Uploaded April 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
The 'Colonel Bogey March' is a British march composed in 1914 by Lieutenant Kenneth J. Alford (1881–1945), a British Army bandmaster who later became the Director of Music of the Royal Marines at Plymouth. The melody is often whistled. During the Second World War, British soldiers sang the lyrics 'Hitler Has Only Got One Ball' to accompany the tune.
In 1914, at a time in which service personnel were encouraged not to have professional lives outside the armed forces, British Army bandmaster F. J. Ricketts published "Colonel Bogey" and his other compositions under the pseudonym Kenneth J. Alford. One supposition is that the tune was inspired by a British military officer who "preferred to whistle a descending minor third" rather than shout "Fore!" when playing golf. It is this descending interval that begins each line of the melody.
The name "Colonel Bogey" was adopted by golfers in the late 19th century as an imaginary "standard opponent" in assessing a player's performance. By Edwardian times Colonel Bogey had been adopted by the as the presiding spirit of the course. Edwardian golfers on both sides of the Atlantic often played matches against "Colonel Bogey". Bogey is now a golfing term meaning "one over par".
Performed by the Boston Pops Orchestra.
The illustration depicts golfers in the Edwardian period.
The 'Colonel Bogey March' is a British march composed in 1914 by Lieutenant Kenneth J. Alford (1881–1945), a British Army bandmaster who later became the Director of Music of the Royal Marines at Plymouth. The melody is often whistled. During the Second World War, British soldiers sang the lyrics 'Hitler Has Only Got One Ball' to accompany the tune.
In 1914, at a time in which service personnel were encouraged not to have professional lives outside the armed forces, British Army bandmaster F. J. Ricketts published "Colonel Bogey" and his other compositions under the pseudonym Kenneth J. Alford. One supposition is that the tune was inspired by a British military officer who "preferred to whistle a descending minor third" rather than shout "Fore!" when playing golf. It is this descending interval that begins each line of the melody.
The name "Colonel Bogey" was adopted by golfers in the late 19th century as an imaginary "standard opponent" in assessing a player's performance. By Edwardian times Colonel Bogey had been adopted by the as the presiding spirit of the course. Edwardian golfers on both sides of the Atlantic often played matches against "Colonel Bogey". Bogey is now a golfing term meaning "one over par".
Performed by the Boston Pops Orchestra.
The illustration depicts golfers in the Edwardian period.
