Overview

Golf originated in Scotland and has been played for at least five centuries in the British Isles. The oldest course in the world is The Old Links at Mussel burgh. Golf, in essentially the form we know it today, has been played on Scotland's Mussel burgh Links since 1672, and earlier versions of the game had been played in the British Isles and the low-countries of Northern Europe for several centuries before that. Although often viewed as an elite pastime, golf is an increasingly popular sport that can be played for one's entire life.

Technical Terms

The Course: the land chosen for playing golf.

The Tee (teeing ground): a pre determined from where the ball is first hit. It is usually well tended to make the tee shot easier.

The Green: an area of finely cut grass surrounding the actual hole in the ground.

The Cup: the hole in the ground into which the ball is played.

Hole: the total distance from the tee to the green.

Par: is the number of strokes that a skilled golfer should require to complete the hole.

Caddy: a person who carries and manages the players' equipment and gives them advice.

The Fairway: where the grass is cut so low that most balls can be easily played.

The Rough: grass cut much longer than fairway grass, or which may be uncut.

Fast: a term used describing the green if a light stroke of the ball allows it to roll a long distance.

Slow: a term used describing the green if a stronger stroke is required to roll the ball the required distance.

Out of Bounds: that is, ground from which a ball must not be played.

Ground Under Repair: meaning that a ball coming to rest in them may be lifted and then played from outside such ground without penalty.

Obstructions: they are man-made objects on the course and specific rules determine how a golfer may proceed when the play is impeded by these.

The "Nineteenth Hole": is the informal term for the bar/grill at a club house.


How to Play The Game

Most golf courses consist of nine or eighteen holes. 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. A hole of golf consists of hitting a ball from a tee on the teeing ground, and, once the ball comes to rest, striking it again, and repeating this process until the ball at last comes to rest in the cup. Once the ball is on the green the ball is usually putted (hit along the ground) into the hole. The aim of holing the ball in as few strokes as possible may be impeded by various hazards, such as bunkers and water hazards.

Players walk (or in some countries, often drive in motorized electric carts) over the course, either singly or in groups of two, three, or four, sometimes accompanied by caddies. Each player plays a ball from the tee to the hole.

The Two Basic Forms of Playing Golf

Match play, two players (or two teams) play every hole as a separate contest against each other. The party with the lower score wins that hole, or if the scores of both players and teams are equal the hole is "halved" (drawn).

Stroke play, every player (or team) counts the number of shots taken for the whole round or tournament to produce the total score and the player with the lowest score wins. A variant of stroke play is Stableford scoring, where 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 points as possible. Another variant of stroke play, the Modified Stableford method, awards points on each hole in relation to par and then adds the points over a round.

Team Play

A foursome is played between two teams of two players each, in which each team has only one ball and players alternate playing it until the ball is holed out. When all individual players or teams have brought a ball into play, the player or team whose ball is the farthest from the hole is next to play.. When all players of a group have completed the hole, the player or team with the best score on that hole has the right to play first on the next tee.

A four-ball is also played between two teams of two players each, but every player plays his own ball and for each team, the lower score on each hole is counted. Four-balls can be played as match play or stroke play. There are also popular unofficial variations on team play. In a scramble, each player in a team tees off on each hole, and the players decide which shot was best, every player then plays his second shot from where the best ball has come to rest, and the procedure is repeated until the hole is finished.

In a greensome both players tee off, and then pick the best shot as in a scramble. The player who did not shoot the best first shot plays the second shot. The play then alternates as in a foursome.

Scoring

In every form of play, the goal is to play as few shots per round as possible. Scores for each hole can be described as follows: 

The rules of golf are internationally standardized and are jointly governed by the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews (R&A), which was founded 1754 and the United States Golf Association (USGA). The enforcement and interpretation of the rules is limited to the United States and Mexico. Canada has the separate Royal Canadian Golf Association.

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, easiness and 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.