87-748: Sharp Park Golf Course is a public golf course in Pacifica in Northern California in the United States. It was designed in 1931 by Alister MacKenzie and is owned and operated by the city of San Francisco . It is the only public oceanside golf course designed by MacKenzie in the United States. U.S. Open champion Ken Venturi described the course as "Dr. MacKenzie's great gift to the American public course golfer." In 1930, Golden Gate Park Superintendent John McLaren commissioned
174-537: A Japanese internment camp . In 2011, San Francisco mayor Ed Lee vetoed a measure for the National Park Service to take over operations at Sharp Park. Sharp Park's routes feature Monterey cypress , with views of the Pacific headlands and surrounding mountains. Twelve of the course holes retain their original routing. Changes have included an added seawall at holes 12 and 16, which are directly on
261-538: A "Pay and Play" course open to the general public. Notable examples include Pinehurst in the US and Gleneagles in Scotland. A municipal course is owned and managed by a local government body for the benefit of residents and visitors. Some of the historic Scottish golf courses, including St Andrews and Carnoustie fall into this category along with Bethpage and Pebble Beach in the US and many others of less renown. It
348-542: A 21-hole golf course, for instance, will have three additional holes that can be used for practice or as substitutes for a flooded or otherwise damaged hole. Many golf courses have what may be referred to as a "signature hole". This will commonly be the most memorable, aesthetically pleasing or photogenic hole. Links is a Scottish term, from the Old English word hlinc : "rising ground, ridge", describing coastal sand dunes and sometimes similar areas inland. It
435-547: A condor had been recorded only five times on a par-5, once reportedly on a straight drive (a record 517 yards (473 m)), aided by the thin air at high altitude in Denver ). Another was reportedly achieved with a 3-iron club (in 1995 on a horseshoe-shaped par-5 hole). In December 2020, a condor on a par-6 was recorded on the 18th hole at Lake Chabot Golf Course in Oakland, California . A condor has never been achieved during
522-459: A costly and time-consuming weed. Augusta National is one of many golf courses to use this type of green. The original design of Augusta National did not include bent grass greens, but in the early 1980s the greens were converted from Bermuda to bent grass. This affected the speed of the greens, making them too quick, and several areas were subsequently remodelled to reduce the slopes and make them more playable. Many other golf courses subsequently made
609-477: A device that removes a plug of the turf from the ground, and the reinforced cup is then moved, before the old hole is filled in with the plug cut from the new hole and levelled. The hole has a flag on a pole positioned in it so that it may be seen from a distance, but not necessarily from the tee. This location marker is officially called the "flagstick" but is also commonly referred to as the "pin". Flagsticks are made of either coated fiberglass, metal, or wood and have
696-492: A golf course, where players may simply hit balls into the range for practice or enjoyment. There may even be a practice course (often shorter and easier to play than a full-scale course), where players may measure the distance they can obtain with a specific club, or in order to improve their swing technique. Practice courses often consist of old holes of a previous design that are kept and maintained for practice purposes or as substitute holes if one or more holes become unplayable;
783-471: A hazard the player must play the ball as it lies. The area between the tee box and the putting green where the grass is cut even and short is called the fairway . The area between the fairway and the out-of-bounds markers, and also between a mowed apron surrounding the green and out of bounds, is the rough ; the grass there is cut higher and is often of a coarser strain than on the fairways, making roughs disadvantageous areas from which to hit. On par-3 holes,
870-418: A hole are known as double-bogey (two strokes more than par, +2), triple-bogey (three strokes more than par, +3), and so on. For higher hole scores it is more common for them to be referred to by the number of strokes, or strokes relative to par, rather than as a " n -tuple bogey". It is considered an achievement to complete a bogey-free round. Completing four bogey-free rounds in professional tournament play
957-459: A hole score of four strokes fewer than par (four under par, −4). A condor is also known as a double albatross, or a triple eagle. This is the lowest individual hole score ever made, relative to par. A condor would be a hole-in-one on a par-five (typically by cutting over a dogleg corner), a two on a par-six, or a three on a par-seven (which is not known to have been achieved). Par-sixes are exceptionally rare, as are par-sevens. As of May 2023,
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#17327826966661044-417: A long distance; conversely, on a slow green a stronger stroke is necessary to roll the ball the same distance. The exact speed of a green can be determined with a stimp meter . By collecting sample measurements, golf courses can be compared in terms of average green speed. It is, however, illegal by the rules of golf to test the speed of a green while playing by rolling a ball on it, or by feeling or rubbing
1131-407: A metal or synthetic bottom (called a ferrule) that is designed to fit in the hole cup. Putting greens are not all of the same quality. The finest-quality greens are well-kept so that a ball will roll smoothly over the closely mowed grass. Excess water can be removed from a putting green using a machine called a water hog . Golfers describe a green as fast if a light stroke on the ball makes it roll
1218-553: A non-standard number of holes, such as 12 or 14. The vast majority of golf courses have holes of varying length and difficulties that are assigned a standard score, known as par , that a proficient player should be able to achieve; this is usually three, four or five strokes. Par-3 courses consist of holes all of which have a par of three. Short courses have gained in popularity; these consist of mostly par 3 holes, but often have some short par 4 holes. Many older courses are links , often coastal . The first golf courses were based on
1305-484: A par-three hole also results in an eagle. A hole score of three strokes fewer than par (three under par, −3) is known as an albatross (the albatross being one of the largest birds); also called a double eagle in the US, e.g. 2 strokes to complete a par 5 hole. It is an extremely rare score and occurs most commonly on par-fives with a strong drive and a holed approach shot. Holes-in-one on par-four holes (generally short ones) are also albatrosses. The first famous albatross
1392-483: A professional tournament. Golfers are usually responsible for recording their own scores on a scorecard, and could be penalized or disqualified from a competition if they submit an inaccurate one. Scorecards typically share some basic information about the course, including the course rating , the slope rating , and each hole's par and handicap ratings, as well as those statistics from the different sets of color-coded tee markers denoting different yardage options to
1479-443: A raised lip or barrier. It is more difficult to play the ball from sand than from grass, as the ball may embed itself into the sand, and the loose nature of the sand and more severe sloping of many bunkers make taking one's stance more difficult. As in any hazard, a ball in a bunker must be played without touching the sand with the club except during the stroke, and loose impediments (leaves, stones, twigs) must not be moved before making
1566-400: A resort, had many out-of-town visitors, the expression spread and caught the fancy of all American golfers. The perfect round (score of 54 on a par-72 course) is most commonly described as scoring a birdie on all 18 holes, but no player has ever recorded a perfect round in a professional tournament. During the 2009 RBC Canadian Open , Mark Calcavecchia scored nine consecutive birdies at
1653-413: A total par around 72, and a 9-hole par-3 course (where all holes are rated as par 3) will have a total par of 27. Par is primarily determined by the playing length of each hole from the teeing ground to the putting green . Holes are generally assigned par values between three and five, which includes a regulation number of strokes to reach the green based on the average distance a proficient golfer hits
1740-751: A traditional 18-hole course, and the artificial nature and single-minded putting focus of miniature golf . Pitch and Putt, specifically its governing association the IPPA, has received financial support and logo rights from the R&;A. In 2014, the PGA Tour held a Champions Tour event on a nine-hole par-3 course, the Big Cedar Lodge Legends of Golf in Ridgedale, Missouri , with four (regular division) or three (over-65 division) rounds played over
1827-417: A traditional full round of 18 distinct holes. Many older executive courses have been upgraded "in-place" to 18 holes and a traditional par score, or the original course was sold for other development and new land was acquired and built into an 18-hole course. By contrast, par-3 courses, especially Pitch and Putt, are rising in popularity as a compromise between the long play time and high skill levels required of
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#17327826966661914-591: Is increasingly common for the management of municipal courses to be contracted out to commercial or other organisations or the course to be sold or shut down completely. Many commercial and municipal establishments have associated golf clubs , who arrange competitions for their members on the courses and may provide clubhouse facilities. In the UK particularly, some older private members clubs have an associated "Artisan" club, originally established to provide low-cost golf with limited playing rights in exchange for unpaid work on
2001-500: Is naturally treeless and this combined with their coastal location makes wind and weather an important factor in links golf. Traditional links courses are often arranged with holes in pairs along the coastline; players would play "out" from the town through a series of holes to the furthest point of the course, and then would return "in" along the second set of holes. The holes may share fairways and sometimes greens (such as at St Andrews to economize on land use, but in modern times this
2088-499: Is often the result of a normal par-5 hole being rated as a par-4 for them. Some golf courses feature par-7 holes, but these are not recognized by the United States Golf Association . A golfer's score is compared with the par score. If a course has a par of 72 and a golfer takes 75 strokes to complete the course, the reported score is +3, or "three-over-par" and takes three shots more than par to complete
2175-505: Is on links land near the towns of central eastern Scotland that golf has been played since the 15th century. The shallow top soil and sandy subsoil made links land unsuitable for the cultivation of crops or for urban development and was of low economic value. The links were often treated as common land by the residents of the nearby towns and were used by them for recreation, animal grazing and other activities such as laundering clothes. The closely grazed turf and naturally good drainage of
2262-615: Is partially represented by the American Society of Golf Course Architects , the European Institute of Golf Course Architects , and the Society of Australian Golf Course Architects , although many of the finest golf course architects in the world choose not to become members of any such group, as associations of architects are not government-sanctioned licensing bodies, but private groups. While golf courses often follow
2349-531: Is played from raised artificial teeing surfaces using a tee and it has its own handicap system. There are three main categories of ownership and management of a golf course: private, commercial, and municipal. A private course is owned and managed by a golf club on behalf of its members, on a non-profit basis. Many of the courses opened during the golf booms in the late 19th and early 20th centuries are of this type. Some courses, such as Augusta National , are highly exclusive and will only allow visitors to play at
2436-491: Is rare due to the potential for injury from balls coming the other way. Famous links courses include the Old Course at St. Andrews , often described as the "Home of Golf", and Musselburgh Links , which is generally regarded as the first recorded golf course. The Open Championship , the oldest of golf's major championships, is always played on a links course. Links and links-style golf courses have been developed throughout
2523-415: Is rare. Examples are Lee Trevino at the 1974 Greater New Orleans Open ; David J. Russell at the 1992 Lyon Open V33 ; Jesper Parnevik at the 1995 Volvo Scandinavian Masters ; Manuel Piñero at the 2002 GIN Monte Carlo Invitational ; Diana Luna at the 2011 UniCredit Ladies German Open ; and Jonas Blixt and Cameron Smith at the 2017 Zurich Classic of New Orleans (a team event). Each of them won
2610-403: The 2006 PGA Championship , only the third in that competition's history; Miguel Ángel Jiménez while defending his BMW PGA Championship title in 2009; Paul Lawrie in the final round of the 2009 Open Championship ; Shaun Micheel on the final day of the 2010 U.S. Open , only the second ever in that competition; Pádraig Harrington in the 2010 WGC-HSBC Champions ; Louis Oosthuizen on
2697-446: The green , is an area of very closely trimmed grass on relatively even, smooth ground surrounding the hole, allowing players to make precision strokes on it. To "putt" is to play a stroke on this surface, usually with the eponymous " putter " club, which has very low loft so that the ball rolls smoothly along the ground, and hopefully into the cup. The shape and topology of the green can vary almost without limit, but for practical purposes
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2784-416: The teeing ground , or tee-box. There is typically more than one available box where a player places his ball , each one a different distance from the hole (and possibly with a different angle of approach to the green or fairway) to provide differing difficulty. The teeing ground is generally as level as feasible, with closely mown grass very similar to that of a putting green, and most are slightly raised from
2871-589: The Satsuki golf course in Sano , Japan, are the only courses with par-7 holes. Par is primarily determined by the playing length of each hole from the teeing ground to the putting green . Holes are generally assigned par values between three and five, which includes a regulation number of strokes to reach the green based on the average distance a proficient golfer hits the ball, and two putts . On occasion, factors other than distance are taken into account when setting
2958-497: The Scottish course architect Alister MacKenzie to design San Francisco's third municipal golf links. The course was built on 120 acres of coastal property bequeathed to the city in 1917 by the wealthy San Francisco widow Honora Sharp. She stipulated it was to be used as a “public park or playground.” Sharp Park was designed by MacKenzie in-between designing his two most famous courses, Cypress Point Club and Augusta National . At
3045-517: The Southern and Southwestern United States) are bent grass greens. A green may consist of a thin carpet so that bad weather is not allowed to become a serious factor in maintaining the course. These are considered the best greens because they may be cut to an extremely low height, and because they may be grown from seed. Bent grass does not have grain, which makes it superior as a putting surface. However, bent grass may become infested with Poa annua ,
3132-424: The ability of the player to "take a divot" (effectively, the ability to hit down into the ball, hitting the ball first, then hitting the turf and removing a portion of it as the club continues its arc). Fairways on prestigious tours, like the PGA Tour, are cut low. Mowing heights influence the play of the course. For example, the grass heights at U.S. Open events are alternated from one hole to the next in order to make
3219-425: The appearance and feel of real grass compared to a sand surface. Holes often include hazards, which are special areas that have additional rules for play, and are generally of two types: (1) water hazards, such as ponds, lakes, and rivers; and (2) bunkers, or sand traps. Special rules apply to playing a ball that falls in a hazard. For example, a player may not touch the ground or water with their club before playing
3306-401: The ball may be supported by a manufactured tee (limited to a height of four inches), or by any natural substance, such as a mound of sand placed on the teeing surface. After the first shot from the tee ("teeing off"), the player whose ball is farthest from the green hits the ball from where it came to rest; this spot is known as its "lie". When the ball is in play and not out of bounds or in
3393-460: The ball, and two putts . On occasion, factors other than distance are taken into account when setting the par for a hole; these include altitude, terrain and obstacles that result in a hole playing longer or shorter than its measured distance, e.g. route is significantly uphill or downhill, or requiring play of a stroke to finish short of a body of water before hitting over it. In general, par-3 holes for men will be under 260 yards (240 m) from
3480-471: The ball, not even for a practice swing. A ball in any hazard may be played as it lies without penalty . If it cannot be played from the hazard, the ball may be hit from another location, generally with a penalty of one stroke. The Rules of Golf specify exactly the point from which the ball may be played outside a hazard. Bunkers are small to medium areas, usually lower than the fairway but of varying topography, that are filled with sand and generally incorporate
3567-574: The club, as then it is easier to play just a 9-hole round, if preferred, or stop at the clubhouse for a snack between the front 9 and the back 9. A successful design is as visually pleasing as it is playable. With golf being a form of outdoor recreation, the strong designer is an adept student of natural landscaping who understands the aesthetic cohesion of vegetation, water bodies, paths, grasses, stonework, and woodwork, among many other elements. Most golf courses have only par-3, −4, and −5 holes, although some courses include par-6 holes. The Ananti CC and
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3654-402: The clubhouse, and thus the front 9 is referred to on the scorecard as "out" (heading out away from clubhouse) and the back 9 as "in" (heading back in toward the clubhouse). More recent courses (and especially inland courses) tend to be routed with the front 9 and the back 9 each constituting a separate loop beginning and ending at the clubhouse. This is partly for the convenience of the players and
3741-413: The course (a ravine or creekbed may be termed a "water hazard" even if completely dry) Often, a golf course will include among its facilities a practice range or driving range , usually with practice greens, bunkers, and driving areas. Markers showing distances are usually included on a practice range for the golfer's information. Driving ranges are also commonly found as separate facilities, unattached to
3828-626: The course is home to two endangered species, the San Francisco garter snake and the California red-legged frog . As a result, the city of San Francisco faced multiple lawsuits by environmental organizations to protect the species, sparking what became known as the “Save Sharp Park” movement. In 2017, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted 9-to-1 to certify an environmental impact report to modify three holes to protect
3915-545: The course more difficult. One example of this is the infamous roughs at U.S. Opens, which are often 3 to 5 inches high, depending on how close to the fairway or green the section of grass will be. This makes it difficult for a player to recover after a bad shot. Variants of grass used for fairways and roughs include bent grass , Tifway 419 Bermuda grass , rye grass , Kentucky bluegrass , and Zoysiagrass . As in putting-green grass types, not every grass type works equally well in all climate types. The putting green , or simply
4002-455: The course on a long lunch or as part of a meeting. They are also popular with young professionals, because during the normal golf season, the course can usually be played in the time between the end of the work day and sundown. The popularity of the 9-hole course has waned in recent decades; a full 18-hole course still allows for the player to play only the "front nine" or "back nine" as a shorter game, while attracting more golfers seeking to play
4089-410: The course. These associated clubs may be totally independent organizations from the course management, or may have various degrees of formal or informal links. Par (score) In golf , par is the predetermined number of strokes that a proficient (scratch, or zero handicap ) golfer should require to complete a hole, a round (the sum of the pars of the played holes), or a tournament (the sum of
4176-402: The course. If a golfer takes 70 strokes, the reported score is −2, or "two-under-par". Tournament scores are reported by totalling scores relative to par in each round (there are usually four rounds in professional tournaments). If each of the four rounds has a par of 72, the tournament par would be 288. For example, a golfer could record a 70 in the first round, a 72 in the second round, a 73 in
4263-531: The cup on a par-four hole after his first shot had struck a bird in flight. Simultaneously, the Smith brothers exclaimed that Crump's shot was "a bird". Crump's short putt left him one-under-par for the hole, and from that day, the three of them referred to such a score as a "birdie". In short order, the entire membership of the club began using the term. As the Atlantic City Country Club, being
4350-444: The decision to change from Bermuda to bent grass when they observed increased business at courses that had already changed over. Another type of grass common for greens is TifDwarf Hybrid Bermuda (other variants exist, but TifDwarf is one of the most common), or simply Bermuda grass. Bermuda is more common in regions that have very warm summers and mild winters, such as the Southern and Southwestern United States. Red Bridge Golf Course
4437-453: The expected value of stocks. The transition to golf was made by writer A. H. Doleman prior to The Open Championship at Prestwick in 1870, when he reported what had been described by David Strath and James Anderson as the score resulting from "perfect play". A score of one stroke more than par (+1) for a hole is known as a bogey, e.g. 4 strokes to complete a par 3 hole or 6 strokes on a par 5 hole. The original meaning of bogey in golf
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#17327826966664524-479: The final day of the 2012 Masters Tournament , the fourth in that competition's history, the first to be televised, and the first on Augusta's par-five second hole; Rafa Cabrera-Bello at the 2017 Players Championship ; and Brooks Koepka at the 2018 Players Championship . Andrew Magee made the only par-four hole-in-one in PGA Tour history at the Phoenix Open in 2001. Condor is an unofficial name for
4611-404: The grass which are raked out at the sod farm), which are laid out on the green. Two downside factors of Bermuda greens are cost of maintenance, and also the existence of grain (the growth direction of the blades of grass), which affects the ball's roll and which is called "the grain of the green" and not to be confused with "the rub of the green" which are idiosyncrasies encountered getting through
4698-411: The green is usually flatter than other areas of the course, though gentle slopes and undulations can add extra challenge to players who must account for these variations in their putting line. The green typically does not include any fully enclosed hazards such as sand or water; however, these hazards can be — and often are — placed adjacent to the green, and depending on
4785-414: The green on the line of the putt. Most putts are not struck directly at the hole, instead they must be struck to take into account the characteristics of the green to arrive at the hole at the proper angle and speed. The best players will read the green by walking around the green and studying the characteristics of the green before addressing the ball. Many golfers consider reading the green and putting to be
4872-418: The green. The cost of installing and maintaining grass greens constitutes a considerable proportion of the expense of installing and maintaining a golf course. To save money, many low budget courses catering to casual players have sand greens instead of real grass. In recent years, artificial turf has also become an increasingly popular surface as a less costly alternative to grass which more closely resembles
4959-503: The higher grass can interfere with the path of the ball, so players often choose to use a lofted club such as an iron to make a " chip shot " or a "bump and run", where the ball carries in the air for a few yards and then rolls along the green like a normal putt. The grass of the putting green (more commonly just "green") is cut very short so that a ball can roll for a long distance. The most common types of greens are for cold winter, but warmer summer regions (i.e., not extremely warm, as in
5046-426: The hole. The slope or break of the green also affects the roll of the ball. The hole, or cup, is always found within the green and must have a diameter of 108 millimeters (4.25 in) and a depth of at least 10 centimeters (3.94 in). Its position on the green is not fixed and typically is changed daily by a greenskeeper in order to prevent excessive localized wear and damage to the turf. A new hole will be cut by
5133-459: The invitation of and alongside a member of the club. Others allow visitors at certain times but may insist on advance booking and proof of golfing competency. A commercial course is owned and managed by a private organization and is operated for profit. They may be constructed to provide a core or supplementary attraction for visitors to a hotel or commercial resort, as the centrepiece to a real estate development, as an exclusive Country Club , or as
5220-431: The links was ideal for golf, and areas of longer grass, heather, low growing bushes and exposed sand provided the hazards that are familiar on modern courses. Although early links courses were often close to the sea it was rarely used as a hazard, perhaps due to the instability of the dunes closest to the water and the high cost of hand-made golf balls precluding anything that could result in their irrecoverable loss. The land
5307-439: The most difficult part of the game. The green is typically surrounded by slightly higher grass, cut at a height between that of the green and fairway, and then by the fairway and/or rough. This longer grass surrounding the green is known as the fringe and is designed to slow and stop balls rolling along the green from an approach shot or errant putt, preventing them from exiting the green. Though putting strokes can be made on it,
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#17327826966665394-474: The number of holes of each par value per course. It is also preferable to arrange greens to be close to the tee box of the next playable hole, to minimize travel distance while playing a round, and to vary the mix of shorter and longer holes. Combined with the need to package all the fairways within what is frequently a compact square or rectangular plot of land, the fairways of a course tend to form an oppositional tiling pattern. In complex areas, two holes may share
5481-437: The original landscape, some modification is unavoidable. This is increasingly the case as new courses are more likely to be sited on less optimal land. Bunkers and sand traps are always built in by architects unless the formation of such items is already in the course's natural terrain. The layout of a course follows certain traditional principles, such as the number of holes (nine and 18 being most common), their par values, and
5568-465: The par for a hole; these include altitude, terrain and obstacles that result in a hole playing longer or shorter than its measured distance, e.g. route is significantly uphill or downhill, or requiring play of a stroke to finish short of a body of water before hitting over it. Under the United States Golf Association , the typical distances for the various holes from standard tees are as follows: Men Women The first section of every hole consists of
5655-418: The par-3 course, and one round played on a nearby regulation 18-hole course with par of 71. Pitch and putt is an amateur sport , similar to golf and is also known as chip and putt. The maximum hole length for international competitions is 90 metres (100 yd) with a maximum total course length of 1,200 metres (1,310 yd). Players may only use three clubs ; one of which must be a putter . The game
5742-452: The pars of each round). For scoring purposes, a golfer's number of strokes is compared with the par score to determine how much the golfer was either "over par", "under par", or was "even with/equal to par". Holes are generally assigned par values between three and five based on the distance from the teeing ground to the putting green , and occasionally other factors such as terrain and obstacles. A typical 18-hole golf course will have
5829-404: The player is expected to be able to drive the ball to the green on the first shot from the tee box. On holes longer than par 3, players are expected to require at least one additional shot to reach their greens. While many holes are designed with a direct line-of-sight from the teeing ground to the green, a hole may bend either to the left or to the right. This is called a "dogleg", in reference to
5916-617: The player who had the best match-play score against Colonel Bogey. The term appeared in print in the 28 November 1891 issue of The Field , relating to competitions held at the United Services Golf Club, Gosport . The term gave the title to a 1914 British marching tune, " Colonel Bogey March ". As golf became more standardised in the United States, par scores were tightened and recreational golfers found themselves scoring over par, with bogey changing meaning to one-over-par. Scores in excess of one stroke more than par for
6003-502: The same tee box, fairway, or even green. It is also common for separate tee-off points to be positioned for men, women, and amateurs, each one respectively lying closer to the green. Eighteen-hole courses are traditionally broken down into a "front 9" (holes 1–9) and a "back 9" (holes 10–18). On older courses (especially links courses, like the Old Course at St. Andrews), the holes may be laid out in one long loop, beginning and ending at
6090-582: The second round, breaking the PGA Tour record. A hole score of two strokes fewer than par (two under par, −2) is known as an eagle, e.g. 2 strokes to complete a par 4 hole or 3 strokes on a par 5 hole. The name "eagle" was used to represent a better score than a birdie due to it being a relatively large bird . An eagle usually occurs when a golfer hits the ball far enough to reach the green with fewer strokes than expected. It most commonly happens on par-fives but can occur on short par-fours. A hole in one on
6177-417: The shape of the green and surrounding hazards, and the location of the hole (which often changes from day to day to promote even wear of the turf of the green), there may not be a direct putting line from a point on the green to the cup. Golfers use a method known as "reading" the green to enhance their chances of making a putt. Reading a green involves determining the speed, grain, incline, decline and tilt of
6264-499: The shore, as well as an additional four holes designed in 1934 which are accessible via a tunnel. In 2017, Sharp Park Golf Course was designated a Historic Resource Property under the California Environmental Quality Act . In a statement to NBC , architect Jay Blasi stated, "They are not making any more MacKenzies near the Pacific... This is a one-of-a-kind in the world of golf." The area around
6351-402: The similarity to a dog's ankle. The hole is called a "dogleg left" if the hole angles leftwards, and a "dogleg right" if the hole angles rightwards. A hole's direction may bend twice, which is called a "double dogleg". Just as there are good-quality grasses for putting greens, there are good-quality grasses for the fairway and rough. The quality of grass influences the roll of the ball as well as
6438-567: The species' habitats. Golf course A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a tee box , a fairway , the rough and other hazards , and a green with a cylindrical hole in the ground, known as a "cup". The cup holds a flagstick, known as a "pin". A standard round of golf consists of 18 holes, and as such most courses contain 18 distinct holes; however, there are many 9-hole courses and some that have holes with shared fairways or greens. There are also courses with
6525-448: The stroke. Courses may also have other design features which the skilled player will avoid; there are earth bunkers (pits or depressions in the ground that are not filled with sand but require a lofted shot to escape), high grass and other dense vegetation, trees or shrubs, ravines and other rocky areas, steep inclines, etc.; while disadvantageous to play from, these are typically not considered "hazards" unless specifically designated so by
6612-411: The surrounding fairway. Each tee box has two markers showing the bounds of the legal tee area. The teeing area spans the distance between the markers, and extends two-club lengths behind the markers. A golfer may stand outside the teeing area, but the ball must be placed and hit from inside it. A golfer may place his ball directly on the surface of the teeing ground (called hitting it "off the deck"), or
6699-592: The tee to the green, par-4 holes will be 240–490 yards (220–450 m), par-5 holes will be 450–710 yards (410–650 m) and par-6 holes will be over 670 yards (610 m). For women, par-3 holes will be under 220 yards (200 m) from the tee to the green, par-4 holes will be 200–420 yards (180–380 m), par-5 holes will be 370–600 yards (340–550 m) and par-6 holes will be over 570 yards (520 m) These boundaries are commonly extended or shortened for elite or non-elite tournament players, who will often encounter par-4 holes of 500 yards (460 m) or more; this
6786-416: The third round, and a 69 in the fourth round. That would give a tournament score of 284, or "four-under-par". Scores on each hole are reported in the same way that course scores are given. Names are commonly given to scores on holes relative to par. A hole score equal to the par of the hole is simply called a par. The term is thought to have originated from the stock exchange , where it was used to describe
6873-477: The time of its donation, the site primarily consisted of wetlands , artichoke fields , and sand dunes . Through 1931, the property's ocean lagoon was deepened and converted into a fresh-water lake, and fairways and tees were sited on islands and spits. MacKenzie included several of his signature design tropes, including cross bunkering, double fairways, multiple tees, mounded greens, undulating fairways, and optical illusions. The Spanish Revival -style clubhouse
6960-461: The topography of sand dunes and dune slacks with a ground cover of grasses, exposed to the wind and sea. Courses are private, public, or municipally owned, and typically feature a pro shop . Many private courses are found at country clubs . The golf course has its roots dating to the 18th century. The 18-hole course Old Course was established in 1764 at St Andrews , Scotland and has existed under its name since 1895. In 2009, Nullarbor Links ,
7047-755: The tournament except Piñero, who finished third. A hole score of one stroke fewer than par (one under par, −1) is known as a birdie, e.g. 2 strokes to complete a par 3 hole or 4 strokes on a par 5 hole. This expression was coined in 1899, at the Atlantic City Country Club in Northfield, New Jersey . According to a story that has been passed down, one day in 1899, three golfers, George Crump (who later built Pine Valley Golf Club , about 45 miles away), William Poultney Smith (founding member of Pine Valley), and his brother Ab Smith, were playing together when Crump hit his second shot only inches from
7134-766: The world's longest golf course spanning 1,365 kilometres, was established along the Eyre Highway , in Australia. In 2023, the golf course at Moundbuilders Country Club , was integrated into the world heritage-listed Hopewell Culture National Historical Park . Although a specialty within landscape design or landscape architecture , golf course architecture is considered a separate field of study. Some golf course designers become celebrities in their own right, such as Alister MacKenzie ; others are professional golfers of high standing and demonstrated appreciation for golf course composition, such as Jack Nicklaus . The field
7221-414: The world, reproducing the broken, treeless terrain with deep bunkers of their Scottish prototypes. An executive course or short course is a course with a total par significantly less than that of a typical 18-hole course. Two main types exist: These types of courses provide a faster pace of play than a standard course, and get their name from their target patronage of business executives who would play
7308-566: Was designed by an associate at Willis Polk 's architecture firm and includes murals by the Works Progress Administration . The course debuted in 1932. In the early 1940s, large storms washed out parts of MacKenzie's original routing, resulting in the construction of a seawall to protect the course. From 1942 until 1946, the area east of the golf course was used by the War Relocation Authority as
7395-547: Was made by Gene Sarazen in 1935 on the 15th hole at Augusta National Golf Club during the final round of the Masters Tournament . It vaulted him into a tie for first place and forced a playoff, which he won the next day. The sportswriters of the day termed it "the shot heard 'round the world ." Between 1970 and 2003, 84 such shots (averaging about 2.5 per year) were recorded on the PGA Tour . Recent well-publicised albatrosses include those by Joey Sindelar at
7482-493: Was the first course in North Carolina to utilize a special Bermuda called Mini Verde. A green is generally established from sod which has had the soil washed off of it (to avoid soil compatibility problems) and which is then laid tightly over the green, then rolled and topdressed with fine sand. Another common and more economical approach for establishing a putting green is to introduce hybrid Bermuda sprigs (the stolon of
7569-590: Was the number of strokes a good golfer should take at each hole, and first came into use at the Great Yarmouth Golf Club in England in about 1890, based on the phrase " bogey man " and a popular music hall song " Here Comes the Bogey Man ". Players competed against Colonel Bogey , an imaginary player, who scored a predetermined number of strokes on each hole. The winner of the competition was
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