Golf is known to be a technical sport full of technical terms that you may not know the meaning of. One of those golf terms commonly mentioned on golf courses and TV broadcasts is the term the “Front”, or “Front Nine”.
If you are reading this article, you may wonder: What exactly is the “Front” or “Front Nine” in golf?
In this article, we will explain to you exactly what the expression “Front” means in golf.
What Is The “Front” Or “Front Nine” In Golf?
In golf, the “Front” or “Front Nine” of an 18-hole golf course refers to the first 9 holes of the course. The “Front Nine” holes of an 18-hole golf course are the holes numbered 1 through 9. Synonyms of the “Front Nine” include “Outward Nine”, “Front Side”, and “First Nine”.
In the great game of golf, the expression “Front” or “Front Nine” is often mentioned on golf courses and on TV broadcasts alike.
In golf, the expression “Front” or “Front Nine” is the name given to the first 9 holes of an 18-hole golf course. In other words, the “Front Nine” of a golf course refers to holes numbered 1 through 9.
Explicitly, the “Front Nine” holes of an 18-hole golf course are the holes corresponding to the following numbers: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 & 9. The second half of golf holes is referred to as the “Back Nine” or “Back”.
Considering how long it takes to play 18 holes of golf, It is very common for golf courses to install bathrooms and sometimes refreshments providers in between the “Front Nine” and the “Back Nine” tee boxes.
These restrooms prevent golfers from needing to walk all the way back to the clubhouse to relieve themselves or grab some much-needed refreshments, thus giving golfers an overall better experience.
Synonyms of the “Front” or “Front Nine” include the “Front Side”, the “First Nine”, and the “Outward Nine”.
When you look on a scorecard, and there are boxes to tally your score “Out” and “In”, the “Out” box refers to your score for the “Front” 9 holes, while the “In” box refers to your score for the “Inward Nine”, or the last 9 holes of a golf course.
On many golf courses, you can decide to skip the “Back Nine” and only play the “Front Nine” holes of the golf course. This allows golfers who do not have the time or energy to play only 9 holes. Furthermore, playing only 9 holes is cheaper than playing 18 holes, in many cases.
If you are playing on a 9-hole golf course, then there is no notion of “Front Nine” or “Back Nine”, as that notion is reserved to 18-hole golf courses.
If you are playing on a weird golf course that does not have 18 holes, but it does have an even number of holes, like for example, 16 holes, then you can use the notion of “Front”, but without the number reference, such as in “Front Nine”.
If you would like to get a much better score over time on the “Front Nine” of a golf course, you can read our guide: How To Improve Your Golf Score? – 9 Pro Tips.
Origin Of The Term “Front”
The origin of the expression “Front” or “Front Nine” is based in the history of golf.
In fact, in the beginnings of golf, golf courses were often organized in a very particular way. These golf courses separated their holes in two halves.
To play the first half of holes, the “Front” holes, you had to walk away, or “out” from the clubhouse. To play the second half of holes, the “Back” holes, you had to start from the end of the “Front” half, and walk “in” towards the clubhouse.
Therefore, the “Front” nine holes are played in front of the clubhouse, while the “Back Nine” holes are played while moving back towards the clubhouse.
Conclusion
There you go! After reading this article, you have learned exactly what the term “Front” or “Front Nine” means in golf.
Do you have any other golf expressions you wish to know more about? Let us know in the comments down below!
