Britannica
Sources used in this answer
What is a fairway on a golf course?
Created from Britannica articles
using AI.
AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
golf
American golfer Tiger Woods competing at the British Open (Open Championship) at St. Andrews, Fife, Scotland, 2005.
In the sport of golf, the fairway is the closely mowed area of the course that extends between the teeing ground and the putting green.12
It serves as the preferred route for a player to navigate toward the hole. Historically, fairways were bordered by unmowed vegetation known as the rough, though many modern courses incorporate other features such as trees or hazards—which include sand-filled bunkers and bodies of water—to challenge the golfer's progress.13