Contents
1. Health Benefits of Golf
2. Rules of Golf
3. History of Golf
A game of golf is both mentally stimulating and physically challenging. Golf may not be considered a physically demanding sport, but one round will likely mean you are outside and moving around, 고스톱 walking at a pace of 6-7km, for several hours at a time and constantly using your brain for the many mental challenges you face. There are many stated health benefits of golf, from scientific and anecdotal sources, but just how good is the game for the body and mind?
Health Benefits of Golf
- Heart health – any form of physical exercise helps get the blood pumping to your heart. Walking, carrying your bag and swinging all increase your heart rate and blood flow. Your risk of a stroke and diabetes are reduced, and there can be positive effects on reducing blood pressure and harmful cholesterol, especially if combined with a healthy diet and lifestyle. The Norwegian Golf Federation (NGF) found that during an 18-hole round, a player will have an average heart rate of 100 beats per minute, over a two to five hour period
- Brain stimulation – regular daily walking strengthens the brain’s memory circuits. Clive Ballard, director of research at the Alzheimer’s Society, says: 'Whether it is going for a jog or walking the golf course, keeping physically active is a great way to keep your heart and your brain healthy. By keeping active you make sure your brain has a good, strong blood supply, which is essential to help it function better now and in future.”
- Weight loss – the golden number of steps per day needed for weight loss is 10,000. An 18-hole round easily exceeds this recommended number, especially when you walk and do not use a golf cart. The Norwegian Golf Federation (NGF) found that recent research projects (referring to those in Norway, Japan, Germany, the US and Sweden) revealed that a male golfer burns around 2,500 kCal during an 18-hole round, and female players burn approximately 1,500 kCal (read 9 Holes for Better Health – in Norwegian)
- Reduces stress – the pleasure of walking in fresh air, socialising, with an added mental challenge means golf releases endorphins, the natural mood-enhancing chemicals in your brain, which make you happy and relaxed
- Improved sleep – exercise and fresh air are a powerful combination for improved sleep. Walking the course will give you a good workout. Regular exercise helps you sleep faster and remain in a deep sleep for longer. Sleep helps your muscles rest and repair
- Low injury – golf is a low-impact activity in the sense that one walks on a soft, gently rolling surface. More mature players find this attractive as they can burn calories with a low risk of injury
- Live longer – a Swedish study by the Karolinska Institutet led by Professor Anders Ahlbom, found that golfers have a 40% lower death rate, which corresponds to a 5-year increase in life expectancy .
Rules of Golf
- The ball must be hit using standard clubs from the start of each hole to the green and ultimately into the hole, which is marked by a flag.
- Players strike the ball in turn with the furthest away from the hole going first. At the start of a new hole whoever took the least shots on the preceding hole shall go first.
- The penalty for a lost ball is one stroke and this includes balls struck out of bounds (off that particular hole) or into water hazards. You have five minutes to search for your ball and the penalty is both stroke (one shot) if the ball is lost and additionally distance (you play again from your original starting point) if it goes out of bounds or into the water.
- Players can only use up to 14 clubs.
- Players cannot seek advice from anyone other than their partner or caddy.
- The ball should be played as it is found – you must not move, break or bend anything fixed or growing, other than to assume your normal stance, to improve the lie of the ball, your line of site or your area of swing.
- On the putting green a player can mark, lift and clean his ball so long as it is replaced exactly where it was. He or she may also repair ball marks or hole plugs but not spike marks that are on the putting line.
History of Golf
We don’t want you yawning, so we’ll keep it short. Golf can be traced back millennia to China, but the modern, 18-hole version started in Scotland in the 1400’s. The first recorded mention of golf was when it was banned by Parliament in 1457 because it was distracting people from military training. The Scots preferred a round of golf over sword fighting, it seems.
