Getting Started on the Golf Course: Key Parts of a Hole

As you begin to learn about golf, heading out to a golf course may seem intimidating. It doesn’t have to be. Sure, you’ll want to start at a driving range, or with lessons to get your bearings. But getting familiar with the basic features of a golf course will only help your game. Having a good working knowledge of the basic elements of a course will help you to understand why working on key parts of your game will pay off.

Want to better understand what makes a golf course? Keep reading.

What’s on a Golf Course

Golf courses typically have 18 holes – playing all 18 is playing a full round. As a beginner golfer, I frequently only played rounds of 9 with my friends as I got comfortable on the course. Some golf courses – like executive golf courses, or Par 3s – only offer 9 holes. We’ll talk more about those later, but today, let’s focus on the basics of a standard golf course.

A standard regulation golf course always has 18 holes. Holes are typically known as Par 3 (shorter distance), Par 4 (mid-length distance), or Par 5 (longer distance). How will you know the distance and par of the hole you’re on? Check the scorecard. Golf scorecards show both the par and the distance of the hole.

Wait a second – what’s par mean again? Par is the score you’d expect an expert golfer to play. For example, on a par 3 hole, an expert golfer would be expected to tee off, land on the green, and make it into the hole in less than 3 total shots.

Parts of a Hole: What to Expect

While the overall distance of each hole will vary, many of the hole’s features will remain the same.

Asian woman golfer action to win after long putting golf ball on the green golf, sunset time, copy space. Healthy Concept

All holes will have a tee box with markers, a fairway, a putting green and a cup marked by a flagstick. The ultimate objective is to get your ball from the tee box into that cup. Many golfers spend a lifetime working on this objective!

Holes will also have areas you don’t want to spend much (really, any) time on – the rough and the hazards.

More on each feature below:

Tee box: the tee box, also known as the teeing grown, is where you tee off from. This area is usually mowed short, and includes multiple tee markers for golfers of varying abilities to choose from.

Tee markers: tee markers indicate the spot where golfers must tee off from. They are often marked with round wooden balls or wooden slabs, and are color-coded. The most common color scheme is red, white and blue. Red tees – also known as forward tees – are the shortest distance to the hole, and are the tees beginning golfers want to choose. White tees are typically chosen by average golfers, and blue tees are the farthest back from the hole, best chosen by very experienced golfers. Your golf scorecard will indicate the distance to the hole from each set of tees.

The fairway: where you want to keep your ball while in play! This is the mowed area of the hole between the tee and the putting green.

The rough: these are the areas on the borders of the fairway – typically mowed longer or not mowed at all. There may be varying levels of rough (and this is where I, as an newer golfer can frequently find my ball) which require different strategies to get back onto the fairway.

Hazards: hazards may include sand or grass bunkers (depressions or landscaped features) or water hazards (similar, but water features) where you do not want your ball to go. Golf course designers and landscapers include and maintain hazards to challenge golfers as they make their way from the tee to the putting green.

Putting green: this area is at the end of the hole and includes the cup and flagstick. The putting green has the grass that has been mowed the shortest. Your goal is to make it to the putting green, so you can work on getting the ball into the hole. The putting green is bordered by the fringe, also known as the apron, which is grass that is mowed a bit longer.

Cup: also known as the hole, the cup is a circular hole in the ground, 4.25 inches in diameter, and your prime objective is to help your ball find its way there.