairs, and nine holes.
- Stock
- The face-down pile of undealt cards. Drawing from the stock gives you an unknown card, but it is the only draw you are allowed to discard straight away.
- Swap
- To place the card you drew into any position in your grid, face up, sending the card it replaces to the discard pile. Swapping ends your turn.
T
- Top Row
- The three cards in the upper row of your grid. Each pairs with the card directly beneath it.
- Two
- Worth −2, the best card in Golf and the only one that reduces your score. Keep twos in separate columns so that both count.
U
- Upcard
- The card turned face up from the stock after the deal to start the discard pile. The first player may take it or draw from the stock.
Frequently asked questions
What is a 'hole' in the Golf card game?
A hole is one round: the deal, the opening flips, the turns, and the scoring. A full game is nine holes, and each hole's score is added to a running total. The lowest total after nine holes wins.
What does 'going out' mean in Golf?
Going out means turning all six of your cards face up, which starts the end of the hole. Your opponent gets one final turn, then any hidden cards are revealed and both grids are scored.
What is a column pair?
Two cards of the same rank in the same column — one in the top row and one directly beneath it. The column scores 0 regardless of the cards' values. Pairs in a row do not count.
What is the difference between Four-Card, Six-Card and Nine-Card Golf?
They use grids of 2×2, 2×3 and 3×3 cards respectively. Six-Card Golf, with two opening flips and column pairs, is the most common version and the one played on CardCouch.
What does 'flip' mean in Golf?
Flipping is turning one of your face-down cards face up. You flip two at the start of each hole, and you must flip one whenever you draw from the stock and discard that card instead of swapping it in.