HOME
LOCAL NEWS
ART & CULTURE
OUR TASTE
NATURE
GOLF
REAL ESTATE
ENDLESS DISCOVERING
FROM THE NORTH
FROM THE SOUTH
WEDDING DESTINATION
MEXICO MIRROR
CLASSIFIED

WHAT'S NEW...
TO STAY...
TO EAT...
TO SEE & DO...
TO SHOP...
TO INVEST...
WHAT ELSE...
VALLARTA TIPS...

GOLF

When we say golf, we talk about a sport of kings. With over 400 years of history, golf has spread its magic over the world and has fascinated princes, presidents, sheiks, rock stars.. In what is the magic rooted? Maybe in the communion reached with nature, maybe in the mental and physical skill it requires and also - why not - in its surprising history.

Golf as we know it today, begins to write its history between the 14th and 15th century, but its origin is still uncertain and controversial. Some researchers trace it back to the imperial roman game of paganica , which was very popular amongst the roman farmers during the first years of the empire. How was it played? The story goes that a

leather ball filled with feathers was thrown with a folded up stick towards an established mark on the ground. Other experts consider golf an evolution from the French jeu de mail , where the wooden mail or mallet hit a ball made of the same material. Whoever needed the least hits for the ball to reach an established point, was the winner. This game had a lot in common with present-day golf.

The Dutch kolven or kolf as well as the pall Mall, the cross, the chole or the cambuca are considered as possible forerunners simple because they all use a stick and a small ball in order to be practiced. The following advice has been reached: Give the credit of being the precursors of golf to the Scots - even though the origins of golf also remain in the dark in Scotland - however it is said that it was invented by the fishermen of that country in order to keep busy once they returned to firm ground: they hit a stone with a stick through the links or through the open fields covered with thick grass until putting it in a hole. Legend says that golf has 18 holes because there are 18 shots in a bottle of whisky; once the bottle is empty, the game is over, as well. The markers of the holes that are preserved in that country show the connection of golf to the fishermen: a basket consisting of a cylinder of interwoven reed with some kind of funnel tied to a stem of bamboo.

Time passed and with it the passion for practicing this peculiar game was extinguished. The heyday of this sport in England took place during the Victorian period; it caused such frenzy in London's aristocracy that it was played in the heart of the city. The players broke doors, windows and used to hurt passer-byes . Until the authorities intervened in order to protect the public and compelled the players to go to the countryside.

While in Scotland all social classed placed golf, in England it was restricted for a long time to the middle and higher classes and today it still preserves that aristocratic air. Fortunately what has changed is the wardrobe, used to play in. Well then around the 16 th century ladies and gentlemen of the London aristocracy played in gala dress, which is why, when this sport arrived in the United States of America, it had the image of a "game for gentemen".

Another important element that has been modified with the passing of time and the arrival of modern times is the variety of the material for the production of golf balls. At the beginning the ball was out made out of wood, but soon it was improved by balls made out of leather, filled with feathers or cow's fur. Around 1850 the balls started to be produced with gutta-percha - a caoutchouc coming from Indonesia. This small forward move caused things to change, since it affected aspects of the game like the design of the clubs, the style of the game, the characteristics of the flight of the ball itself and the length of the course.

It took various years of experimentation in order to find the adequate ball, all kinds of humanly imaginable materials were tested: mercury, soap, steel in small loose balls or in powder, compressed air, wood, glycerin, oil, honey, soil, rubber, cork, celluloid and even human hair! Water with glycerin turned out to be the best choice.

Soon the balata was discovered as a coating offering a softer sensation of the hit, which allowed the cushioned grips or golf clubs to be reduced, leaving more or less those materials of the game that we know today.

The first clubs that formed far away from England were the Calcutta Golf Club of East India in 1829 and the Royal Bombay Club in 1842. In America the first one was Canada's Royal Montreal Golf Club in 1873.

Very short golf glossary:

Basic Objective of Golf:
Putting the ball into the hole with the least possible number of hits.

Tee:
Starting point of every hole, this is where the game starts. It is also the name for the cone used to raise the ball 1.3 cm off the ground in order to carry out the swing.

Links:
Round of 18 holes in a regular game, there are also 36, 54, and 72 holes which imply 2 or 3 rounds through the course.

Putting green?
Section defined by a hole which is pointed out by a flag

Drive:
Long starting hit

Fairway:
Very well cared for area of the course with a trimmed lawn. The main route of the game.

Rough:
Area of the course with high grass which makes it difficult for the ball to move on.

Putt :
Iron club used for precise hits.

Approach:
Coming close to the hole.

Green:
Very well cut lawn area bordering the hole

Match Play:
It is also called game by hole, where the winner is determined for having finished the course.

Medal Play:
It is also called play by hits, where the winner is determined for having finished the course.

Par:
It applies to the Medal Play. It is the number of expected hits for a player to make the hole. For a distance of less than 228m you should have 3 hits and 2 putts.

Hole in one:
Unusual hole achieved through a game of 3 hits during the first opportunity.

At the present time you can find golf courses that possess challenges for the players. In Puerto Vallarta and Banderas Bay have various golf courses taking advantage of the great beauty of our natural surroundings and offering spectacular challenges for the players.

Banderas Bay Golf Courses:

Archives by date