PILGRIMAGE

via flickr: GeoGolf course completed 9/9/2005 by tgarneson

In each game, either 9 or 18 waypoints (or golf holes) are created, all centered around a starting point you specify. The exact locations of the holes are chosen at random by computer, with all the unpredictability that presents. Holes might be in suburban neighborhoods or in the middle of wilderness areas. The course creation engine does try to keep the holes out of the ocean.

Then, it’s up to you to see how close you can get to each hole. Your “score” for each hole is determined by how close you get to the exact waypoint. Report the reading on your GPS receiver, in meters, to the computer scorekeeper, which converts the distance into a number of “strokes”. The closer the distance, the fewer the strokes. Two or more Geodashing golfers who live near each other can set up contests to see who can do better on a given course. Or, an individual can compare his score on one course with his score on a different, randomly generated, course in the same area. Or players from around the world can compare their scores against each other, to see which area of the world provides the most accessible (or most challenging) terrain.