What Is the Golf Score Called the 'Abominable Snowman'?
Maybe you've heard of the Abominable Snowman, the mythical beast of Mount Everest and the Himalayas. Did you know there is also an "abominable snowman" in golf? And just like the Himalayan monster, the golf version is one you very much want to avoid.
So just what is an abominable snowman in golf? It's a slang term for the score of nine (9) on a single golf hole. If you are playing a par-3 and score nine, well, maybe you should consider tennis, because you just scored an abominable snowman.
This slang expression derives from another bit of golf lingo. A score of eight (8) on an individual hole of golf is often called a snowman (because the numeral 8 looks like two large snowballs, one on top of the other — a snowman).
And what is even more abominable than a score of 8? A nine.
"Abominable snowman" is not a universally used part of the golf lexicon. It's just a slang term that some golfers use, some golfers don't, and others have never heard. Another term for a score of nine on one hole (and a more commonly used bit of slang) is "hangman."
If you want to use a less-slangy, more formal term for a score of 9, then you can stick with the double-, triple-, quadruple-, etc., form of noting golf scores in relation to par. A score of 9 on a par-3, then, would be a sextuple bogey. A score of 9 on a par-4 hole is a quintuple bogey, and a score of 9 on a par-5 hole is a quadruple bogey.
More definitions:
