You’re watching a PGA Tour event on a quiet Sunday afternoon. A top player is standing over a critical 18-foot putt. The camera zooms in, the announcer lowers his voice to a whisper, and the world holds its breath in anticipation. The player draws the putter back, makes a smooth stroke, and just as the ball starts rolling toward the hole, a loud, guttural voice from the crowd screams, BAAABAAAA BOOEEEYYY! If you’ve been left scratching your head, you're not alone. This article will break down exactly what Baba Booey means in golf, where it came from, and why it has become one of the most infamous sounds in the sport.
First things first: the phrase "Baba Booey" has absolutely zero roots in the game of golf. It’s not slang for a shank, a nickname for a famous player, or a secret code between caddies. The term comes directly from the long-running and provocative radio program, The Howard Stern Show.
The man behind the name is Gary Dell'Abate, the show's executive producer since the late 1980s. Dell'Abate has a prominent set of teeth, and during one segment, he was discussing a cartoon series he loved as a kid called The Quick Draw McGraw Show. One of the characters was an adventurous horse named Baba Looey.
When trying to recall the name on air, Dell'Abate mispronounced it as "Baba Booey." As is common on the show, Howard Stern and the rest of the crew immediately seized on the gaffe, mercilessly mocking him for the funny-sounding name and his own perceived lack of intelligence. From that point on, "Baba Booey" became Gary Dell'Abate's on-air nickname - a badge of both his long tenure and his propensity for on-air flubs.
Over time, dedicated fans of the show, known for their cult-like devotion, began using "Baba Booey" as a rallying cry and an inside joke. It became a a form of "prank-recognition," where fans would shout it during live news reports, in crowded public spaces, or at any event where it was likely to be caught on a hot mic and broadcast to a wider audience. The goal was simple: get the obscure phrase on the air, cause a moment of memorable disruption, and signal their allegiance to the show.
So, how did a radio show inside joke make the jump to the hallowed grounds of Augusta and Pebble Beach? The answer lies in the unique environment of a professional golf tournament.
Unlike a football stadium or a basketball arena filled with constant, roaring noise, a golf tournament is a study in contrasts. For most of the day, it's a tranquil place of polite applause and focused silence. The television networks place highly sensitive parabolic microphones all around the greens and tee boxes to capture the subtle, satisfying sounds of the game: the thwack of a driver, the hushed conversations between a player and their caddie, and the gentle plop of the ball landing on a soft green.
This atmosphere of intense quiet created a perfect, irresistible vacuum for a Stern Show fan looking to make an impact. The plan was simple and effective:
The result is a jarring, hilarious clash (for the yeller, at least) between the sport’s formal decorum and a loud, nonsensical phrase. The microphones are almost guaranteed to pick it up, broadcasting the prank to millions of viewers at home. The first few famous instances in the early 2000s were so effective that it became a copycat phenomenon, and soon, "Baba Booey" was an unfortunate but expected part of the PGA Tour audio landscape.
While the people shouting "Baba Booey" see it as a harmless prank, the people on the receiving end - the players - feel quite differently. From a golf coach's perspective, this is where the joke stops being funny and starts being genuinely detrimental to the competition.
Imagine standing over a shot with hundreds of thousands of dollars on the line. Your entire focus is narrowed down to one thing: executing a complex sequence of movements you've practiced for tens of thousands of hours. The moment you start your backswing is arguably the most critical part of that sequence. It’s when your rhythm is established and your entire athletic motion begins.
A sudden, loud shout during that moment can be devastating. Many players have publicly voiced their frustration:
For players, the "Baba Booey" shout is not part of the game, it’s an active attempt to interfere with it. It’s the equivalent of someone flashing a camera in a basketball player’s face as they shoot a free throw. It’s a deliberate act of disruption that shows a fundamental disrespect for the athletes and the competition.
The PGA Tour and other governing bodies agree. They consider these shouts a serious breach of spectator etiquette. For years, they struggled with how to handle it. Chasing a single yelling fan through a crowd of thousands is difficult. However, in recent years, they have taken a much harder line. Tournaments now feature:
The "Baba Booey" phenomenon kicked off a trend of catchphrase-yelling at golf tournaments. Soon, other shouts became common, including:
While some of these phrases might seem more good-natured, they all stem from the same impulse and are viewed as equally disruptive by players and officials if yelled at the wrong time. If you’re a new fan attending a tournament, understanding the etiquette around cheering is simple but vital.
As a golf coach, I always tell aspiring players that focus is a muscle you have to train. The same goes for respecting that focus as a fan. Here is the unwritten code:
The beauty of spectating golf is being part of that shared tension and release. Respecting the quiet is just as important as offering energetic applause.
In the end, "Baba Booey" is a pop culture prank that found a perfect, if unwilling, home in the quiet world of professional golf. It’s a catchphrase from The Howard Stern Show, yelled by fans to get on TV and disrupt the stuffy decorum of the sport. While it's become a recognizable part of golf viewership, it remains a source of intense frustration for players and a breach of the sport's deeply held traditions of respect and etiquette.
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