Word: albatross, n. three under par on a hole in golf (probably 1924)
Dan Goncharoff
thegonch at GMAIL.COM
Wed Apr 16 21:59:26 UTC 2014
If one is interested in such things, I noticed a use of "canary" to mean
what we now call a "birdie", in think in the American Golfer.
DanG
On Wed, Apr 16, 2014 at 5:47 PM, ADSGarson O'Toole <
adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com> wrote:
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------------
> Sender: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster: ADSGarson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM>
> Subject: Word: albatross, n. three under par on a hole in golf
> (probably
> 1924)
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Benjamin Torbert mentioned the interesting golf term: albatross.
>
> The OED has a recently updated entry for albatross with a July 2, 1932
> cite for the golf sense.
>
> [Begin OED excerpt]
> albatross, n.
> 4. Golf. A score of three strokes under par on a hole; a hole played
> in three strokes under par. Cf. eagle n. 1d.In North America, such a
> shot is more usually known as a double eagle (see Additions).
>
> 1932 Boston Globe 2 July 11/5 1932 Boston Globe 2 July 11/5 James
> Shepard, a Boston boy..startled himself as well as everybody else by
> holing a long mashie shot for an albatross deuce at the long 16th.
> [End OED excerpt]
>
> HathiTrust has a golf book that the catalogers have been unable to
> precisely date. The year is listed as "1924?". This book included an
> instance of "albatross". Evidence that the 1924 date of publication
> was accurate appeared in a 1924 Buffalo, New York newspaper; see
> further below.
>
> Year: 1924? (question mark to indicate uncertainty)
> Book title: Lessons from Great Golfers
> Author: R. Endersby Howard.
> Publisher: Frederick A. Stokes Company, New York
> Database: HathiTrust
>
> http://hdl.handle.net/2027/uc1.$b281582
> http://hdl.handle.net/2027/uc1.$b281582?urlappend=%3Bseq=106
>
> [Begin excerpt]
> It is perhaps evidence of further exaltation in the American player's
> ambition that a new term is now coming into use.
> He has to allow for the almost unthinkable contingency
> of accomplishing a hole in three strokes under par—
> a five hole in two. At least, I had a letter from a
> friend in Chicago not long ago saying that he had just
> performed such a prodigy by holing a full woodenclub
> shot, and that it was known as an " albatross"-
> the rarest thing in the golfing aviary.
> [End excerpt]
>
> The book "Lessons from Great Golfers" by Endersby was acquired by a
> library in 1924.
>
> [ref] 1924 August 17, Buffalo Express, Books Recently Acquired by the
> Buffalo Public Library, Quote Page 2, Column 4, Buffalo, New York.
> (Old Fulton)[/ref]
>
> [Begin excerpt]
> Books Recently Acquired by the Buffalo Public Library
> ...
> Howard, R. Endersby — Lessons from Great Golfers.
> [End excerpt]
>
> Below is an instance one day before the OED cite in 1932.
>
> [ref] 1932 July 1, Lowell Sun, Grasse Over takes Farrell for City
> Title, Quote Page 12, Column 3 and 4, Lowell, Massachusetts.
> (NewspaperArchive)
>
> [Begin except]
> The thrill of the day was Grasse's
> extraordinary play of the llth, in
> which he scored an eagle three. He
> barely missed an albatross on the par
> 5 hole of 532 yards.
> [End excerpt]
>
> Garson
>
> On Wed, Apr 16, 2014 at 3:21 PM, Benjamin Torbert <btorbert at gmail.com>
> wrote:
> > ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------------
> > Sender: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > Poster: Benjamin Torbert <btorbert at GMAIL.COM>
> > Subject: Re: Antedating of "Eagle" (Golf)
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> > When I was a kid, people would refer to double eagle as 'albatross.'
> > They're extremely rare, occurring mostly on short par fives, or
> > occasionally on now-driveable par fours, and there have been about four
> of
> > them at Augusta. I never hear that anymore, only 'double eagle.' Double
> > eagle doesn't make any sense given what we do with holes played over par;
> > double bogey is twice as many strokes over par as bogey. Double eagle
> isn't
> > double the number of strokes under par that an eagle is; it's one more.
> >
> > Benjamin Torbert
> >
> >
> > On Wed, Apr 16, 2014 at 2:15 PM, Shapiro, Fred <fred.shapiro at yale.edu
> >wrote:
> >
> >> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> >> -----------------------
> >> Sender: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >> Poster: "Shapiro, Fred" <fred.shapiro at YALE.EDU>
> >> Subject: Re: Antedating of "Eagle" (Golf)
> >>
> >>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >>
> >> Yes, Barry as usual has done a great job on this.
> >>
> >> A general comment: I have long been interested in the terms "eagle,"
> >> "birdie," "par," "bogey," etc. In particular, it is interesting that
> some
> >> of these terms have completely altered their meaning over time.
> >>
> >> Fred Shapiro
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> ________________________________________
> >> From: American Dialect Society [ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] on behalf of
> >> ADSGarson O'Toole [adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM]
> >> Sent: Wednesday, April 16, 2014 3:00 PM
> >> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> >> Subject: Re: Antedating of "Eagle" (Golf)
> >>
> >> Dan Goncharoff wrote:
> >> > Great finds, Garson!
> >> >
> >> > You have simultaneously confirmed the Atlantic City Country Club as
> the
> >> > source of Eagle and predated their own history of it by 13 years.
> >>
> >> Thanks, Dan. The information is intriguing. However, it should be
> >> emphasized that credit properly belongs to Barry Popik. He located the
> >> cites in January 1909, February 1909, and 1921 that were relayed to
> >> the ADS list in my previous message.
> >> Garson
> >>
> >> > On Wed, Apr 16, 2014 at 10:14 AM, ADSGarson O'Toole <
> >> > adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com> wrote:
> >> >
> >> >> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> >> >> -----------------------
> >> >> Sender: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >> >> Poster: ADSGarson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM>
> >> >> Subject: Re: Antedating of "Eagle" (Golf)
> >> >>
> >> >>
> >>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------=
> >> > ------
> >> >>
> >> >> Barry Popik shrewdly looked for the golf "eagle" in the excellent
> >> >> archive of sports publications at LA84.org and found earlier evidence
> >> >> which off-list he kindly shared. Garson
> >> >>
> >> >> Replying to Queries
> >> >> American Golfer, 1921, Vol. 24, Iss. 2, pgs. 22.
> >> >> ... Will you be good enough to en- lighten me on the meanings of the
> >> >> following: "Birdie," "Eagle," "Dormie" and '"Nassau"? B EGINNER . ...
> >> >> library.la84.org/SportsLibrary/AmericanGolfer/1921/ag242t.pdf
> >> >> ...
> >> >> [PDF] Around Philadelphia
> >> >> The American Golfer, by Hazard. 1909 January Vol. 1 No. 3 p. 124-128.
> >> >> ... Sometime after the hatching of the Birdie another fea- thered
> >> >> feature was given to golf=E2=80=94the Eagle, which soars even higher
> >> than=
> >> > the
> >> >> Birdie and is ...
> >> >> library.la84.org/SportsLibrary/AmericanGolfer/1909/ag13j.pdf
> >> >> ...
> >> >> PDF] Around Philadelphia
> >> >> The American Golfer, by Hazard. 1909 February Vol. 1 No. 4 p.
> 196-200.
> >> >> ... At this critical point the doctor won the championship with an
> >> >> "Eagle"=E2=80=94a wonderful 3=E2=80=94although a "Bird" would have
> >> suffic=
> >> > ed. ...
> >> >> library.la84.org/SportsLibrary/AmericanGolfer/1909/ag14k.pdf
> >> >>
> >> >> On Wed, Apr 16, 2014 at 12:05 AM, ADSGarson O'Toole
> >> >> <adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com> wrote:
> >> >> > Fred Shapiro:
> >> >> >> eagle (OED, 1.d., 1922)
> >> >> >>
> >> >> >> 1913 _L.A. Times_ 6 Feb. (ProQuest Historical Newspapers) He made
> >> the
> >> >> long=3D
> >> >> >> hole, No. 6 -- 629 yards -- in 4 (an "eagle," messieurs).
> >> >> >
> >> >> > Excellent work, Fred. Here is an instance of the golf "eagle" a few
> >> >> > months earlier.
> >> >> >
> >> >> > Newspaper: Chester Times
> >> >> > Date: September 14, 1912,
> >> >> > Newspaper Location: Chester, Pennsylvania
> >> >> > Article: James Victor In Springhaven Golf
> >> >> > Page: 1
> >> >> > Column: 4
> >> >> > Database: NewspaperArchive
> >> >> >
> >> >> > [Begin excerpt]
> >> >> > On the out journey he
> >> >> > was two above par, but he played
> >> >> > the fourth, fifth, eighth, and ninth
> >> >> > holes in par, and had an "eagle" on
> >> >> > the seventh. This is a par five-hole
> >> >> > and he played it in three strokes.
> >> >> > [End excerpt]
> >> >> >
> >> >> > Garson
> >> >>
> >> >> ------------------------------------------------------------
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> >> >>
> >> >
> >> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> >> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >>
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> >> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >>
> >> ------------------------------------------------------------
> >> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >>
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>
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> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
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