Golf, explained.
The majors, the tours and the equipment: course setup, strokes gained, handicapping and how distance reshaped design.
10 articlesExplainerGuideAnalysis
- ExplainerMatch play vs stroke play golf: the real difference23 minStroke play counts every shot across the round; match play scores each hole separately and throws the rest away. That one change rewrites golf strategy.
- ExplainerGolf ball rollback explained: what changes in 202822 minThe golf ball rollback tightens the lab test balls must pass, so today's balls fail it. Elite golf adopts the new standard in 2028, everyone else in 2030.
- GuideHow to qualify for the Masters: every route to Augusta18 minEvery published way into the Masters field, from the lifetime champions exemption to the world ranking cut-offs, and how Augusta builds the list.
- AnalysisStrokes gained explained: how golf finally learned to count19 minStrokes gained explained properly: why fairways hit and putts per round mislead, how the expected-strokes baseline works, and what each category tells you.
- GuideThe Ryder Cup format explained, and why it hurts so much18 minHow the Ryder Cup format works: matchplay scoring, foursomes and fourballs, concessions and dormie, the 28 points, the retention rule and captain's picks.
- ExplainerHow do golf handicaps work? Index, slope and strokes21 minHandicap Index, Course Handicap and Playing Handicap are three different numbers. How each is calculated, what Slope Rating measures, and why the caps exist.
- ExplainerGolf rules penalties explained: one stroke, two, or out22 minHow golf's penalty ladder works: what costs one stroke, what the general penalty is, when relief is free, and what still earns disqualification.
- AnalysisGolf course setup explained: the four dials that set scoring21 minHow green firmness, hole locations, rough height and fairway width turn the same course into a birdie-fest or a survival test, without moving a single yard.
- ExplainerGolf ball and driver rules: the limits that shape the game20 minWhat the Overall Distance Standard, the initial velocity limit, the 460cc driver and the CT test measure, how each is tested, and where the rollback stands.
- ExplainerFedEx Cup points explained: how golf's season is won22 minHow FedEx Cup points are earned, weighted by event, cut down through three playoff rounds and reset at East Lake, and what qualifying is actually worth.
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