In match play, a player leading by the same number of holes remaining is described as dormie.
For example, a golfer who is 2-up with two holes left is dormie. The leader cannot lose outright: if the opponent wins both remaining holes, the match ends tied. The leader therefore needs only to halve one of the remaining holes to win, while the trailing player must win every hole still available to force extra holes or a tie, depending on the competition’s rules.
Dormie is used alongside match-play terms such as “up,” “down,” “all square,” and “halved.” A player who is 3-up with three holes remaining is dormie-3, although commentators often simply say that the player is dormie. If the lead exceeds the number of holes left—for example, 4-up with three to play—the match is already over, usually recorded as “4 and 3.”
The term does not describe a tied match. “All square” means neither side leads, while “halved” means the players tied a particular hole. Dormie specifically identifies a narrow but highly favorable lead late in a match.