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Golf
Golf is a precision club-and-ball sport in which competing players (golfers), using many types of clubs, attempt to hit balls into each hole on a golf course while employing the fewest number of strokes.
Golf is one of the few ball games that does not require a standardized playing area. Instead, the game is played on golf "courses", each of which features a unique design, although courses typically consist of either 9 or 18 holes.
Golf is defined, in the rules of golf, as "playing a ball with a club from the teeing ground into the hole by a stroke or successive strokes in accordance with the Rules." Golf competition is generally played for the lowest number of strokes by an individual, known simply as stroke play, or the lowest score on the most individual holes during a complete round by an individual or team, known as match play.
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The origin of golf is unclear and open to debate. Some historians[who?] trace the sport back to the Roman game of paganica, in which participants used a bent stick to hit a stuffed leather ball.One theory asserts that paganica spread throughout Britain and Europe as the Romans conquered much of the continent, during the 1st century B.C., and eventually evolved into the modern game. Others cite chuiwan ("chui" means striking and "wan" means small ball) as the progenitor, a Chinese game played in the 8th - 14th centuries.
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The game is thought to have been introduced into Europe during the Middle Ages. Another early game that resembled modern golf was known as cambuca in England and chambot in France. This game was, in turn, exported to the Low Countries, Germany, and England (where it was called pall-mall, pronounced “pell mell”). Some observers, however, believe that golf descended from the Persian game, chaugán. In addition, kolven (a game involving a ball and curved bats) was played annually in Loenen, Netherlands, beginning in 1297, to commemorate the capture of the assassin of Floris V, a year earlier.
According to the most widely accepted account, however, the modern game originated in Scotland around the 12th century, with shepherds knocking stones into rabbit holes on the current site of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews.
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The rules of golf are internationally standardised and are jointly governed by The R&A, spun off in 2004 from The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews (founded 1754), and the United States Golf Association (USGA).
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The underlying principle of the rules is fairness. As stated on the back cover of the official rule book: Play the ball as it lies, play the course as you find it, and if you cannot do either, do what is fair.
There are strict regulations regarding the amateur status of golfers. Essentially, anybody who has ever received payment or compensation for giving instruction or played golf for money is not considered an amateur and may not participate in competitions limited solely to amateurs. However, amateur golfers may receive expenses which comply with strict guidelines and they may accept non-cash prizes within the limits established by the Rules of Amateur Status.
In addition to the officially printed rules, golfers also abide by a set of guidelines called golf etiquette. Etiquette guidelines cover matters such as safety, fairness, pace of play, and a player's obligation to contribute to the care of the course. Though there are no penalties for breach of etiquette rules, players generally follow the rules of golf etiquette in an effort to improve everyone's playing experience.
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Let's view our overall golf course strategy and golfing tips collectively as course management. This is about how you plan to successfully navigate a golf course and avoid all the pitfalls, including the sand traps, water hazards, trees and the rough along the fairways.
It takes one shot at a time. You have heard this time and time again, but do you really understand how it applies to the game of golf, your golf course strategy and overall course management?
Managing the drive, the lay-up and approach, and the putt is how we manage our entire golf game. It's that simple; we take them one at a time.
On the golf course never use a shot that you are not confident you can perform. That means if you had to make the same shot 10 times, you should be sure you could make at least six out of 10 of them. That's confidence.
Confidence, Not Ego
Play out of your confidence and not your ego. Never let your ego swing the golf club. This is the best tip I have ever given out - use it!
When you play out of confidence you know your ball flight. Every time you stand over the ball, you have an idea of where the ball will end up. Never play a shot if you don’t know where the ball will go and how far. Part of developing this level of confidence is documenting how you are playing for par.
Your mindset in good course management is to stay on the fairway while improving your score. One golf course strategy tip is to forget about how far you may hit the ball and think only of not losing the ball you are playing.
When you can get around 18 holes with one golf ball, you will have found your baseline score. This simple tip alone will take strokes off your score.
Pre-Shot Routine
A golf pre-shot routine is a must-have. Surprisingly most golfers often skip right over the important things that will help them accomplish the goal of getting the ball to its target. Their first thought is to hit the ball where they think they want it to go. Sometimes this works, but most of the time you want a real golf pre-shot routine.
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| Country |
Masters |
U.S. Open |
The Open |
PGA |
Total |
| United States |
55 |
80 |
42 |
78 |
255 |
| Scotland |
1 |
13 |
42 |
0 |
56 |
| England |
3 |
5 |
20 |
0 |
28 |
| South Africa |
4 |
5 |
8 |
2 |
19 |
| Australia |
0 |
2 |
9 |
4 |
15 |
| Jersey |
0 |
2 |
7 |
0 |
9 |
| Spain |
4 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
7 |
| Argentina |
1 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
3 |
| Fiji |
1 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
3 |
| Ireland |
0 |
0 |
2 |
1 |
3 |
| Zimbabwe |
0 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
| Germany |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
| New Zealand |
0 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
| Canada |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
| Wales |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
| France |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
| Northern Ireland |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
| South Korea |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
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20 Facts You Didn't Know About Golf
- 125,000 golf balls a year are hit into the water at the famous 17th hole of the Stadium Course at Sawgrass (pictured).
- The longest drive ever is 515 yards. The longest putt ever is a monstrous 375 feet
- Phil Mickelson, who plays left-handed, is actually right handed. He learned to play golf by mirroring his father’s golf swing, and he has used left handed golf clubs ever since.
- The chances of making two holes-in-one in a round of golf are one in 67 million.
- Tiger Woods snagged his first ace at the tender age of eight years old.
- Balls travel significantly further on hot days. A golfer swinging a club at around 100 mph will carry the driver up to eight yards longer for each increase in air temperature of 25°F.
- The longest golf course in the world is the par 77 International Golf Club in Massachusetts which measures a fearsome 8325 yards
- The highest golf course in the world is the Tactu Golf Club in Morococha, Peru, which sits 14,335 feet above sea level at its lowest point.
- The longest golf hole in the world is the 7th hole (par 7) of the Sano Course at the Satsuki Golf Club in Japan. It measures an incredible 909 yards.
- The largest bunker in the world is Hell's Half Acre on the 585-yard 7th hole of the Pine Valley Course in New Jersey.
- The largest golfing green is that of the 695-yard, 5th hole, a par 6 at the International Golf Club in Massachusetts, with an area in excess of 28,000 square feet.
- The driver swing speed of an average lady golfer is 62mph; 96mph for an average LPGA professional; 84mph for an average male golfer; 108mph for an average PGA Tour player; 130mph for Tiger Woods; 148-152mph for a national long drive champion.
- There are 336 dimples on a regulation golf ball.
- The first golf balls were made of thin leather stuffed with feathers. Tightly-packed feathers made balls that flew the farthest. Feather balls were used until 1848.
- The youngest golfer to shoot a hole-in-one was Coby Orr, who was five years old at the time. It happened in Littleton, Colorado, in 1975.
- 22.8% of golfers are women.
- Golf was banned in Scotland from 1457 to 1502 to ensure citizens wouldn't waste time when preparing for an English invasion
- The term birdie comes from an American named Ab Smith. While playing 1899, he played what he described as a "bird of a shot", which became "birdie" over time.
- The word golf does not mean "Gentleman Only, Ladies Forbidden". This is an internet myth.
- Don't feel bad about your high handicap -80% of all golfers will
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