Be Excellent To Each Other

Seeing as it's nearly Christmas, we should probably have Thursday game on a Thursday. Here's a simple but addictive crazy golf game that we've been playing in the office all week. I won't reveal my best score just yet, because it's too AWESOME and will put you all off.

I got a bogey in each hole

Everyone's gone to lunch, you should be OK digging them out.

.xls?

Pah!

That's clatty

56 for me. Doing OK until a painful 7 on the 17th.

Ok, my best score was 28. Does that mean I win?

No, I got 3.

Ok, you win.

I got 2, no 1. No, 0.

I wasn't even there. I was dead at the time.

What?

You must be very crap at Golfing to get a +28. +52 is even worse.

I only got my +3 because of that damn level with the open end.

Err, I got 28 shots in total. I don't know what that is below par.

Also, the term 'below par'. Why does it mean the opposite of what it should?

that's why it's 'under par'

Still makes no sense. Under and below par is good in golf, but bad in any other sense.

it's not the day for arguments, mippypoos! There's a grammatical reason, i'm sure

because par in this sense is short for the number of shots you need to complete the hole (or course) and in golf fewer shots is better.

Malc

I think you've completely missed the point there, Malc. Nice try, though!

Have you ever noticed how if you go over the amount of goes on a hole it's called a bogey? That's, like, what you pick out of your nose. What's all that about then!? Ahhhhhh.

Surely "par" just means "standard"? From the Latin for "equal". This explains the idioms "above par" in general conversation to mean "good", "below par" in golf to mean "good" (as the target in golf is to have fewer strokes to reach the hole), "par excellence" as in "the standard of excellence", "par for the course" to mean "an average experience", etc.

My par's car is a jaguar, and par drives rather farst.

'Par excellence' is a French term, isn't it? I'm not sure if it's related to 'par for the course', a sporting metaphor.

That's essentially what I said, but with more details.

Malc

What?

Par just means "standard score" (in this context) so above par means you scored more, and below par means you scored less.

In golf your score is the number of shots used to sink the ball so a lower score is better.

Your argument could equally be "Why does his score of 70 beat my score of 72, when usually a score of 72 would beat a score of 70?"

Malc

I know all that. I'm talking about the phrase 'below par' when talking about something not being very good being the opposite of a good golf score. I don't think you've grasped what I'm saying at all. Either that or you're not explaining it very well. Gaywood at least has come up with some good reasons why in normal parlance 'below par' means poor, whereas in golf it is good.

I still think 'par excellence' is a red herring, though.

or



I'm probably not explaining myself well, I am full of cold. (why are so shit at doing it when you're not full of cold then? - Everyone else)

Malc

I'm not talking about a low score - I'm talking about the phrase 'below par' in normal non-sport terms! Do I need to explain further? I understand how the game of golf works.

You are asking why below par means the opposite in golf than it does in other areas. I am saying the reason is because it's to do with the scoring in golf being the opposite to most other areas.

I am saying "below par" is directly analogous to "lower than standard score". In golf (as you know) this is a good thing, in most other sports and aspects of life it's a bad thing.

Malc

Ok, fine.

That's a horse racing term. You really are confused today!

That sounds more like a: "yeah, yeah, whatever you say Malcolm <turns head and gives knowing wink to everyone else> of course you are right" rather than a: "Oh, now I understand, thank you for enlightening me"

Malc

I just think we're talking at cross purposes and in the spirit of the season decided to back out before everyone else lost the will to live.

Well, if you don't mean what I think I mean, what do you mean?

Malc