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Footgolf

Footgolf
Martin Skrtel FootGolf.jpg
Slovak footballer Martin Škrtel playing footgolf
Highest governing body Federation for International FootGolf (FIFG)
Characteristics
Contact No
Team members Teams or single competitors
Mixed gender Yes
Type Outdoor
Equipment Football (indoor or turf soccer shoes)
Venue Golf course
Presence
Olympic No
Paralympic No

Footgolf is a precision sport, in which players kick a soccer ball into a cup in as few shots as possible. The name is a portmanteau of football and golf, and the game combines the two sports, being more closely related to golf.

The game is played similarly to golf, with the exception that players use a soccer ball instead of a golf ball, and the ball is kicked rather than struck with a club, working toward a 21-inch "cup" in place of the usual golf hole. The player who finishes the course with the fewest shots wins. Indeed, footgolf is often played on golf courses, though it may also be played on specially built grass footgolf courses. The first shot has to be played from the tee box, and bunkers, trees, water and hills must be crossed or avoided in order to reach the hole.

The game is played with a regulation No. 5 soccer ball. Because football-soccer balls travel less distance than golf balls, footgolf is played on holes shorter than those used in golf. For instance, one course in California features holes that average 157 yards.Pars are typically 5 shots or fewer.

Paul Collinson of the UK Footgolf Association has observed that, compared to golf, footgolf is quicker to play, more accessible, and does not require expensive equipment.

The origins of footgolf are uncertain. A game with roughly similar rules, codeball, attained brief popularity in the United States during the late 1920s and 1930s. Swiss players has been practicing a variation of the game since the late 1980s and the Scandinavian countries starting playing the game under different names and rules in the 1990s. Michael Jansen and Bas Korsten, creators of the Footgolf uniform, basic rules and organisers of the first tournament played the way the sport is played today around the world, officially launched FootGolf in the Netherlands in 2008. They learned of the sport from Korsten's brother, Dutch footballer Willem Korsten, who recalled playing a similar game during his time with British club Tottenham Hotspur between 1999 and 2001, who would end training sessions by kicking the ball from the pitch back to the changing rooms in as short a time as possible.


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