146-566: Miniature golf (also known as minigolf , putt-putt , crazy golf , and by several other names ) is an offshoot of the sport of golf focusing solely on the putting aspect of its parent game. The aim of the game is to score the lowest number of points. It is played on courses consisting of a series of holes (usually a multiple of 9) similar to those of its parent, but the courses are characterized by their short length (usually within 10 metres from tee to cup). The game uses artificial putting surfaces (such as carpet, artificial turf , or concrete),
292-411: A calcium aluminate cement or with Portland cement to form Portland cement concrete (named for its visual resemblance to Portland stone ). Many other non-cementitious types of concrete exist with other methods of binding aggregate together, including asphalt concrete with a bitumen binder, which is frequently used for road surfaces , and polymer concretes that use polymers as a binder. Concrete
438-435: A "bogey golfer" (handicap around 20) would be expected to play than a "scratch golfer" relative to their handicap. The goal is to play as few strokes per round as possible. A golfer's number of strokes in a hole, course, or tournament is compared to its respective par score, and is then reported either as the number that the golfer was "under-" or "over-par", or if it was "equal to par". A hole in one (or an "ace") occurs when
584-433: A French structural and civil engineer . Concrete components or structures are compressed by tendon cables during, or after, their fabrication in order to strengthen them against tensile forces developing when put in service. Freyssinet patented the technique on 2 October 1928. Concrete is an artificial composite material , comprising a matrix of cementitious binder (typically Portland cement paste or asphalt ) and
730-421: A backpack, and often bags have retractable legs that allow the bag to stand upright when at rest. The golf swing is outwardly similar to many other motions involving swinging a tool or playing implement, such as an axe or a baseball bat. However, unlike many of these motions, the result of the swing is highly dependent on several sub-motions being properly aligned and timed. These ensure that the club travels up to
876-415: A ball that has stopped on it; "doglegs", which are changes in the direction of the fairway that often require shorter shots to play around them; bunkers (or sand traps); and water hazards such as ponds or streams. In stroke play competitions each player plays their ball until it is holed no matter how many strokes that may take. In match play it is acceptable to simply pick up one's ball and "surrender
1022-452: A cementitious material forms a cement paste by the process of hydration. The cement paste glues the aggregate together, fills voids within it, and makes it flow more freely. As stated by Abrams' law , a lower water-to-cement ratio yields a stronger, more durable concrete, whereas more water gives a freer-flowing concrete with a higher slump . The hydration of cement involves many concurrent reactions. The process involves polymerization ,
1168-571: A competing license, and the Swedish federation has 8,000 registered competition players. Other strong minigolf countries include Austria and Switzerland, each having a few thousand licensed competition players. Also Italy, Czech Republic and Netherlands have traditionally been able to send a strong team to international championships, even if they cannot count their licensed players in thousands. The sceptre of competitive minigolf rests quite firmly in mainland Europe: no player from other countries (such as UK,
1314-963: A competition sport. The bi-annual European Championships attract competitors from more than twenty European countries. As of 2012, Chris Beattie has been the holder of the European Championship title. Outside Europe only a small number of countries have participated in international minigolf competitions. These countries include the United States, Japan, China, India and Taiwan. A national minigolf federation exists also in Moldova, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand, but none of these countries has ever participated in international competitions, and probably are not arranging many domestic competitions either. World Minigolfsport Federation represents some 40,000 registered competition players from 37 countries. The national minigolf federation of Germany has 11,000 members with
1460-536: A complete round; with most holes having a par of 4, and a smaller number of par-3 and par-5 holes. Additionally, courses may be classified according to their play difficulty, which may be used to calculate a golfer's handicap . The two primary difficulty ratings in the U.S. are the Course Rating, which is the expected score for a zero-handicap "scratch golfer", and the Slope Rating, which is a measure of how much worse
1606-400: A concrete component—and become a part of the binder for the aggregate. Fly ash and slag can enhance some properties of concrete such as fresh properties and durability. Alternatively, other materials can also be used as a concrete binder: the most prevalent substitute is asphalt , which is used as the binder in asphalt concrete . Admixtures are added to modify the cure rate or properties of
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#17328990550011752-434: A dispersed phase or "filler" of aggregate (typically a rocky material, loose stones, and sand). The binder "glues" the filler together to form a synthetic conglomerate . Many types of concrete are available, determined by the formulations of binders and the types of aggregate used to suit the application of the engineered material. These variables determine strength and density, as well as chemical and thermal resistance of
1898-494: A few years ago). International competitions are typically arranged on two courses of 18 holes, of which one course is eternite, and the other course is usually concrete, less commonly felt. In the future, the WMF is expected to use also MOS courses in international championships – which will give American and British players a chance to show their skills on their own traditional course types. The most prestigious MOS minigolf competitions in
2044-437: A fluid cement that cures to a solid over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water , and is the most widely used building material. Its usage worldwide, ton for ton, is twice that of steel, wood, plastics, and aluminium combined. When aggregate is mixed with dry Portland cement and water , the mixture forms a fluid slurry that is easily poured and molded into shape. The cement reacts with
2190-408: A full 18. In sudden death, a player who scores lower on a hole than all of their opponents wins the match. If at least two players remain tied after such a playoff using a pre-determined number of holes, then play continues in sudden death format, where the first player to win a hole wins the tournament. Concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of aggregate bonded together with
2336-516: A geometric layout often requiring non-traditional putting lines such as bank shots, and artificial obstacles such as tunnels, tubes, ramps, moving obstacles like windmills, and walls made of concrete, metal, or fiberglass. When miniature golf retains many of these characteristics but without the use of any props or obstacles, it is purely a mini version of its parent game. While the World Minigolf Sport Federation (WMF) prefers to use
2482-420: A golf course, and which club is used to accomplish the shot, are always completely at the discretion of the golfer; in other words, there is no restriction whatsoever on which club a golfer may or may not use at any time for any shot. Golf balls are spherical, usually white (although other colours are allowed), and minutely pock-marked by dimples that decrease aerodynamic drag by increasing air turbulence around
2628-410: A golfer sinks their ball into the cup with their first stroke from the tee. Common scores for a hole also have specific terms. In a typical professional tournament or among "scratch" amateur players, "birdie-bogey" play is common; a player will "lose" a stroke by bogeying a hole, then "gain" one by scoring a birdie. Eagles are uncommon but not rare; however, only 18 players have scored an albatross in
2774-453: A great deal of difference in how well the ball is hit and how straight it travels. The general goal of a player making a full swing is to propel the clubhead as fast as possible while maintaining a single "plane" of motion of the club and clubhead, to send the clubhead into the ball along the desired path of travel and with the clubhead also pointing that direction. Accuracy and consistency are typically stressed over pure distance. A player with
2920-452: A greater degree of fracture resistance even in seismically active environments. Roman concrete is significantly more resistant to erosion by seawater than modern concrete; it used pyroclastic materials which react with seawater to form Al- tobermorite crystals over time. The use of hot mixing and the presence of lime clasts are thought to give the concrete a self-healing ability, where cracks that form become filled with calcite that prevents
3066-439: A higher degree of loft and a comparatively shorter distance. The actual physical length of each club is longer or shorter, depending on the distance the club is intended to propel the ball. Golf clubs have traditionally been arranged into three basic types. Woods are large-headed, long-shafted clubs meant to propel the ball a long distance from relatively "open" lies, such as the teeing ground and fairway. Of particular importance
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#17328990550013212-453: A higher launch angle and a more forgiving nature. A maximum of 14 clubs is allowed in a player's bag at one time during a stipulated round. The choice of clubs is at the golfer's discretion, although every club must be constructed in accordance with parameters outlined in the rules. (Clubs that meet these parameters are usually called "conforming".) Violation of these rules can result in disqualification. The exact shot hit at any given time on
3358-415: A large aggregate that is too large for the size of the formwork, or which has too few smaller aggregate grades to serve to fill the gaps between the larger grades, or using too little or too much sand for the same reason, or using too little water, or too much cement, or even using jagged crushed stone instead of smoother round aggregate such as pebbles. Any combination of these factors and others may result in
3504-461: A large type of industrial facility called a concrete plant , or often a batch plant. The usual method of placement is casting in formwork , which holds the mix in shape until it has set enough to hold its shape unaided. Concrete plants come in two main types, ready-mix plants and central mix plants. A ready-mix plant blends all of the solid ingredients, while a central mix does the same but adds water. A central-mix plant offers more precise control of
3650-500: A member of AGFIS , organizes World Championships biennially (on odd-numbered years), while the continental championships in Europe and Asia are organized on even-numbered years. Many of these competitions are arranged for three age groups: juniors (under 20 years), adults (no age limit), and seniors (over 45 years). Men and women compete separately in their own categories, except in some team competitions and pair competitions. The difference in
3796-406: A men's major championship. One of the rarest feats in golf is the condor, which has never occurred in a professional tournament. Only five condors have been verified to have ever occurred, although none of the courses involved were professionally accredited. There are two basic forms of golf play, match play and stroke play. Stroke play is more popular. Two players (or two teams) play each hole as
3942-409: A metal head primarily consisting of a flat, angled striking face. Traditionally the clubhead was forged from iron; modern iron clubheads are investment-cast from a steel alloy. Irons of varying loft are used for a variety of shots from virtually anywhere on the course, but most often for shorter-distance shots approaching the green, or to get the ball out of tricky lies such as sand traps. The third class
4088-695: A minigolf course called the Gofstacle. The first standardized minigolf courses to enter commercial mass-production were the Thistle Dhu ("This'll Do") course in 1916 in Pinehurst , North Carolina , and the 1927 Tom Thumb patent of Garnet Carter from Lookout Mountain, Tennessee . Thomas McCullough Fairbairn , a golf fanatic, revolutionized the game in 1922 with his formulation of a suitable artificial green—a mixture of cottonseed hulls, sand, oil, and dye. With this discovery, miniature golf became accessible everywhere; by
4234-469: A mixture of calcium silicates ( alite , belite ), aluminates and ferrites —compounds, which will react with water. Portland cement and similar materials are made by heating limestone (a source of calcium) with clay or shale (a source of silicon, aluminium and iron) and grinding this product (called clinker ) with a source of sulfate (most commonly gypsum ). Cement kilns are extremely large, complex, and inherently dusty industrial installations. Of
4380-405: A number of manufactured aggregates, including air-cooled blast furnace slag and bottom ash are also permitted. The size distribution of the aggregate determines how much binder is required. Aggregate with a very even size distribution has the biggest gaps whereas adding aggregate with smaller particles tends to fill these gaps. The binder must fill the gaps between the aggregate as well as paste
4526-483: A player's obligation to contribute to the care of the course. Though there are no penalties for breach of etiquette rules, players generally follow the rules of golf etiquette in an effort to improve everyone's playing experience. Penalty strokes are incurred in certain situations and are counted towards a player's score as if there were extra swing(s) at the ball. Either one or two strokes are added for most rule infractions or for taking relief from various situations, with
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4672-513: A round. At some courses, gas or electric golf carts are used to travel between shots, which can speed-up play and allows participation by individuals unable to walk a whole round. On other courses players generally walk the course, either carrying their bag using a shoulder strap or using a "golf trolley" for their bag. These trolleys may or may not be battery assisted. At many amateur tournaments including U.S. high school and college play, players are required to walk and to carry their own bags, but at
4818-424: A semi-liquid slurry (paste) that can be shaped, typically by pouring it into a form. The concrete solidifies and hardens through a chemical process called hydration . The water reacts with the cement, which bonds the other components together, creating a robust, stone-like material. Other cementitious materials, such as fly ash and slag cement , are sometimes added—either pre-blended with the cement or directly as
4964-400: A separate contest against each other in what is called match play . The party with the lower score wins that hole, or if the scores of both players or teams are equal the hole is "halved" (or tied). The game is won by the party that wins more holes than the other. In the case that one team or player has taken a lead that cannot be overcome in the number of holes remaining to be played, the match
5110-493: A simple, fast way of getting a basic idea of the properties of the finished concrete without having to perform testing in advance. Various governing bodies (such as British Standards ) define nominal mix ratios into a number of grades, usually ranging from lower compressive strength to higher compressive strength. The grades usually indicate the 28-day cure strength. Thorough mixing is essential to produce uniform, high-quality concrete. Separate paste mixing has shown that
5256-459: A site of pilgrimage. In 1764, the standard 18-hole golf course was created at St Andrews when members modified the course from 22 to 18 holes. Golf is documented as being played on Musselburgh Links , East Lothian, Scotland as early as 2 March 1672, which is certified as the oldest golf course in the world by Guinness World Records . The oldest surviving rules of golf were compiled in March 1744 for
5402-469: A straight drive that travels only 220 yards (200 m) will nevertheless be able to accurately place the ball into a favourable lie on the fairway, and can make up for the lesser distance of any given club by simply using "more club" (a lower loft) on their tee shot or on subsequent fairway and approach shots. However, a golfer with a drive that may go 280 yards (260 m) but often does not fly straight will be less able to position their ball advantageously;
5548-452: A stroke; it is fundamentally important in being able to play a stroke effectively. The stance adopted is determined by what stroke is being played. All stances involve a slight crouch. This allows for a more efficient striking posture whilst also isometrically preloading the muscles of the legs and core; this allows the stroke to be played more dynamically and with a greater level of overall control. When adopting their stance golfers start with
5694-479: A typical par-3 hole is less than 250 yards (230 m) in length, with a par-4 hole ranging between 251–450 yards (230–411 m), and a par-5 hole being longer than 450 yards (410 m); for women these boundaries are lower, and for professionals they are much increased. The rare par-6s can stretch well over 650 yards (590 m). These distances are based on the typical scratch golfer's drive distance of between 240 and 280 yards (220 and 260 m). Although length
5840-711: Is The Open Championship , also known as The Open, which was first played in 1860 at the Prestwick Golf Club in Ayrshire, Scotland. This is one of the four major championships in men's professional golf, the other three being played in the United States: The Masters , the U.S. Open , and the PGA Championship . While the modern game of golf originated in 15th century Scotland , the game's ancient origins are unclear and much debated. Some historians trace
5986-487: Is 18 strokes on 18 holes. More than a thousand players have officially achieved this score on eternite. On other playing systems, a perfect round of 18 holes-in-one is extremely rare, and has never been scored in an official national or international tournament. Unofficial 18-rounds on concrete and felt courses have been reported in Sweden. Nearly all European countries have an official national federation for promoting minigolf as
Miniature golf - Misplaced Pages Continue
6132-426: Is about two hours for a 9-hole round and four hours for an 18-hole round. Playing a hole on a golf course is initiated by putting a ball into play by striking it with a club on the teeing ground (also called the tee box, or simply the tee). For this first shot on each hole, it is allowed but not required for the golfer to place the ball on a tee prior to striking it. A tee is a small peg that can be used to elevate
6278-412: Is deemed to be won by the party in the lead, and the remainder of the holes are not played. For example, if one party already has a lead of six holes, and only five holes remain to be played on the course, the match is over and the winning party is deemed to have won "6 & 5". At any given point, if the lead is equal to the number of holes remaining, the party leading the match is said to be "dormie", and
6424-511: Is distinct from mortar . Whereas concrete is itself a building material, mortar is a bonding agent that typically holds bricks , tiles and other masonry units together. Grout is another material associated with concrete and cement. It does not contain coarse aggregates and is usually either pourable or thixotropic , and is used to fill gaps between masonry components or coarse aggregate which has already been put in place. Some methods of concrete manufacture and repair involve pumping grout into
6570-424: Is known as "conventional". There are many variations of conventional including overlap, where the golfer overlaps the off hand index finger onto off the dominant pinky; interlock, where the offhand index finger interlocks with the dominant pinky and ring finger; double or triple overlap and so on. Recently, "cross handed" putting has become a popular trend amongst professional golfers and amateurs. Cross handed putting
6716-516: Is not considered an amateur and may not participate in competitions limited solely to amateurs. However, amateur golfers may receive expenses that comply with strict guidelines and they may accept non-cash prizes within the limits established by the Rules of Amateur Status. In addition to the officially printed rules, golfers also abide by a set of guidelines called golf etiquette . Etiquette guidelines cover matters such as safety, fairness, pace of play, and
6862-494: Is sometimes used colloquially to refer to the game itself. The term minigolf was formerly a registered trademark of a Swedish company that built its own patented type of minigolf courses. Geometrically shaped minigolf courses made of artificial materials (carpet) began to emerge during the early 20th century. The earliest documented mention of such a course is in the June 8, 1912, edition of The Illustrated London News , which introduces
7008-441: Is still there today. Every round of golf is based on playing a number of holes in a given order. A "round" typically consists of 18 holes that are played in the order determined by the course layout. Each hole is played once in the round on a standard course of 18 holes. The game can be played by any number of people, although a typical group will have 1–4 people playing the round. The typical amount of time required for pace of play
7154-444: Is the driver or "1-wood", which is the lowest lofted wood club, and in modern times has become highly specialized for making extremely long-distance tee shots, up to 300 yards (270 m), or more, in a professional golfer's hands. Traditionally these clubs had heads made of a hardwood, hence the name, but virtually all modern woods are now made of metal such as titanium, or of composite materials. Irons are shorter-shafted clubs with
7300-407: Is the putter , which evolved from the irons to create a low-lofted, balanced club designed to roll the ball along the green and into the hole. Putters are virtually always used on the green or in the surrounding rough/fringe. A fourth class, called hybrids , evolved as a cross between woods and irons, and are typically seen replacing the low-lofted irons with a club that provides similar distance, but
7446-439: Is the idea that the dominant hand is on top of the grip where the weak hand is on the bottom. This grip restricts the motion in your dominant hand and eliminates the possibility of wrist breakdowns through the putting stroke. Other notable putting styles include "the claw", a style that has the grip directly in between the thumb and index finger of the dominant hand while the palm faces the target. The weak hand placed normally on
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#17328990550017592-450: Is the primary factor in calculating par, other factors are taken into account; however the number of strokes a scratch golfer should take to make the green remains foremost. Factors affecting the calculation include altitude, gradient of the land from the tee to green, and forced " lay-ups " due to dog-legs (sharp bends) or obstacles (e.g. bunkers, water hazards). Getting the ball onto the green in two strokes less than par, and hence meeting
7738-559: Is then blended with aggregates and any remaining batch water and final mixing is completed in conventional concrete mixing equipment. Workability is the ability of a fresh (plastic) concrete mix to fill the form/mold properly with the desired work (pouring, pumping, spreading, tamping, vibration) and without reducing the concrete's quality. Workability depends on water content, aggregate (shape and size distribution), cementitious content and age (level of hydration ) and can be modified by adding chemical admixtures, like superplasticizer. Raising
7884-407: Is typically positioned more to the "front" of the player's stance (closer to the leading foot) for lower-lofted clubs, with the usual ball position for a drive being just behind the arch of the leading foot. The ball is placed further "back" in the player's stance (toward the trailing foot) as the loft of the club to be used increases. Most iron shots and putts are made with the ball roughly centered in
8030-406: Is used to transport golf clubs and the player's other or personal equipment. Golf bags have several pockets designed for carrying equipment and supplies such as tees, balls, and gloves. Golf bags can be carried, pulled on a trolley or harnessed to a motorized golf cart during play. Golf bags usually have both a hand strap and shoulder strap for carrying, others may be carried over both shoulders like
8176-399: Is usually reinforced with materials that are strong in tension, typically steel rebar . The mix design depends on the type of structure being built, how the concrete is mixed and delivered, and how it is placed to form the structure. Portland cement is the most common type of cement in general usage. It is a basic ingredient of concrete, mortar , and many plasters . It consists of
8322-637: The National Register of Historic Places in 2002. The first miniature golf course in Canada was at the Maples Inn in Pointe-Claire , Quebec . The "Mapes" was constructed as a summer home in the 1890s but was renovated into a club in 1902, opened to the public in 1914, and had a miniature golf course in 1930. The popular nightspot burned in 1985. One of the first documented minigolf courses in mainland Europe
8468-546: The United States , National Miniature Golf Day is held yearly on the second Saturday of May. The event had its inaugural celebration on May 12, 2007, and was officially recognized and published in 2008's edition of Chase's Calendar of Events . By the 1950s the American Putt-Putt company was exporting their minigolf courses to South Africa, Australia, Japan, Korea, India, Iran, Italy, Pakistan, Argentina, Brazil, and
8614-665: The United States Golf Association (USGA). With the aim of simplifying the rules, in 2017 the USGA and R&A undertook a complete rewrite. The new rule book came into effect in January 2019. The underlying principle of the rules is fairness. As stated on the back cover of the official rule book: There are strict regulations regarding the amateur status of golfers. Essentially, anybody who has ever received payment or compensation for giving instruction, or played golf for money,
8760-480: The construction industry , whose demand is ever growing with greater impacts on raw material extraction, waste generation and landfill practices. Concrete production is the process of mixing together the various ingredients—water, aggregate, cement, and any additives—to produce concrete. Concrete production is time-sensitive. Once the ingredients are mixed, workers must put the concrete in place before it hardens. In modern usage, most concrete production takes place in
8906-410: The "general penalty" defined as two-strokes, and disqualification for severe or repeated rule breaches. Examples include: Golf clubs are used to hit a golf ball . Each club is composed of a shaft with a lance (or "grip") on the top end and a club head on the bottom. Long clubs, which have a lower amount of degree loft, are those meant to propel the ball a comparatively longer distance, and short clubs
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#17328990550019052-566: The 1950s, Don Clayton invented the Putt-Putt brand with a focus on treating minigolf seriously, emphasizing skill and player improvement. Most of the Putt Putt routes were 2-par holes involving ramps or angled blocks that could be mastered in one go through practice. By the late 1950s, almost all supply catalogs carried Taylor Brother's obstacles. In 1961, Bob Taylor, Don Clayton of Putt-Putt, and Frank Abramoff of Arnold Palmer Miniature Golf organised
9198-507: The American game fell into Depression. In 1938 Joseph and Robert Taylor from Binghamton , New York , started building and operating their own miniature golf courses. These courses differed from the ones in the late 20s and early 30s; they were no longer just rolls, banks, and curves, with an occasional pipe thrown in. Their courses not only had landscaping , but also obstacles, including windmills , castles , and wishing wells . Impressed by
9344-519: The Company of Gentlemen Golfers, later renamed The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers , which was played at Leith , Scotland. The world's oldest golf tournament in existence, and golf's first major, is The Open Championship , which was first played on 17 October 1860 at Prestwick Golf Club, in Ayrshire, Scotland, with Scottish golfers winning the earliest majors . Two Scotsmen from Dunfermline , John Reid and Robert Lockhart, first demonstrated golf in
9490-798: The Eastern Bloc. The sport of miniature golf is governed internationally by the World Minigolf Sport Federation (WMF), headquartered in Göteborg, Sweden. The WMF is a member of Global Association of International Sports Federations , and within it, of the Alliance of Independent Recognized Members of Sport (AIMS). WMF is also member of the Association for International Sport for All (TAFISA). It organizes World Championships for youth and elite players, and Continental Championships in Europe, Asia and
9636-560: The Scots language and the Old English word hlinc ("rising ground, ridge"): traditionally these are coastal sand dunes but sometimes open parkland. This gave rise to the term "golf links", particularly applied to seaside courses and those built on naturally sandy soil inland. The first 18-hole golf course in the United States was on a sheep farm in Downers Grove, Illinois , in 1892. The course
9782-456: The U.S. by setting up a hole in an orchard in 1888, with Reid setting up America's first golf club the same year, Saint Andrew's Golf Club in Yonkers, New York. A golf course consists of either 9 or 18 holes, each with a teeing ground or "tee box" that is set off by two markers showing the bounds of the legal tee area, fairway , rough and other hazards , and the putting green surrounded by
9928-676: The United States in the World Minigolfsport Federation, having been an active member since 1995. USPMGA President Robert Detwiler is also the WMF representative for North and South America . The New Israeli Minigolf Association was established in February 2010 in Israel. Setting up, for the first time, league play according to the rules of WMF and USPMGA. Now, a series of lush and inviting minigolf parks in prime locations are being built around Israel. World Minigolfsport Federation (WMF),
10074-516: The United States, Japan et cetera) has ever reached even the top 50 in World Championships (in men's category). Nearly all national federations outside Europe were founded only quite recently (within the last ten years), and it will take time before the players of these countries learn all secrets of the game. The United States has a longer history of minigolf competitions, but the standardized European competition courses are practically unknown in
10220-515: The United States, and therefore the American players have been unable to learn the secrets of European minigolf. On the traditional American courses the best American players are able to challenge the European top players into a tough and exciting competition. The British Minigolf Association (BMGA) has an additional problem on their way to greater success in competitive minigolf. While the minigolf federations in mainland Europe receive annual funding from
10366-417: The United States, held in alternate years. All competitions approved by World Minigolfsport Federation are played on standardized courses, whose design has been checked to be suitable for competitive play. The WMF currently approves four different course types: The final holes (often the 18th hole or a bonus 19th hole ) of many miniature golf courses are designed to capture the ball, effectively preventing
10512-639: The absence of reinforcement, its tensile strength was far lower than modern reinforced concrete , and its mode of application also differed: Modern structural concrete differs from Roman concrete in two important details. First, its mix consistency is fluid and homogeneous, allowing it to be poured into forms rather than requiring hand-layering together with the placement of aggregate, which, in Roman practice, often consisted of rubble . Second, integral reinforcing steel gives modern concrete assemblies great strength in tension, whereas Roman concrete could depend only upon
10658-432: The balance in muscles. Putting is considered to be the most important component of the game of golf. As the game of golf has evolved, there have been many different putting techniques and grips that have been devised to give golfers the best chance to make putts. When the game originated, golfers would putt with their dominant hand on the bottom of the grip and their weak hand on top of the grip. This grip and putting style
10804-442: The ball by taking their stance to the side of it and (except when the ball lies in a hazard) grounding the club behind the ball. The golfer then takes their backswing, rotating the club, their arms and their upper body away from the ball, and then begins their swing, bringing the clubhead back down and around to hit the ball. A proper golf swing is a complex combination of motions, and slight variations in posture or positioning can make
10950-590: The ball comes to rest, the golfer strikes it again as many times as necessary using shots that are variously known as a "lay-up", an "approach", a "pitch", or a " chip ", until the ball reaches the green, where the golfer then " putts " the ball into the hole (commonly called "sinking the putt" or "holing out"). The goal of getting the ball into the hole ("holing" the ball) in as few strokes as possible may be impeded by obstacles such as areas of longer grass called "rough" (usually found alongside fairways), which both slows any ball that contacts it and makes it harder to advance
11096-425: The ball in line with the desired path; that the clubface is in line with the swing path; and that the ball hits the centre or "sweet spot" of the clubface. The ability to do this consistently, across a complete set of clubs with a wide range of shaft lengths and clubface areas, is a key skill for any golfer, and takes a significant effort to achieve. Stance refers to how the golfer positions themselves in order to play
11242-559: The ball in motion, which delays "boundary layer" separation and reduces the drag-inducing "wake" behind the ball, thereby allowing the ball to fly farther. The combination of a soft "boundary layer" and a hard "core" enables both distance and spin. A tee is allowed only for the first stroke on each hole, unless the player must hit a provisional tee shot or replay their first shot from the tee. Many golfers wear golf shoes with metal or plastic spikes designed to increase traction, thus allowing for longer and more accurate shots. A golf bag
11388-482: The ball may "hook", "pull", "draw", "fade", "push" or "slice" off the intended line and land out of bounds or in the rough or hazards, and thus the player will require many more strokes to hole out. A golf stroke uses the muscles of the core (especially erector spinae muscles and latissimus dorsi muscle when turning), hamstring , shoulder , and wrist . Stronger muscles in the wrist can prevent them from being twisted during swings, whilst stronger shoulders increase
11534-413: The ball slightly above the ground up to a few centimetres high. Tees are commonly made of wood but may be constructed of any material, including plastic. Traditionally, golfers used mounds of sand to elevate the ball, and containers of sand were provided for the purpose. A few courses still require sand to be used instead of peg tees, to reduce litter and reduce damage to the teeing ground. Tees help reduce
11680-610: The cisterns secret as these enabled the Nabataeans to thrive in the desert. Some of these structures survive to this day. In the Ancient Egyptian and later Roman eras, builders discovered that adding volcanic ash to lime allowed the mix to set underwater. They discovered the pozzolanic reaction . The Romans used concrete extensively from 300 BC to AD 476. During the Roman Empire, Roman concrete (or opus caementicium )
11826-477: The committee may designate a maximum score possible for a hole for the same reasons, while formalizing the surrender or "pick-up" rule. The total distance from the first teeing ground to the 18th green can be quite long; total yardages "through the green" can be in excess of 7,000 yards (6,400 m), and when adding in the travel distance between the green of one hole and the tee of the next, even skilled players may easily travel 5 miles (8.0 km) or more during
11972-483: The company "Norman och Norrmans Miniatyrgolf" and began manufacturing standardized minigolf courses for the Swedish market. During the following years they spread this new leisure activity across Sweden, by installing minigolf courses in public parks and other suitable locations. Swedish minigolf courses typically had a rectangular wooden frame surrounding the playing area made of tennis field sand; in contrast, American manufacturers used newly developed and patented felt as
12118-526: The concrete at the time of batching/mixing. (See § Production below.) The common types of admixtures are as follows: Inorganic materials that have pozzolanic or latent hydraulic properties, these very fine-grained materials are added to the concrete mix to improve the properties of concrete (mineral admixtures), or as a replacement for Portland cement (blended cements). Products which incorporate limestone , fly ash , blast furnace slag , and other useful materials with pozzolanic properties into
12264-399: The concrete can cause the initially placed material to begin to set before the next batch is added on top. This creates a horizontal plane of weakness called a cold joint between the two batches. Once the mix is where it should be, the curing process must be controlled to ensure that the concrete attains the desired attributes. During concrete preparation, various technical details may affect
12410-461: The concrete quality. Central mix plants must be close to the work site where the concrete will be used, since hydration begins at the plant. A concrete plant consists of large hoppers for storage of various ingredients like cement, storage for bulk ingredients like aggregate and water, mechanisms for the addition of various additives and amendments, machinery to accurately weigh, move, and mix some or all of those ingredients, and facilities to dispense
12556-519: The crack from spreading. The widespread use of concrete in many Roman structures ensured that many survive to the present day. The Baths of Caracalla in Rome are just one example. Many Roman aqueducts and bridges, such as the magnificent Pont du Gard in southern France, have masonry cladding on a concrete core, as does the dome of the Pantheon . After the Roman Empire, the use of burned lime and pozzolana
12702-516: The eighth and fourteenth centuries. A Ming Dynasty scroll by the artist Youqiu dating back to 1368 entitled "The Autumn Banquet" shows a member of the Chinese Imperial court swinging what appears to be a golf club at a small ball with the aim of sinking it into a hole. The game is thought to have been introduced into Europe during the Middle Ages. Another early game that resembled modern golf
12848-423: The face of a clown ; if the ball lands "in" the clown's nose, a bell may sound and the player would win a discount ticket for another game. Another method for capturing the ball incorporated by various adventure golf courses involves a tube that sucks and propels the ball with pressurized air to a collection area or another area of the course typically on a higher elevation. The world record on one round of minigolf
12994-457: The fairway, rough (tall grass), and various hazards that may be water, rocks, or sand-filled bunkers . Each hole on a course is unique in its specific layout. Many golf courses are designed to resemble their native landscape, such as along a sea coast (where the course is called a links ), within a forest, among rolling hills, or part of a desert . Golf is played for the lowest number of strokes by an individual, known as stroke play , or
13140-515: The final competition on Lookout Mountain , Chattanooga, Tennessee, attracted over 200 players representing thirty states. After the Depression ten years later, minigolf died out as a competition sport in America, and has begun to recover only during the most recent decades. The American minigolf sport boom of the 1930s inspired many European countries, and the sport of minigolf lived on in Europe even after
13286-431: The finished product. Construction aggregates consist of large chunks of material in a concrete mix, generally a coarse gravel or crushed rocks such as limestone , or granite , along with finer materials such as sand . Cement paste, most commonly made of Portland cement , is the most prevalent kind of concrete binder. For cementitious binders, water is mixed with the dry cement powder and aggregate, which produces
13432-478: The first miniature golf association known as NAPCOMS (or the "National Association of Putting Course Operators, Manufacturers, and Suppliers"). Their first meeting was held in New York City . Though this organization only lasted a few years it was the first attempt to bring miniature golf operators together to promote miniature golf. In 1955, Lomma Golf, Inc., founded by Al Lomma and his brother Ralph Lomma , led
13578-511: The first written record of golf is James II 's banning of the game in 1457, as an unwelcome distraction to learning archery. James IV lifted the ban in 1502 when he became a golfer himself, with golf clubs first recorded in 1503–1504: "For golf clubbes and balles to the King that he playit with". To many golfers, the Old Course at St Andrews , a links course dating to before 1574, is considered to be
13724-415: The fringe with the pin (normally a flagstick) and cup. The levels of grass are varied to increase difficulty, or to allow for putting in the case of the green. While many holes are designed with a direct line-of-sight from the teeing area to the green, some holes may bend either to the left or to the right. This is commonly called a "dogleg", in reference to a dog's knee. The hole is called a "dogleg left" if
13870-669: The gaps to make up a solid mass in situ . The word concrete comes from the Latin word " concretus " (meaning compact or condensed), the perfect passive participle of " concrescere ", from " con -" (together) and " crescere " (to grow). Concrete floors were found in the royal palace of Tiryns , Greece, which dates roughly to 1400 to 1200 BC. Lime mortars were used in Greece, such as in Crete and Cyprus, in 800 BC. The Assyrian Jerwan Aqueduct (688 BC) made use of waterproof concrete . Concrete
14016-467: The government, in England the national sports organization Sport England has refused to accept BMGA as its member – which means that BMGA is left without the public funding that other forms of sports enjoy. The rules of Sport England declare that only one variant of each sport can be accepted as member – and minigolf is interpreted as a variant of golf. The most prize money is paid in the United States, where
14162-439: The hole angles leftwards and "dogleg right" if it bends right. Sometimes, a hole's direction may bend twice; this is called a "double dogleg". A regular golf course consists of 18 holes, but nine-hole courses are common and can be played twice through for a full round of 18 holes. Early Scottish golf courses were primarily laid out on links land, soil-covered sand dunes directly inland from beaches. The word "links" derives from
14308-475: The hole" after enough strokes have been made by a player that it is mathematically impossible for the player to win the hole. It is also acceptable in informal stroke play to surrender the hole after hitting three strokes more than the "par" rating of the hole (a "triple bogey" – see below); while technically a violation of Rule 3–2, this practice speeds play as a courtesy to others, and avoids "runaway scores" and excessive frustration. Alternatively, in competition,
14454-494: The hole. The primary factor for classifying the par of a relatively straight, hazard-free hole is the distance from the tee to the green, and calculates the number of strokes a skilled golfer is expected to require to reach the green with an additional allowance of 2 putts. As such, the minimum par of any hole is 3; one stroke for the tee shot and two putts. Par 3, 4 and 5 holes are commonplace on golf courses; far more rarely, courses may feature par-6 and even par-7 holes. For men,
14600-492: The interference of the ground or grass on the movement of the club making the ball easier to hit by elevating the ball from the playing surface. When the initial shot on a hole is intended to move the ball a long distance, typically more than 225 yards (210 m), the shot is commonly called a "drive" and is generally made with a long-shafted, large-headed wood club called a "driver". Shorter holes may be initiated with other clubs, such as higher-numbered woods or irons . Once
14746-554: The interlinking of the silicates and aluminate components as well as their bonding to sand and gravel particles to form a solid mass. One illustrative conversion is the hydration of tricalcium silicate: The hydration (curing) of cement is irreversible. Fine and coarse aggregates make up the bulk of a concrete mixture. Sand , natural gravel, and crushed stone are used mainly for this purpose. Recycled aggregates (from construction, demolition, and excavation waste) are increasingly used as partial replacements for natural aggregates, while
14892-640: The late 1920s there were over 150 rooftop courses in New York City alone and tens of thousands across the United States. This American minigolf boom of early 20th century came to an end during the Great Depression in the late 1930s. Nearly all minigolf courses in the United States were closed and demolished before the end of the 1930s. A rare surviving example from this period is the Parkside Whispering Pines Miniature Golf Course located near Rochester, New York , and listed on
15038-409: The lowest score on the most individual holes in a complete round by an individual or team, known as match play . Stroke play is the most commonly seen format at all levels, especially at the elite level. The modern game of golf originated in 15th century Scotland . The 18-hole round was created at the Old Course at St Andrews in 1764. Golf's first major , and the world's oldest golf tournament,
15184-406: The making of mortar. In an English translation from 1397, it reads "lyme ... is a stone brent; by medlynge thereof with sonde and water sement is made". From the 14th century, the quality of mortar was again excellent, but only from the 17th century was pozzolana commonly added. The Canal du Midi was built using concrete in 1670. Perhaps the greatest step forward in the modern use of concrete
15330-413: The match is continued until the party increases the lead by one hole or ties any of the remaining holes, thereby winning the match, or until the match ends in a tie with the lead player's opponent winning all remaining holes. When the game is tied after the predetermined number of holes have been played, it may be continued until one side takes a one-hole lead. The score achieved for each and every hole of
15476-531: The material. Mineral admixtures use recycled materials as concrete ingredients. Conspicuous materials include fly ash , a by-product of coal-fired power plants ; ground granulated blast furnace slag , a by-product of steelmaking ; and silica fume , a by-product of industrial electric arc furnaces . Structures employing Portland cement concrete usually include steel reinforcement because this type of concrete can be formulated with high compressive strength , but always has lower tensile strength . Therefore, it
15622-463: The minigolf course in Ascona , Switzerland, opened. It is the oldest course in the world which follows the norms of Paul Bongni. The earliest documented minigolf competitions were played in the United States. The first National Tom Thumb Open minigolf tournament was arranged in 1930, with a total cash purse $ 10,000 (the top prize being $ 2,000). Qualification play-offs were played in all of the 48 states, and
15768-419: The mix, are being tested and used. These developments are ever growing in relevance to minimize the impacts caused by cement use, notorious for being one of the largest producers (at about 5 to 10%) of global greenhouse gas emissions . The use of alternative materials also is capable of lowering costs, improving concrete properties, and recycling wastes, the latest being relevant for circular economy aspects of
15914-478: The mixed concrete, often to a concrete mixer truck. Modern concrete is usually prepared as a viscous fluid, so that it may be poured into forms. The forms are containers that define the desired shape. Concrete formwork can be prepared in several ways, such as slip forming and steel plate construction . Alternatively, concrete can be mixed into dryer, non-fluid forms and used in factory settings to manufacture precast concrete products. Interruption in pouring
16060-441: The mixing of cement and water into a paste before combining these materials with aggregates can increase the compressive strength of the resulting concrete. The paste is generally mixed in a high-speed , shear-type mixer at a w/c (water to cement ratio) of 0.30 to 0.45 by mass. The cement paste premix may include admixtures such as accelerators or retarders, superplasticizers , pigments , or silica fume . The premixed paste
16206-441: The mixture to improve the physical properties of the wet mix, delay or accelerate the curing time, or otherwise change the finished material. Most concrete is poured with reinforcing materials (such as steel rebar ) embedded to provide tensile strength , yielding reinforced concrete . In the past, lime -based cement binders, such as lime putty, were often used but sometimes with other hydraulic cements , (water resistant) such as
16352-412: The name minigolf , the game has several other names which vary between countries, including mini-golf , midget golf , goofy golf , shorties , extreme golf , crazy golf , adventure golf , mini-putt , and putter golf . The name Putt-Putt is the trademark of an American company that builds and franchises miniature golf courses in addition to other family-oriented entertainment. The term putt-putt
16498-583: The non-dominant side of the body facing the target (for a right-hander, the target is to their left). Setting the stance in regard to the position of the ball, and placing the clubhead behind the ball, is known as being at address; when in this position the player's body and the centerline of the club face are positioned parallel to the desired line of travel, with the feet either perpendicular to that line or slightly splayed outward. The feet are commonly shoulder-width apart for middle irons and putters, narrower for short irons and wider for long irons and woods. The ball
16644-507: The par calculation criteria, is called making "green in regulation" or GIR. Missing a GIR does not necessarily mean a golfer will not make par, but it does make doing so more difficult as it reduces the number of putts available; conversely, making a GIR does not guarantee a par, as the player might require three or more putts to "hole out". Professional golfers typically make between 60% and 70% of greens in regulation. Eighteen-hole courses typically total to an overall par score of 70 to 72 for
16790-409: The player from playing additional rounds without purchasing another game. This may be accomplished with a "drain" or trap-door hole setup that channels the ball to a lockbox. The 19th hole on miniature golf courses is often a hole in which if a hole-in-one is scored, one receives a free game. One popular method of theming the 18th hole in the United States is to use a gated, ramped target area depicting
16936-415: The playing skills of men and women is very small at the top level. Sometimes the best player in a major international tournament is female. Typically the winner in women's category would be very close to medals also in men's category. World and European Championships have so far never been arranged on MOS courses (which are popular in the United States and UK, and were approved by WMF for competition use only
17082-426: The professional and top amateur level, as well as at high-level private clubs, players may be accompanied by caddies , who carry and manage the players' equipment and who are allowed by the rules to give advice on the play of the course. The rules of golf are internationally standardised and are jointly governed by The R&A , spun off in 2004 from The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews (founded 1754), and
17228-506: The properties or increase the performance envelope of the mix. Design-mix concrete can have very broad specifications that cannot be met with more basic nominal mixes, but the involvement of the engineer often increases the cost of the concrete mix. Concrete mixes are primarily divided into nominal mix, standard mix and design mix. Nominal mix ratios are given in volume of Cement : Sand : Aggregate {\displaystyle {\text{Cement : Sand : Aggregate}}} . Nominal mixes are
17374-447: The putter. Anchored putting, a style that requires a longer putter shaft that can be anchored into the player's stomach or below the chin; the idea is to stabilize one end of the putter thus creating a more consistent pendulum stroke. This style has been banned on professional circuits since 2016. A hole is classified by its par, which gives an indication of the number of strokes a skilled golfer may be expected to need to complete play of
17520-468: The quality and nature of the product. Design mix ratios are decided by an engineer after analyzing the properties of the specific ingredients being used. Instead of using a 'nominal mix' of 1 part cement, 2 parts sand, and 4 parts aggregate (the second example from above), a civil engineer will custom-design a concrete mix to exactly meet the requirements of the site and conditions, setting material ratios and often designing an admixture package to fine-tune
17666-534: The quality of the courses, many customers asked if the Taylors would build a course for them. By the early 1940s, Joe and Bob formed Taylor Brothers, and were in the business of building miniature golf courses and supplying obstacles to the industry. During both the Korean and Vietnam Wars , many a G.I. played on a Taylor Brothers prefabricated course that the U.S. Military had contracted to be built and shipped overseas. In
17812-423: The rainwater pools on them, stopping the ball from rolling. The Swedish Minigolf Federation (Svenska Bangolfförbundet) was founded in 1937, making it the oldest minigolf sport organization in the world. National Swedish championships in minigolf have been played yearly since 1939. In other countries minigolf sport federations were not founded until the late 1950s, due to the post-war economical depression. In 1954,
17958-510: The revival of wacky, animated trick hazards. These hazards required both accurately aimed shots and split-second timing to avoid spinning windmill blades, revolving statuary , and other careening obstacles. The book, Tilting At Windmills: How I Tried To Stop Worrying And Love Sport , by Andy Miller tells the story of the formerly sports-hating author attempting to change by competing in miniature golf, including events in Denmark and Latvia . In
18104-423: The round or tournament is added to produce the total score, and the player with the lowest score wins in stroke play . Stroke play is the game most commonly played by professional golfers. If there is a tie after the regulation number of holes in a professional tournament, a playoff takes place between all tied players. Playoffs either are sudden death or employ a pre-determined number of holes, anywhere from three to
18250-478: The sport back to the Roman game of paganica , in which participants used a bent stick to hit a stuffed leather ball. One theory asserts that paganica spread throughout Europe as the Romans conquered most of the continent, during the first century BC, and eventually evolved into the modern game. Others cite chuiwan (捶丸; "chui" means striking and "wan" means small ball) as the progenitor, a Chinese game played between
18396-413: The stance, while a few mid- and short-iron shots are made with the ball slightly behind the centre of the stance to ensure consistent contact between the ball and clubface, so the ball is on its way before the club continues down into the turf. The golfer chooses a golf club, grip, and stroke appropriate to the distance: Having chosen a club and stroke to produce the desired distance, the player addresses
18542-411: The strength of the concrete bonding to resist tension. The long-term durability of Roman concrete structures has been found to be due to its use of pyroclastic (volcanic) rock and ash, whereby the crystallization of strätlingite (a specific and complex calcium aluminosilicate hydrate) and the coalescence of this and similar calcium–aluminium-silicate–hydrate cementing binders helped give the concrete
18688-497: The surface of concrete for a decorative "exposed aggregate" finish, popular among landscape designers. Admixtures are materials in the form of powder or fluids that are added to the concrete to give it certain characteristics not obtainable with plain concrete mixes. Admixtures are defined as additions "made as the concrete mix is being prepared". The most common admixtures are retarders and accelerators. In normal use, admixture dosages are less than 5% by mass of cement and are added to
18834-636: The surface of their minigolf courses. Felt did not become popular as a surface material in Sweden until in the mid-1960s—but since then it has become practically the only surface material used in Scandinavia and the United Kingdom, due to its favorable playing qualities in wet weather. Minigolf courses with a felt surface can be played in rainy weather, because water soaks through the felt into the ground. The other commonly used surface materials, concrete and fibre-cement , cannot be used in rainy weather, because
18980-535: The surfaces of the aggregate together, and is typically the most expensive component. Thus, variation in sizes of the aggregate reduces the cost of concrete. The aggregate is nearly always stronger than the binder, so its use does not negatively affect the strength of the concrete. Redistribution of aggregates after compaction often creates non-homogeneity due to the influence of vibration. This can lead to strength gradients. Decorative stones such as quartzite , small river stones or crushed glass are sometimes added to
19126-408: The turning force. Weak wrists can also transmit the force to elbows and even neck and lead to injury. (When a muscle contracts, it pulls equally from both ends and, to have movement at only one end of the muscle, other muscles must come into play to stabilize the bone to which the other end of the muscle is attached.) Golf is a unilateral exercise that can break body balances, requiring exercises to keep
19272-405: The varied terrains encountered on different courses is a key part of the game. Courses typically have either 9 or 18 holes , regions of terrain that each contain a cup , the hole that receives the ball. Each hole on a course has a teeing ground for the hole's first stroke, and a putting green containing the cup. There are several standard forms of terrain between the tee and the green, such as
19418-655: The various ingredients used to produce a given quantity of concrete, the cement is the most energetically expensive. Even complex and efficient kilns require 3.3 to 3.6 gigajoules of energy to produce a ton of clinker and then grind it into cement . Many kilns can be fueled with difficult-to-dispose-of wastes, the most common being used tires. The extremely high temperatures and long periods of time at those temperatures allows cement kilns to efficiently and completely burn even difficult-to-use fuels. The five major compounds of calcium silicates and aluminates comprising Portland cement range from 5 to 50% in weight. Combining water with
19564-439: The water content or adding chemical admixtures increases concrete workability. Excessive water leads to increased bleeding or segregation of aggregates (when the cement and aggregates start to separate), with the resulting concrete having reduced quality. Changes in gradation can also affect workability of the concrete, although a wide range of gradation can be used for various applications. An undesirable gradation can mean using
19710-527: The water through a process called concrete hydration that hardens it over several hours to form a hard matrix that binds the materials together into a durable stone-like material that has many uses. This time allows concrete to not only be cast in forms, but also to have a variety of tooled processes performed. The hydration process is exothermic , which means ambient temperature plays a significant role in how long it takes concrete to set. Often, additives (such as pozzolans or superplasticizers ) are included in
19856-620: The winner of a major competition may earn up to $ 5,000. In mainland Europe the prize money generally quite low, and in many cases honor is the only thing at stake in the competition. International championships usually award no prize money at all. In the US there are two organizations offering national tournaments : the Professional Putters Association and the US Pro Mini-Golf Association (USPMGA). The USPMGA represents
20002-523: The world are the US Masters, US Open, British Open, World Crazy Golf Championships and the World Adventure Golf Masters . Golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit a ball into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games , cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping with
20148-465: Was Smeaton's Tower , built by British engineer John Smeaton in Devon , England, between 1756 and 1759. This third Eddystone Lighthouse pioneered the use of hydraulic lime in concrete, using pebbles and powdered brick as aggregate. A method for producing Portland cement was developed in England and patented by Joseph Aspdin in 1824. Aspdin chose the name for its similarity to Portland stone , which
20294-452: Was built in 1926 by a man surnamed Schröder in Hamburg, Germany . Schröder had been inspired by his visit to the United States, where he had seen minigolf courses spreading across the country. In 1930 Edwin O. Norrman and Eskil Norman returned to Sweden from the United States, where they had stayed for several years and witnessed the golden days of the American minigolf boom. In 1931 they founded
20440-573: Was built largely of concrete, and the Pantheon has the world's largest unreinforced concrete dome. Concrete, as the Romans knew it, was a new and revolutionary material. Laid in the shape of arches , vaults and domes , it quickly hardened into a rigid mass, free from many of the internal thrusts and strains that troubled the builders of similar structures in stone or brick. Modern tests show that opus caementicium had as much compressive strength as modern Portland-cement concrete (c. 200 kg/cm [20 MPa; 2,800 psi]). However, due to
20586-602: Was greatly reduced. Low kiln temperatures in the burning of lime, lack of pozzolana, and poor mixing all contributed to a decline in the quality of concrete and mortar. From the 11th century, the increased use of stone in church and castle construction led to an increased demand for mortar. Quality began to improve in the 12th century through better grinding and sieving. Medieval lime mortars and concretes were non-hydraulic and were used for binding masonry, "hearting" (binding rubble masonry cores) and foundations. Bartholomaeus Anglicus in his De proprietatibus rerum (1240) describes
20732-551: Was known as cambuca in England and chambot in France. The Persian game chowkan is another possible ancient origin, albeit being more polo -like. In addition, kolven (a game involving a ball and curved bats) was played annually in Loenen, Netherlands, beginning in 1297, to commemorate the capture of the assassin of Floris V , a year earlier. The modern game originated in Scotland , where
20878-448: Was made from quicklime , pozzolana and an aggregate of pumice . Its widespread use in many Roman structures , a key event in the history of architecture termed the Roman architectural revolution , freed Roman construction from the restrictions of stone and brick materials. It enabled revolutionary new designs in terms of both structural complexity and dimension. The Colosseum in Rome
21024-493: Was pioneered by the Nabatean traders who occupied and controlled a series of oases and developed a small empire in the regions of southern Syria and northern Jordan from the 4th century BC. They discovered the advantages of hydraulic lime , with some self-cementing properties, by 700 BC. They built kilns to supply mortar for the construction of rubble masonry houses, concrete floors, and underground waterproof cisterns . They kept
21170-614: Was quarried on the Isle of Portland in Dorset , England. His son William continued developments into the 1840s, earning him recognition for the development of "modern" Portland cement. Reinforced concrete was invented in 1849 by Joseph Monier . and the first reinforced concrete house was built by François Coignet in 1853. The first concrete reinforced bridge was designed and built by Joseph Monier in 1875. Prestressed concrete and post-tensioned concrete were pioneered by Eugène Freyssinet ,
21316-615: Was used for construction in many ancient structures. Mayan concrete at the ruins of Uxmal (AD 850–925) is referenced in Incidents of Travel in the Yucatán by John L. Stephens . "The roof is flat and had been covered with cement". "The floors were cement, in some places hard, but, by long exposure, broken, and now crumbling under the feet." "But throughout the wall was solid, and consisting of large stones imbedded in mortar, almost as hard as rock." Small-scale production of concrete-like materials
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