'Fore!' yells the farmer

BY JOHN DECOSTE

AND WENDY ELLIOTT

NovaNewsNow.com

On the surface, it looks like a regular game of golf; you hit a round ball with a club and play 10 holes in as few strokes as possible. With FarmersGolf, however, that’s where the similarity ends.

Considered the fastest growing leisure activity in Continental Europe, FarmersGolf is literally played in a farmer’s field: on pastures, over ditches, through woodlands and among cows and other farm animals.

First played in 1999 on the pastures of a cheese farm in the Netherlands, the number of courses continues to grow, from just a few in early 2004 to more than 100 locations in several countries by the end of 2006.

And now, courtesy of Kings County farmers Joe Ueffing and Doug Hennigar, FarmersGolf can be played right here in Kings County, with the first local course set up on Hennigar’s farm in Greenwich.

Hennigar explained the game recently to members of the Lohr family - some from The Netherlands and those who live in Kings County. He warned them to expect stumps, bales of hay and trees to get in the way of their play. "There are also brambles and a ravine or two," added Heather Hennigar.

A real family game

Susan Schuringa of Tollebeck, The Netherlands, had played previously in Holland and called it a blast, despite - or because of – it not being a groomed course. She noted FarmersGolf is for families to play together. "Looks aren't important," piped up Heather. "You can wear your rubber boots. The point is you play together."

A FarmersGolf course normally has 10 holes, with an average length of more than 200 metres (courses usually require a space of five hectares).

Each hole has a beginning and an end point, the “end” being a bucket dug into the ground with a numbered flag.

The game is played by two teams, with a maximum of five players per team. Each team tees off, with the team furthest from the “pin” getting the next shot. The ball can be moved a club length from its original lie providing it is not moved closer to the pin.

A hole is completed when the ball is hit into the bucket. The ball is then placed four metres away in the direction of the pin for the next hole and play continues.

Needless to say, using regular-sized golf balls in a pasture where cows may be present might pose a problem - not to mention a lot of time-consuming searching for lost balls. The solution: use a bigger, brighter ball. While the game and the rules of play have continued to evolve, one thing has remained the same: the club, a solid, traditional Dutch wooden shoe on a shaft.

According to its founder, Dutch farmer Peter Weenink, FarmersGolf “is not a complicated game, and is fun to play,” which has contributed to its rapid growth.

Doug met Weenink and agrees FarmersGolf sidelines the expense of traditional golf games. "It’s a good use of open space. You can stretch your legs and use this exaggerated equipment," he said, pointing to the outsized, wooden shoe club.

The game takes about three hours to play and costs $10 per adult.