Why is Playing Golf Good For You

Any activity that leaves you slightly short of breath and works up a bit of a sweat is great for your cardiovascular system, or heart. In addition to lowering harmful cholesterol, it also helps speed up your metabolism, making weight loss easier. A round of golf burns about 300 calories in a 150 pound individual who plays for 1 hour while carrying clubs. If you choose to ride in a cart, the same round of golf will burn only 230 calories. The driving range burns about 200 calories per hour.

Every time you swing that golf club gives you weight bearing exercises which are great for your bones. Weight bearing exercises two to three times a week can create long, lean muscle mass, which helps support a strong skeleton. This type of exercise can also help prevent bone degeneration, including osteoporosis. To add more weight bearing in your golf game, carry your clubs. A great option to release stress on your shoulders is a double strapped golf bag.

Catching some rays while playing golf outside gives you lots of vitamin D. This vitamin is essential for strong bones, it regulates the amount of calcium and phosphorus in the blood. Vitamin D also helps regulate the growth of skin cells. While you can eat some foods that are high in vitamin D, your body can actually make all of this vitamin it needs just by playing under the sunshine.

Study after study has shown that regular exercise increases the positives that sleep brings. You'll fall asleep faster and remain in a deep sleep for a longer period of time with regular exercise, which includes activities like golf. Sleep is important because it allows time for your muscles to repair themselves. Playing a round of golf by day will likely increase the quality of your restfulness by night.

Golf is a social game. There's plenty of time to chat with new friends and get to know new ones. Making friends increases endorphins, which helps mental outlook and an overall feeling of well being. Studies have shown that seniors who remain social and friendly live up to six years longer than those that don't.

So, get out there! Grab your golf clubs and balls, set out to the golf course and enjoy a day in the sun. Before starting any workout regimen, make sure you check first with your doctor.

According to HowStuffWorks, the reason why golf balls have dimples is a story of natural selection. Originally, golf balls were smooth; but golfers noticed that older balls that were beat up with nicks, bumps and slices in the cover seemed to fly farther. Golfers, being golfers, naturally gravitate toward anything that gives them an advantage on the golf course, so old, beat-up balls became standard issue.

At some point, an aerodynamicist must have looked at this problem and realized that the nicks and cuts were acting as "turbulators" -- they induce turbulence in the layer of air next to the ball (the "boundary layer"). In some situations, a turbulent boundary layer reduces drag.

If you want to get deeper into the aerodynamics, there are two types of flow around an object: laminar and turbulent. Laminar flow has less drag, but it is also prone to a phenomenon called "separation." Once separation of a laminar boundary layer occurs, drag rises dramatically because of eddies that form in the gap. Turbulent flow has more drag initially but also better adhesion, and therefore is less prone to separation. Therefore, if the shape of an object is such that separation occurs easily, it is better to turbulate the boundary layer (at the slight cost of increased drag) in order to increase adhesion and reduce eddies (which means a significant reduction in drag). Dimples on golf balls turbulate the boundary layer.

The dimples on a golf ball are simply a formal, symmetrical way of creating the same turbulence in the boundary layer that nicks and cuts do.

A handicap is a numerical measure of an amateur golfer's playing ability based on the tees played for a given course. It is used to calculate a net score from the number of strokes actually played, thus allowing players of different proficiency to play against each other on somewhat equal terms. The higher the handicap of a player, the poorer the player is relative to those with lower handicaps. Handicaps are administered by golf clubs or national golf associations. Exact rules relating to handicaps can vary from country to country.

Handicap systems are not used in professional golf.

A golfer whose handicap is zero is called a "scratch golfer." A golfer whose handicap is 18 is called a "bogey golfer." It is possible to have a handicap below 0; these are referred to as 'plus' handicaps, and at the end of the round, a 'plus' handicap golfer must add his handicap to his score. A professional golfer plays off scratch, but has no actual handicap.