Golf course

[2][3] 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.

In 2023, the golf course at Moundbuilders Country Club, was integrated into the world heritage-listed Hopewell Culture National Historical Park.

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.

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.

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.

[10] 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.

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 the surrounding fairway.

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.

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.

Bunkers are small to medium areas, usually lower than the fairway but of varying topography, that are filled with sand and generally incorporate a raised lip or barrier.

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.

[17] Links is a Scottish term, from the Old English word hlinc : "rising ground, ridge", describing coastal sand dunes and sometimes similar areas inland.

[19] 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 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 is naturally treeless and this combined with their coastal location makes wind and weather an important factor in links golf.

[19] The holes may share fairways and sometimes greens (such as at St Andrews to economize on land use, but in modern times this is rare due to the potential for injury from balls coming the other way.

[20] Links and links-style golf courses have been developed throughout the world, reproducing the broken, treeless terrain with deep bunkers of their Scottish prototypes.

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.

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 a "Pay and Play" course open to the general public.

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.

[24] Many commercial and municipal establishments have associated golf clubs, who arrange competitions for their members on the courses and may provide clubhouse facilities.

A 2019 study[25] revealed that 78% of the world's supply of golf courses are located in 10 countries: the United States, Japan, Canada, England, Australia, Germany, France, South Korea, Sweden and Scotland.

Specific issues include the amount of water required for irrigation and the use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers in maintenance, as well as the destruction of wetlands and other environmentally important areas during construction.

[citation needed] The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency prohibited the use of Diazinon on golf courses and sod farms because of its negative impact on bird species in 1988.

The USGA shares best management practices and case studies of U.S. golf courses, on topics such as irrigation efficiency, use of recycled water, stormwater infrastructure, native grasses, and increasing pollinator habitat.

[31][32] Golf courses can be built on sandy areas along coasts, on abandoned farms, among strip mines, and quarries, and in deserts and forests.

Those methods of use include building communities for the homeless and under privileged, national parks and foresty for tourism, growth of wildlife, and animals to roam free.

This act was supported by very strict laws in Saudi Arabia including stewardship, carbon and climate footprint reduction, and restoration of the economy as well.