Golf, which is highly
respected in Western Europe and the USA and
which has become a life style for many of
its fans, gains more and more popularity in
Uzbekistan. Nowadays, along with great
masterpieces of medieval art and picturesque
ruins of ancient cities, Uzbekistan can
boast of excellent golf fields. In Tashkent
there was constructed a wonderfully
organized golf club with first-rate golf
fields. It is not surprising therefore, that
high-level sport competitions are quite
often held here. |
 |
 |
 |
Ideal climate,
clean air, wonderful views, natural landscapes -
hilly lowlands, fields crossed with the tree
lines, lakes and vegetation make for this. 108
hectares of land with 18 holes on evergreen
lawns, with gently sloping hills and branchy
crowns of trees, lakes and waterfalls that serve
as natural barriers for the game, all this
pertains to "Tashkent Lake Side Golf Club".
Here the golf
fields, which are 7015 yards long, challenge the
proficient golf players, and at the same time
enable the beginners to perfect their skills. |
Picturesque lakes
surrounding the fields impart peculiar characteristics
to each of 18 holes. Meandering along the lakes and
waterfalls, the fields make an atmosphere of an oasis
typical for inland plains of Central Asian.
It will take you 20
minutes to get to this Rokhat suburban recreation area
from the center of the capital. This first-class Golf
Club was constructed with the assistance of American
company "Olden Star Inc" and was opened for visitors in
August, 1998.
Playing golf is a real
pleasure! Everyone can play it, irrespective of age, sex
and physical fitness. This is one of the few sports,
which all the family can go in for the whole year round.
In Uzbekistan, noted for its warm climate that allows
playing outdoor games at any season of the year, one can
really play golf all the year round.
Golf is an ancient game.
It appeared 700 years ago concurrently in several
countries, but still Scotland is considered to be a
homeland of golf. It was created by shepherds, who
whiled away the time by driving the stones into the
holes with the help of sticks, whilst flocks of sheep
were grazing in the meadows.
Subsequently, golf turned
into an aristocratic game, like horse racing or sailing.
And now it seems to revert to its original status
becoming a popular game in all the countries all over
the world. It is suffice to say that only in US there
are more than one and a half thousand golf clubs.
Golf is a game for real
gentlemen. For instance, one of the oldest English golf
clubs in the world is called "St.Andrew's Old Royal Golf
Club". In olden days, players even used to wear a kind
of uniform - plus fours. Nowadays, the golf players are
not restricted in their garments, but still some elitist
features have preserved.
 |
A set of wonderful nickel-plated golf-clubs
in a delicate case, special gloves made of
expensive leather - all these accessories
look very aristocratic and exquisite. |
In golf there are
regulations; but there is also golf etiquette, binding
for everyone who is keen on golf. Nothing can be done
about it: this is the inherent feature of the game. Golf
is not like football, where a player may kick both the
ball and the other player's legs.
In golf within four hours
the players have to drive a ball into holes on 18 fields
using the least possible number of hits. Age, sex and
weight of the player are of no importance. The only
difference is that for some people golf is a sport and
for others it is just a health-improving pastime.
 |
 |
Here and there
the trees, surrounded by thick high grass,
tower over accurately mown lawns. These
grassy patches are called roughs. Green sods
give place to sand traps - bunkers. Young
girls - caddy help the players to choose a
golf club for driving the ball. In golf club
the beginners can take the free lessons on
golf playing. |
Golf regulations are very
simple and can be reduced to three main principles: play
on the field as it is, drive the ball as it lies, and if
the first two regulations cannot be applied, act by
rights. Justice, as everybody knows, is a category of
morality. Therefore it is reasonable that golf
regulations are based on morality. It is customary
practice of golf that golfers should be polite, well
disposed and tolerant to mistakes of other players.
This game etiquette does
not allow standing too close to the player while he is
hitting the ball, to divert his attention with
unnecessary walking or talking. You should let the fast
player by; refrain from playing until an antecedent
group of players reach the safe distance. It is not
polite to detain a game, you have to set a playing zone
free after all the players of your group have passed a
hole.
All this seems very
simple. But at the same time, it is necessary to point
out that golf is one of the few games where these basic
morals make a part of the game itself. We should keep in
mind that nothing cost us so little but is appreciated
so high as politeness.
 |
 |
In spite of
the fact that Tashkent lakeside golf club is
young, it becomes more and more popular
among the golf players. More than 100
hundred players from USA, UK, Japan, Canada,
Malaysia, Holland, South Korea took part in
the first open golf tournament of
Uzbekistasn.
For instance,
golf players from South Korea find it more
convenient and profitable to fly to Tashkent
for a weekend rather than wait for their
turn in the expensive golf club in their
home country. |
Climatic conditions of
Uzbekistan ensure that golf fields are green and in
perfect condition all the year round. Whereas in Russia,
where golf is extremely popular nowadays, severe winter
frosts and cold rainy days in autumn and spring make
golf a season game. Therefore golf fans from Moscow and
other Russian cities come to Uzbekistan in order to play
golf.
Many employees of foreign
embassies, foreign representative offices, trading and
manufacturing companies and, of course, business elite
of Tashkent are the constant members of Tashkent Lake
side golf club. Today golf is not only the playground
where golfers can prove themselves. Tashkent lakeside
golf club possesses a large recreational area with
training lawns, tennis courts, swimming pool, sauna,
guesthouse, and restaurant with excellent cuisine. For
many golf devotees, this aristocratic game has become a
life style.
 |
 |
Members of
this country club get together in informal
atmosphere to converse about the things they
are interested in as well as to discuss some
business matters and to make a deal. As a
matter of fact the unofficial objective of
the golf club is to provide for the club
members the favourable conditions for making
contacts, to help them to find partners not
only for golf game but also for business
cooperation. After all, some of the foreign
guests come to Uzbekistan having neither
friends nor business partners here. Thus
golf club membership becomes a kind of a
good business card for them. |
Very often guests coming
to Uzbekistan kill two birds with one stone. They
combine playing golf with touring Uzbekistan`s ancient
cities located along the Great Silk Road. Impressions
gained during the excursions to the ancient
architectural constructions of Shakhrisabz and Samarkand,
Bukhara and Khiva, which are included into UNESCO world
heritage list are just unforgettable; they fascinate and
command respect towards the historical and cultural
background of Uzbek people. After familiarizing
themselves with this "oriental tale", the visit to the
Tashkent Lake side golf club, the prestigious center of
the very "west-European" sport in the heart of Central
Asia, becomes particularly exciting.
|