"Albatross" (Golf)

Wed Apr 16 23:41:12 UTC 2014

If one sinks an albatross, isn't it bad luck?

Joel

At 4/16/2014 03:21 PM, Benjamin Torbert wrote:

>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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