hacker - golf player of limited proficiency (1934 September 5)

[Victor Steinbok]

  I did mention earlier that soccer hacking is usually done with feet (I
specifically mentioned "kicking out at the shins"). I have since found
some GB references that trace this use back into the 1930s. The OED does
have "hack" as sports injury, as a result of a kick.

Hack n.1
> 2. c. Football. A cut or gash in the skin caused by a kick with the
> toe of a boot.

This goes back to 1857.

On the other hand, I have also come across the same terminology that
Garson found (mediocre player, etc.) but used as "hack" rather than "
hacker" (as in, "He's a hack.").

This one is from personal experience, so only extends back into the
1980s, although HDAS may have better info. But it also applies to almost
any field, not just sports. "Hacker" in this sense seems to be obsolete.

VS-)

On 7/29/2010 12:49 PM, Garson O'Toole wrote:
> ...
>
> I did not see in the OED an entry for "hacker" in the golf sense. OED
> does have an interesting cite containing the word "hacker" in the
> soccer domain under "clogger". Apparently, hacking in soccer is
> performed using legs and feet. In basketball hacking is performed with
> arms and in golf it is performed with clubs
>
> (OED 1989) 1980 D. MORRIS Tribal Words [MS.], The term clogger..today
> has become exclusively used inside the Soccer Tribe to describe a
> brutal, heavy-footed hacker. It also carries the implication of
> stupidity (‘they were a crude bunch of cloggers’).
> ...

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