What is FootGolf?

According to YourDictionary, FootGolf is described as: "A variant of golf in which contestants attempt to kick a football into a cup."

Here is a general idea of how to play FootGolf (continue reading for rules). You'll notice several similarities to regular golf.

• Place the ball on the ground, between the designated tee markers. Be sure to not go father than two yards behind the markers.
• Kick the ball in one motion. It's considered proper etiquette to walk or lightly jog into your kick rather than run or sprint.
• Allow the other members of your group to tee off. For the remainder of the hole, the player furthest from the hole plays first until all balls are holed
• You must wait until your ball has come to a complete stop before playing your next shot.
• The object is to get the ball into the hole in as few shots as possible.

The average cost to play a 9-hole round of FootGolf is typically around $12 to $15. For an 18-hole round, the price runs around $20 to $25. Some FootGolf courses allow players to rent golf carts for a fee, and don't forget that you'll likely have to pay a ball rental charge around $5. Some courses charge the rental as a deposit and you get the money back after you return the ball.

You might be wondering how it's possible to have people kicking around a soccer ball while you tee up your Titleist. Logistically, golf courses often block off FootGolf tee times in chunks, so players are safe from any snap hooks. Golf courses tend to offer FootGolf tee times early in the morning, prior to the first golf tee time. In addition, FootGolf times are also later in the day, after the busiest times on the course. Unless a golf course has more than 18 holes, you'll rarely see FootGolf players and regular golfers playing simultaneously.

Much like a normal round of golf, the pace of play is determined by how well you're playing as well as the group you're playing with. A 9-hole round of FootGolf should take around 1.5 to 2 hours and an 18-hole round should take 3.5 to 4 hours.

FootGolf as a sport doesn’t have a definitive history. Soccer players had often played games involving hitting a target in the fewest kicks. The earliest variant was an American game known as "codeball." It was played in a large park with a 6-inch rubber ball and used bowls as a hole.

The game flourished in the 1930s but was soon forgotten. In Europe, the modern version of FootGolf has its roots in the Netherlands, where numerous professional soccer players also participate in the game at a high level. It was discovered that the game could be moved to golf courses and adopt a modified larger cup. While FootGolf may share tee boxes and the general layout of the same holes played by golfers, they typically have a green that is completely separate from the one used by golfers.

A large majority of FootGolf players play the game recreationally, just like regular golf. However, even FootGolf has its pinnacle championship. The Federation for International FootGolf (FIFG) is FootGolf's governing body and it puts on the FIFG FootGolf World Cup each year. This 11-day tournament brings teams from over 40 countries to one place to crown a champion.

If you're on the fence about trying FootGolf, we recommend taking the leap and trying it. At the very least, you get to spend some extra time on a golf course and you get a little exercise while you're at it. That's what we call a win-win.