The popularity of the game of golf has increased tremendously over the past forty-five years, giving us great champions like Arnold Palmer, Greg Norman, and Tiger Woods and world-renowned courses like Pinehurst, St. Andrews, Augusta National and the Blue Monster at Doral.

Why has golf become so popular these days? Its the opportunity to be outside, to get a good whole body workout, network with friends or business colleagues at a leisurely pace, and to play a game that you can never play perfectly.

Your achievements are tallied on your scorecard for all time and the desire to improve your game can encourage you to play again and again.

Here follows an elementary lesson for those who know nothing about golf.

The typical round of golf is played on a course of eighteen holes, each or which has its own ‘par’. Par is the total number of shots it should take a player to complete that hole, ie all the tee shots (drives), fairway shots, chips (short shots onto the green) and puts into the hole.

‘Par’ is determined by the length and difficulty of each hole and can range from three to six. So, if you get the golf ball in the hole in six shots on a ‘par six’ hole, you ‘made par’; if you make it in five, it’s a “birdie” or seven, a “bogie”.

‘Hazards’ or obstructions are usually placed before all the holes. Ponds, sand bunkers and trees are positioned in such a way as to make it more difficult to reach the green. Novice golfers should try to find a course with fewer hazards, which is therefore easier to play.

Players mark their own scorecard with the cumalative total of shots taken for each hole. After playing all the holes, the players add up their own scorecards and the one with the lowest score is the winner.

It is important for beginner golfers to not take themselves too seriously. It takes a long time to get good at this game; even though the professionals make it look so easy.

It makes very good sense to take a few lessons from the course pro, when you are just beginning to learn to play golf, because then you will learn how to stand and swing the golf club correctly.

We have all the seen the bewilderingly long and yet accurate drives of Tiger Woods. When he hits the ball, it flies through the air only to land in the bang middle of the fairway, 300 odd metres away.

The green-eyed monster of envy rises in us as we wonder if we could ever possibly hope to drive like that. Fortunately, long drives are not the be-all-and-end-all of the game of golf.

Enter the short game for without good short game skills, all the long drives are not worth a light.

The short game consists of those shots that get you onto the green from about one hundred feet out, be it from the fairway, a bunker, the rough or a drop zone and includes chips, sand shots and pitches.

This is where you get to use your higher numbered golf clubs, as well as your pitching iron and sand wedge or lob wedge.

You will find practice areas on most golf courses. You really must spend some time working on hitting the ball onto the green from various distances. Try to hit a ten-foot circle in the centre of the green at first. Experiment using your wedges, but remember that what works well for one person, might not work so well for you and your particular swing.

When you can perform this skill fairly consistently, it is about time to start practising how to get out of a sand bunker. Being able to get the ball out of a bunker can really cut your score quite dramatically and it is very frustrating if you can’t do it.

The way to get out of a bunker is to place your feet firmly in the sand with your left foot turned to point towards the hole. Draw an imaginary 4-inch circle around the ball and try to hit the outer edge of that circle with a short, sharp chip.

Try to take up lots of sand with the ball and swing completely through as you normally would. Don’t pull back on your swing at all when or after you have hit the ball. It should spring up gently onto the green and stop dead in its tracks. This doesn’t work very well though unless the sand is quite soft and dry. On harder or compacted surfaces, you might need to avoid actually hitting the sand completely.

However, as in every skill in the game of golf, it is only continual practice that will help you to improve your game.

The term ‘the long game’ refers to your drives (shots off the tee) and fairway shots; that is every shot except the shots you make to actually get onto the green.

Since each hole has a different difficulty level, different par and distinctive hazards, telling you to use your driver on every tee would blatantly be quite wrong.

This is something that you will need to learn over time as you learn the various shots you have to make depending on the club, the placement of the ball and your personal style of swing.

Without putting too fine a point on it, the lower the number of the club, the longer and lower your ball will travel through the air. So, for example, a 4-iron will make the ball travel on a long and low trajectory and that will most make it roll when it hits the ground, whereas a 9-iron will impart much more loft to the ball and ensuring that it will go less distance both in the air and over the ground.

Don’t the professionals on the television make it look easy? They whack the ball long and straight time after time after time and never slice the ball sending it a sickly eight or nine feet or miss the ball altogether.

One of the most important parts of the game is the drive. If you spend a few hours at the driving range you will see quite a big improvement in your long-distance shots. Use the same club in this experiment to see what affect it has, if you move the ball backward or forward or in your stance. And, if you can, take a lesson or two from a pro, to learn the proper swing from the start.

You must master the long game as it will help you get to the green in much fewer strokes, which will keep your score and frustration levels down. Don’t forget that it takes a long time to be consistently consistent and always remember: you’re supposed to be enjoying yourself!

The sport of golf has really boomed in public awareness over the last 45 years. It has produced fantastic world-champions such as Arnold Palmer, Greg Norman and Tiger Woods and world-renowned courses like St. Andrews, Sunningdale, Pinehurst ans Augusta.

Why has golf become so popular these days? Its the opportunity to be outside, to get a good whole body workout, network with friends or business colleagues at a leisurely pace, and to play a game that you can never play perfectly.

Your scorecard shows your progress, or lack of it, and this can spur you on to want to play again.

This is the first lesson for the novice golfer who doesn’t know anything about golfing.

The typical round of golf is played on a course of eighteen holes, each or which has its own ‘par’. Par is the total number of shots it should take a player to complete that hole, ie all the tee shots (drives), fairway shots, chips (short shots onto the green) and puts into the hole.

This ‘par’ value is based on the length and difficulty of the hole in question. Pars range from three to six, so if you get the ball into the hole in four shots on a ‘par four’ hole, you made ‘par’. However, if you took three shots, it’s called a ‘birdie’ or five shots a ‘bogie’.

There are usually “hazards” of some sort or other on all the holes. Bodies of water, sand traps, and trees are strategically placed to make reaching the hole more challenging. Beginner golfers should seek to find courses to play that are easier to play with fewer hazards.

Players keep their own score of the total number of shots taken for each hole. After the eighteenth hole, they add up their scores and the one with the lowest is the winner.

It is vital that beginners to golfing should not take the game too seriously, because it takes a very long time to play golf proficiently, even if the professionals on TV make it look so easy.

Take a lesson or two at the start of your golfing ‘career’, because it will help you develop a proper swing and help you get off to a good start.