What is a Links Golf Course?
There are thirty to forty thousand golf courses in the world. These golf courses are broken down into three types: links, parkland, and desert. Pro golfers usually golf on links and parkland. Links golf courses are near sandy coastlines and parkland golf courses are found inland. What makes the courses tough are the obstacles each course has. If pro golfers did not have these obstacles, the golf courses would be too easy for them to play on. Even though links golf courses and parkland golf courses have similar obstacles, they both have their own kind of features which give pro golfers different challenges.
One similarity both links and parkland courses have is the structure of golf, which is the number of holes played, the par, and the length. Both courses offer eighteen holes of over seven thousand yards in the distance where a pro golfer tries to achieve the score of par which can be anywhere from twenty-eight to thirty-seven.
The holes played, the par, and the length combined makes it a hard goal to reach for some pro golfers.
All in all, both links and parkland courses offer the same structure of challenges a pro golfer must overcome. Another similarity both links and parkland courses have is weather. Depending on the location of the course, weather can play a big role in a golfer’s game. Since link courses are closer to the coastline, there may be a lot of wind and rain.
Parkland courses also receive wind and rain. Pro golfers will play their worst golf when weather is present. Overall, both links and parkland courses give a similar amount of a challenge to a pro golfer when the weather is present. The last similarity both links and parkland golf courses have is out of bounds which is tall grass, roads, or fences. Both courses offer some sort of out of bounds which puts the boundaries as to where the pro golfer can hit the ball. If a golfer hits their ball out of bounds, it can hurt their score.
To sum up, both links and parkland courses offer out of bounds which are used to challenge the pro golfer. As for the differences between links and parkland golf courses, each course has different penalty areas. Link courses have bunkers which are large holes in the ground filled with sand. If a golfer hits their ball into a bunker, it can be a struggle to get it out. Because of this, the pro golfer’s score will be hurt. As for parkland courses, they have water. This water can be lakes, ponds, rivers, or streams. When a golfer hits the golf ball into the water, they will not be able to retrieve their ball. It will be a penalty and will affect their score. Therefore, links courses and parkland courses offer different type of challenges for golfers when it comes to penalty areas. Another difference between link and parkland golf courses is the speed of the fairways. Fairways are the distance between the start of the hole and the end of the hole. Links golf courses have fast fairways.
The workers at the golf course do not water the fairways so the grass dies and causes the ground to become harder. When a pro golfer golfs, this type of course, they will get closer to the hole because the golf ball hits the hard ground and takes multiple bounces. The bad part about this is the golfer does not know what direction the golf ball will go. It could put them in a riskier place. Parkland golf courses have slower fairways. The owners of the course water the fairways causing the grass to grow. When a pro golfer golfs, this type of course, the golf ball will be farther from the hole because of the friction. The grass will slow the ball down. The advantage for the golfer is since the course is slower, the golfer will usually know which direction the ball will be going. This will put a golfer in a better position. In brief, links courses and parkland courses offer different type of challenges for golfers when it comes to fairways. The last difference between links and parkland golf courses is the type of green. The green is an oval shape where the hole and flagstick are located. Link courses have large, slow greens. The large size of the green will be easier to hit from a farther distance but will be harder to get the golf ball into the hole at a closer distance.
The slow greens will cause the speed of the golf ball to be slower so the pro golfer will leave it short of the hole. Parkland courses have small, fast greens. The smaller size of the greens will be harder to hit from farther distances but will be easier to get the golf ball into the hole at a closer distance. The fast greens will cause the speed of the golf ball to roll faster which will result in the pro golfer hitting it past the hole. Therefore, links courses and parkland courses offer different type of challenges because of their greens. I am a golfer and have played both links and parkland. Like the pro golfers, I have struggled with both types of courses. They have given me problems since I have started playing golf. For the non-golfer or for someone who is wanting to learn golf, hopefully this information has been interesting and beneficial. Although the courses can be challenging it can make the game of golf fun.
