Golf taster sessions in France: how a first lesson works

A golf taster session (an "initiation" in French) is a first lesson with a golf professional, with the equipment lent to you. More than 450 clubs in France run them, according to the French Golf Federation, many of them on free open days. You have nothing to buy and no level to reach. Here is how a session runs, what to ask the club and where to start. 147 golf courses in our database have a compact course for beginners.

• Who for. Anyone who has never played, alone, with friends or with family.
• Who with. A golf professional from the club, with a teaching qualification.
• Equipment. The clubs are lent to you. The French Golf Federation says so for its open days.
• Price. Open days are often free. UGOLF advertises "free taster sessions to discover golf", and Bluegreen announces on its website that its own are back (page consulted on 1 October 2026).
• Number of clubs. More than 450 clubs open their doors to beginners, out of about 700 in France, according to the federation.

Sources: French Golf Federation, "Débuter" and "Essayer le golf" pages; UGOLF, "Enseignement" page; Bluegreen, "Envie de golf" page. Consulted on 1 October 2026.

Each club builds its own session. The free taster sessions run by UGOLF and Bluegreen in Île-de-France in autumn 2024 followed this pattern, over two hours, with a state-qualified golf professional:

1. Discovering the equipment. The different clubs, what each one is for, how to hold it.
2. The driving range. Your first shots, in the practice area.
3. The putting green. Rolling the ball into the hole.
4. The course. A first taste of play out on the course.

Source: Fairways Magazine, "Retour des initiations gratuites avec Ugolf et Bluegreen en Île-de-France", 29 August 2024.

Call the golf club's reception before you go. The questions to ask:

1. Is the session free, and do I need to sign up?
2. How long does it last, and how many people per golf professional?
3. What equipment is lent: clubs, balls, glove?
4. Which shoes and clothing are accepted on the range and on the course?
5. Are children welcome, and from what age?
6. What does the club offer after the taster session: lessons, a golf school, carte verte training?

Look for a golf club with a compact course

A compact course is a short course designed for beginners. You can usually play it without the carte verte, the French certificate that full-size courses ask for. 147 golf courses in our database have one. Their number per region, as of 2026-10-01:

• South West France (Nouvelle-Aquitaine): 19 golf courses with a compact course
• Occitanie: 17
• Paris and Île-de-France: 16
• Alsace and Grand Est: 14
• Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes: 14
• Pays de la Loire: 14
• Normandy: 11
• Provence and the French Riviera: 11
• Loire Valley (Centre-Val de Loire): 10
• Northern France (Hauts-de-France): 9
• Brittany: 7
• Burgundy-Franche-Comté: 5
• Corsica: none declared

On each region page, the section "Where to start golf" lists these courses by name. The federation also keeps a map of the clubs that offer taster sessions, in its golf course guide.

Golf taster sessions in Paris and Île-de-France

Paris itself has only one golf course in our database: the Golf ParisLongchamp, a 9-hole course. For a taster session near Paris, look at the inner and outer suburbs:

• Île-de-France has 81 golf courses, 16 of them with a compact course;
• in autumn 2024, 27 UGOLF and Bluegreen golf courses in the region offered free two-hour taster sessions, from Rueil-Malmaison to Roissy and from Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines to Sénart;
• Bluegreen announces that its free taster sessions are back in 2026: check the list of golf courses with the network.

The full list, département by département: the golf courses of Paris and Île-de-France.

• Golf schools take children from the age of 6, according to the French Golf Federation.
• UGOLF runs children's lessons from 4 to 18. Signing up for the year requires a medical certificate, a French golf licence and membership of the club's sports association.
• The federation's open days are also aimed at families.

1. Lessons. Group or private lessons over several weeks. UGOLF offers packages of a few hours for beginners.
2. A golf school. Several days of lessons in a row, often during the holidays. Formats and places are on our page golf schools in France.
3. The carte verte. It opens full-size courses to you. The club's golf professional issues it, after a quiz and a test on the course: everything is explained on our page on playing golf in France.

• French Golf Federation, "Débuter" and "Essayer le golf" pages, consulted on 1 October 2026.
• Fairways Magazine, "Retour des initiations gratuites avec Ugolf et Bluegreen en Île-de-France", 29 August 2024.
• UGOLF, "Enseignement" page, consulted on 1 October 2026.
• Bluegreen, "Envie de golf" page (announcement that the free taster sessions are back), consulted on 1 October 2026.
• Number of golf courses and compact courses per region: our database, built on Data ES (French Ministry of Sports) and OpenStreetMap, updated on 2026-10-01.

ParcoursGolf is an independent site. It has no link with the French Golf Federation, the networks or the golf courses listed. Our sources and method.