VI RULES AND REGULATIONS

The rules of play for golf are numerous and complex. They include a code of etiquette for behavior on the green.
The game was originally played with a ball made of feathers tightly packed in a leather cover. About 1850 a ball made of gutta-percha came into use. Gutta-percha is a milky liquid, derived principally from Malaysian trees, that hardens after being boiled and cooled. About 1901 a ball with a rubber core enclosed in gutta-percha, similar to the ball in use today, was developed. The pitted surface of modern golf balls acts to stabilize flight. Golf balls must have a diameter of no less than 1.68 in (4.27 cm) and weigh not more than 1.62 oz (45.93 g).

VII TOURNAMENTS
Each year many golf tournaments take place. The most important professional tournaments for men are the Masters, the U.S. Open, the British Open, and the PGA Championship. Collectively these four events form the grand slam of golf. Until 1960 the grand slam was considered to be the U.S. Open, the British Open, the U.S. Amateur, and the British Amateur, but with the increasing importance of professional golf in the mid-20th century, the Masters and the PGA Championship gained preeminence over the two amateur tournaments. However, the U.S. and British amateurs remain important events for nonprofessionals. For women the four professional tournaments forming the grand slam are the LPGA Championship, the U.S. Women's Open, the du Maurier Classic, and the Dinah Shore. The most important amateur events for women are the U.S. Women's Amateur and the British Women's Amateur Championship.

International matches are also played. The Walker Cup (for men) and the Curtis Cup (for women) are contests between amateur golfers from the United States and Britain. The Ryder Cup (for men) and the Solheim Cup (for women) are contests between professional golfers from the United States and the rest of the world. (Before 1979 the Ryder Cup was contested only between American and British teams.) World competition tournaments for men also include the Eisenhower Cup for amateurs, the World Cup for professionals, and the Shun Nomura Trophy and the Francis H. I. Brown International Team Match Trophy for seniors. World competition tournaments for women also include the Espirito Santo Trophy.

The most famous feat in the history of golf was achieved by the American amateur player Bobby Jones, who in 1930 achieved the grand slam of golf at the time by winning the British Open, the British Amateur, the U.S. Open, and the U.S. Amateur. No other player has ever won the grand slam in golf. One of the greatest women players of all time was Babe Didrikson Zaharias, an American who competed both as an amateur and as a professional. Other outstanding golfers include American players Walter Hagen, Gene Sarazen, Sam Snead, Ben Hogan, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Nancy Lopez, Kathy Whitworth, Tom Watson, JoAnne Carner, Pat Bradley, Lee Trevino, Patty Sheehan, Patty Berg, and Mickey Wright; British players Harry Vardon and Nick Faldo; Australian player Greg Norman; Zimbabwean player Nick Price; South African player Gary Player; and Spanish player Severiano Ballesteros.

Date: 2016-01-03; view: 1009