(WMS) - Golf is one of the most popular summertime sports, and in warm climates it is enjoyed year-round. Perhaps you've wondered just how the game came to be played and enjoyed throughout the world. According to www.golfing-scotland.com, the game has origins in 15th-century Europe.
Long before Tiger Woods and PGA tours, a game that came to be known as golf was born. Throughout recorded history, every civilization played a game with a club and a ball. In one form or another, the variant games of present day golf were clearly enjoyed throughout Europe during the Middle Ages. The game persisted over the centuries and the form that it took and rules that were applied varied as widely as the terrain the game was played over. In short, the game consisted of knocking a ball from one pre-designated place to another where the ball was to be struck off a predetermined object in the least number of blows. Games often extended from village to village.
Whatever the exact origins, it is known that by the 15th century, "kolf" as it was known in the Netherlands and "goff" as it was referred to in England, was a pastime enjoyed by Kings and commoners alike. So widespread was the game of "Gowf," as it was known in Scotland, that an Act of Parliament was passed to prevent the playing of the game on Sundays and thus preserving the skills of archery. The citizens of Aberdeen, St. Andrews and Leith on Scotland's East Coast were the principal "gowfing" miscreants and it was no coincidence that rolling sandy links land were commonplace there. On this very terrain, a game that started with a cleek and a ball took on a form that started an evolutionary process that continues to this day.
If your golfing knowledge begins and ends with "Caddyshack," then it might be time to brush up on your golfing terminology. Here are a few key definitions to get you on track.
addressing the ball -- A player hs addressed the ball when he or she has taken a stance and grounded the club.
ball in play -- A ball is considered to be in play when the player has made a stroke on the teeing ground. The ball will remain in play until it is holed out.
hazard -- A hazard is a bunker or lakes, rivers, ponds and ditches.
holed -- A ball is considered to be "holed" when it is all the way below the level of the lip of the hole.
line of play -- The line of play is the direction that the player wishes his or her ball to travel. It includes a reasonable distance to either side of the intended line of putt.
stroke -- A stroke is the forward movement of a club made with the intent to strike and move the ball. A stroke has occurred if a player checks their swing before the club strikes the ball.