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Golf is an outdoor game where individual players or teams play a small ball into a hole using various clubs. It 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 is believed to have originated in Scotland and has been played for several centuries in the British Isles. A hole of golf consists of hitting (teeing off) from a tee (a marked area designated for the first shot of a hole), and following the tee shot with further iron or wood shot(s). Once the ball reaches the green (an area of finely cut grass) the putter is used to putt (hit the ball along the ground) into the hole. Most golf courses consist of eighteen holes (though some have 9). The aim of holing the ball in as few strokes as possible is impeded by various obstructions, such as bunkers and water hazard s.
The scoring of golf is divided into two methods: In the first, strokeplay, the number of shots taken for each hole is added up to produce the total score. In stableford scoring, a number of points (two for the target score) are given for each hole, and the fewer shots taken, the more points obtained, so the aim is to have as many point as possible.
Although often viewed as an elite pastime, golf is now increasingly popular and continues to attract ever more players around the world.
Golf is played by holes. It should be noted that "hole" can mean either the actual hole in the ground into which the ball is played, or the whole area from the teeing ground (an area of specially prepared grass from where a ball is first hit) to the putting green (the area around the actual hole in the ground). Most golf courses consist of 9 or 18 holes. (The "19th hole" is the colloquial term for the bar at a club house.) For the shortest holes a good player requires only one stroke to hit the ball to the green. On longer holes the green is too far away to reach it with the first stroke, so that one or more strokes are played from the fairway (where the grass is cut so low that most balls can be easily played) or from the rough (uncut grass or ground not prepared at all).
Many holes include hazards, namely bunkers (or sand traps), from which the ball is more difficult to play than from grass, and water hazards (lakes, ponds, rivers, etc). Special rules apply to playing balls that come to rest in a hazard which make it highly undesirable to play a ball into one. For example, a player must not touch the ground in a hazard with a club prior to playing a ball, not even for a practice swing. A ball in a water hazard may be played as it lies or may be replaced by dropping another ball outside the water, but a penalty is incurred in the latter case.
The grass of the putting green is cut very short so that a ball can roll over distances of several meters. The direction of individual blades of grass is called the grain. "To putt" means to play a stroke on the green where the ball does not leave the ground. The hole must have a diameter of 108 mm and a depth of at least 100 mm. Its position on the green is not static and may be changed from day to day. This hole on the green has a flag on a pole positioned in it so that it may be seen from some distance (but not necessarily from the tee). It is also termed "the pin".
The borders of a course are marked as such, and beyond them is out of bounds, that is, ground from which a ball must not be played. Special rules apply to certain man-made objects on the course (obstructions) and to ground in abnormal condition.
Every hole is classified by its par. The par of a hole is defined by the distance from tee to green. Typical values for a par three hole range from 100 to 224 m, par four hole from 225 to 434 m, and a par five hole from 435 m. Par is also the theoretical number of strokes that an expert golfer should require for playing the ball into any given hole. The expert golfer is expected to reach the green in two strokes under par (in regulation) and then use two putts to get the ball into the hole. Many 18-hole courses have approximately four par-three, ten par-four, and four par-five holes. The total par of an 18-hole course is usually around 72.
At most golf courses there are additional facilities that are not part of the course itself. Often there is a practice range, usually with practice greens, bunkers, and a driving area (where long shots can be practiced). There may even be a practice course (which is often easier to play or shorter than other golf courses). A golf school is often associated to a course or club.
Every game of golf is based on playing a number of holes in a given order. A round typically consists of 18 holes that are played in the order determined by the course layout. On a nine-hole course, a standard round consists of two successive nine-hole rounds.
Players usually walk (or sometimes drive) over the course in groups of two, three, or four, sometimes accompanied by caddies who carry and manage the players' equipment and give them advice. Each player hits a ball from the tee to the hole, except that in foursomes, one player from each team tees off and the players then take alternate shots until the ball is holed out. The ball may only be replaced by another if it is lost, destroyed, or unplayable, and a penalty is incurred in these cases. When individual players have all brought a ball into play, the player whose ball is the farthest from the hole is next to play. In some teams events, a player who is farthest from the hole may ask his or her partner who may be closer to the hole to play first. When all players of a group have completed the hole, the player or team with the best score on that hole has the honor, that is, the right to play first on the next tee.
Each player acts as marker for one other player in the group, that is, he or she records the score on a score card. In stroke play (see below), the score consists of the number of strokes played plus any penalty strokes incurred. Penalty strokes are not actually strokes but penal points that are added to the score for violations of rules or for making use of relief procedures in certain situations.
The two basic forms of playing golf are match play and stroke play.
There are many variations of these basic principles, some of which are explicitly described in the "Rules of Golf" and are therefore regarded "official". "Official" forms of play are, among others, foursome and four-ball games.
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