Components Of The Fairway

The Fairway Itself

The fairway is the "closely mown" area that runs from the teeing ground to the green. The hole also has an area of "rough", usually down both sides. The rough area can also be placed around the back and sides of the green (and teeing ground). There are normally at least two cuts of rough. The first cut is high enough that a ball rolling towards the rough might not be able to roll into the rough but would roll along the edge of the first cut. However, a ball lying in the first cut could be readily hit, although with less control than from the fairway. In the second cut of rough it might be difficult to find the ball and difficult to hit it with any distance, depending on the depth of the grass. The depth and condition of the grass in either cut of rough tends to vary widely with the time of year and the maintenance practices. For example, in northern latitudes in the late Fall, even the deepest rough may be sparse and dry.

Once a player becomes more experienced, they have a better feel how far they can hit the ball under normal conditions. They then need to know their distance from various points before they choose which club to hit. Most golf clubs provide some system of indicating the distance from the center of the green. It may be by the use of stakes situated either in the center or side of the fairway. It may be by inserting a surface marker at various distances in the centre of the fairway. It may also be by inscribing distances on the heads of the watering system sprinklers. It may be by a combination of any of these approaches. In the case of fairway markers, it is traditional to indicate the distance points of 200, 150, and 100 yards from the center of the green.

Some clubs provide a comprehensive drawing of each hole with distances shown from various points to the center of the green and to various hazards along the way. Other clubs provide electronic tools on their carts to indicate very accurate distances. Players are allowed to use electronic measuring devices to determine their distance from the hole. One is a laser optical tool that measures the exact distance to the flag. However, you must ensure that you are sighting exactly on the flag or you might accidentally be sighted on a tree behind the green. The other drawback is that you must have a visual line to the flag. This may be difficult if your ball is on a neighboring fairway! (perish the thought). A more useful device, in my opinion, although slightly less accurate than the laser tool, is the GPS-based tool. It tells you the distance to the hole from any position on the golf course.

There may be some courses that indicate yardages to the front of the green rather than to the center. Usually this is indicated on the scorecard or mentioned by the starter. If in doubt - ask!

Replacing Divots

Divots occur when a club strikes into the surface of the grass - either the fairway or the rough - and actually removes a piece of the ground (the divot). In an extreme case the hole could be quite large. The resulting damage must be repaired. Generally, this merely means replacing the divot and tamping it level with the head of the club or the foot. In some cases, golf clubs require that the divot not be replaced but that a mixture of sand and seed (provided) be used to fill the divot hole. In this instance, you should carefully level the sand/seed mixture to the same height as the fairway, and then tamp it down slightly. In the rough the hole only needs to be filled to the ground level.As in the repair of ball marks on the green, it is a good idea to repair others as you pass them, without delaying the game.

Ground Under Repair (GUR)

Ground under repair will usually be indicated by a white line surrounding the affected area. If the area is large enough it may be staked. You should not play from this area and you can remove your ball to get relief, without penalty. You should drop your ball, no closer to the hole and resume play. Note that if the GUR is in the rough, you must drop your ball in the rough. In other words, you may have relief from the GUR but not the rough.

Cart Path

A cart path may run along the hole for either part or all of it. Some clubs may require players to use carts and stay on the cart path. Others may allow players to either walk or use a cart at their discretion. Others may allow carts to be used on the fairway at the players discretion or may require them to approach the ball from the cart path or rough at a 90 degree angle. Whatever the course rules for the use of carts, make sure that you know them.

To return from The Fairway to The Golf Course click here