Doing Away with the Green: a Guide to Different Types of Golf Courses

Have you ever seen golfers wearing thick jackets and muffs while teeing off? Or how about seeing players playing in the sand without any green grass at all? This is the face of some of today's most popular golf courses.

A typical golf course consists mainly of green grass. This is what we know as the tradition Links courses. Several centuries old Links courses are found in the United Kingdom. The word "Link" is said to be derived from a Middle English word "hill." It was originally meant to be a piece of land suitable for grazing sheep. Links courses are most located in coastal areas. Most of it is built on land reclaimed from the sea. In a typical links courses it said that there are only a few trees and a few artificial water hazards.

Unlike Links courses which are normally found in the coastal areas, Parkland courses are inland courses. They resemble the traditional parks wherein there are lots of trees. Xeriscape courses are similar to parkland courses the difference is that Xeriscape courses do not have artificial structures. They utilize the natural formation of the land and do not disturb the naturally growing plants and trees. Since they try to leave nature as it is, the watering requirements for this type of courses are minimal. In effect this is what is called as an "Environment friendly" course. A Heathland course is similar to a parkland course. The difference is that it is typically less wooded and is more open.

Recently there is a new trend in making golf courses. In countries where it is very hot and they do not have big areas upon which to grow green grass, golf designer are trying their luck on Desert courses. This is very popular in the Middle East, Australia and some states in the U.S.A. Contrary to what most people think, Desert courses requires heavy irrigation for it's maintenance. Playing in a Dessert course is a very unique experience though.

Another unique course is the Snow courses. This is a more recent type of golf course. The players in here use a bright colored ball or an orange colored ball.

In Sand courses, as the name implies the players play in the sand instead of the greens. Browns courses are common in parts of the India. They are similar to sand courses but they use layers of tar and gravel to give firmness and support to the sand so that the ball would be consistent in it's bounce and roll. A Brown course is used in the world's highest golf course found 11,600 feet above sea level in the Great Himalaya and the Tibetan Plateau. The course is maintained by the Indian army.

For those who would like to play only a short game of golf available are the Par 3 courses and the Executive courses. Par 3 courses simply mean that the entire golf course is made up of Par 3 holes. This is good for beginners as games done in Par 3 holes finish immediately. Executive courses are for business executives since it is still a regular 18 hole course but the area is much more smaller, making the game last more quickly.