A golf course is the grounds where the game of golf is played. It comprises a series of holes, each consisting of a teeing ground, a fairway, the rough and other hazards, and a green with a flagstick ("pin") and hole ("cup"). A standard round of golf consists of 18 holes. Most courses contain 18 holes; some share fairways or greens, and a subset has nine holes, played twice per round. Par-3 courses consist of nine or 18 holes all of which have a par of three strokes.
Many older courses are links, often coastal. Courses are private, public, and municipally owned, and typically feature a pro shop. Many private courses are found at country clubs.
Although a specialty within landscape design or landscape architecture, golf course architecture is considered a separate field of study. Some golf course architects become celebrities in their own right, such as Robert Trent Jones, Jr.; others are professional golfers of high standing and demonstrated appreciation for golf course composition, such as Jack Nicklaus. The field 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, though 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 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 almost always artificial, although other hazards may be natural.
The layout of a fairway follows certain traditional principles, such as the number of holes (nine and 18 being most common), their par values, and 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 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 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 designed 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 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.
- Par 3 – 250 yards (230 m) and below
- Par 4 – 251–450 yards (230–411 m)
- Par 5 – 451–690 yards (412–631 m)
- Par 6 – 691 yards (632 m) or more
- Par 3 – 210 yards (190 m) and below
- Par 4 – 211–400 yards (193–366 m)
- Par 5 – 401–575 yards (367–526 m)
- Par 6 – 575 yards (526 m) or more
See also: Golf course superintendent, Greenskeeper, Turf management § Golf courses, Equipment manager § Golf, and Groundskeeping
- Par 3 – 250 yards (230 m) and below
- Par 4 – 251–450 yards (230–411 m)
- Par 5 – 451–690 yards (412–631 m)
- Par 6 – 691 yards (632 m) or more
- Par 3 – 210 yards (190 m) and below
- Par 4 – 211–400 yards (193–366 m)
- Par 5 – 401–575 yards (367–526 m)
- Par 6 – 575 yards (526 m) or more
- Red - Closest to the hole and often placed to minimize the influence of major hazards like water; typically used by ladies of all ages, juniors (up to age 12), and novice players of any age/gender.
- Gold- Next farthest, typically used by teenage boys, low-handicap ladies, and senior or high-handicap men.
- White - Farther still, typically used by low-to-average-handicap men and low-handicap teenage boys.
- Black or Blue - The farthest tee from the hole and with the most exposure to any major hazards; typically used only during tournaments or by zero-handicap ("scratch") male players.
- A "9-hole course", typically the type referred to as an "executive course", has only 9 holes instead of 18, but with the otherwise normal mix of par-3, par-4 and par-5 holes (typically producing a par score of between 34 and 36), and the course can be played through once for a short game, or twice for a full round.
- A "par-3" course has either 9 or 18 holes, and the distance of each hole is a par 3 rating (typically 240 yards or less from the "men's" tee), with no par-4 or par-5 holes mandating shots through the green (though, occasionally, a "par-3" course may feature a par-4 or even a par-5 hole). As a result, the total par for 18 holes of a par-3 course would be 54 instead of a typical 68-72. Some par-3 courses still require the use of a wood on some tee shots, and thus a "complete" set of clubs is used.
- A common standardized type of par-3 course is the "Pitch and Putt" course, where each of the 9 or 18 holes has a distance from tee to cup of less than 100 yards, with an overall 18-hole course distance no more than 1,200 yards (so each hole averages 67 yards). This allows the course to be played without a full set of clubs; typically only wedges are needed, possibly a 9-iron for the longest holes, along with a putter, to play the course. The rules for formal Pitch and Putt competitions mandate a three-club limit, consisting of two irons and one putter.
- A common standardized type of par-3 course is the "Pitch and Putt" course, where each of the 9 or 18 holes has a distance from tee to cup of less than 100 yards, with an overall 18-hole course distance no more than 1,200 yards (so each hole averages 67 yards). This allows the course to be played without a full set of clubs; typically only wedges are needed, possibly a 9-iron for the longest holes, along with a putter, to play the course. The rules for formal Pitch and Putt competitions mandate a three-club limit, consisting of two irons and one putter.
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