sport

Golfer training

Edited by Fabio Grossi and Michela Verardo

Introduction to golf

Background

Golf in Italy

Prepare yourself physically

Athletic preparation for golf

Many of us don't know, but golf with over 50 million players is one of the most popular sports in the world. Probably because, unlike many other activities, it can be practiced without distinction by men and women, by children, adults and the elderly. For some it is actually a sporting discipline, for others it is fun, for others it is still a pleasant and healthy addiction. Concentration, calm and strong nerves are the essential qualities in this game. A game or a sport that is undoubtedly unifying, thanks to structures such as clubs and clubs, where the integrity of the individual in proving respect for other players and in strict observation of the rules is crucial (golf is very often played without the supervision of an arbitrator ...).

According to Giovanni Valentini in the book "La magia del golf" (see biblio) golf is an opportunity to improve indefinitely . To become good golf players, it is not enough to know the technique or have a well trained physique, but it is necessary to practice it with continuity and passion. As in every aspect of life, through practice, automatisms, routine movements are developed and confidence in one's own means is improved. Dario Cusani, Neapolitan journalist and artist, defines golf as a moving art, where every stroke requires creativity and strategy to get into the hole with the best solution; but in addition to imagination, technique and training are needed to succeed ...

BACKGROUND

Golf has been played and practiced for many years, but what is ignored is how and when this game of stick and ball originated, even if many historians recognize a possible descent from the game of paganica (Bagnoli, 2006), dating back even at the time of the Roman Empire. Without a shadow of a doubt the pioneers of golf were the Scots, who began to practice it on their links (strips of land) by the sea and spread it around the world, teaching their correct practice and rules to people of other traditions. The oldest existing golf course is that of St. Andrews, near Edinburgh, where it began to play around the middle of the fifteenth century. In the mid-eighteenth century the first institutionalized circles were born, where the basic rules of the game were codified. It was then introduced in neighboring England and in all countries that had political, commercial and cultural relations with the United Kingdom.

The United States of America is the absolute leader in this sport, playing the lion's share among professionals, as well as the number of courses and practitioners, where the richest and most important circuit in the world is organized.

GOLF IN ITALY

The first Italian club was founded in Florence in 1889 by a group of English who lived in the area of ​​the Tuscan capital, and the route was only completed later in the area of ​​S. Donato in a land owned by the Demidoff principles (Bagnoli, 2006) . The oldest existing hole course, however, is L'Acquasanta in Rome, founded in 1903 and built in the fabulous scenery of the Claudio Aqueduct.

Today the majority of clubs are located in northern Italy and Piedmont and Lombardy together account for around 42% of players and 33% of existing plants (61 fields in Lombardy and 51 in Piedmont). In central Italy the two regions that show greater interest in golf - and which therefore have a good presence of golf courses - are Lazio (with a great concentration in the Rome area) and Tuscany. In the south, Puglia and Sardinia are emerging, but only in terms of the number of plants, for the time being. The fact is that in the decade from 1996 to 2006 golfers at amateur level have increased every year with a percentage of around 5%: a reality in continuous growth, therefore, despite the fact that we must recognize that golf does not hold a position at the top of the sports practiced in Italy, due to insufficient promotion and various cultural reasons (we are basically a people of footballers ...). In addition it is commonly thought that golf is a very expensive sport, reserved for a very limited number of people ... It is not so, since playing golf is not more expensive than other activities such as skiing, tennis and horse riding, mentioning only a few.

Second part "