The origins of golf

March 24th, 2009 by articles

It was way back in 1297 that the game of golf was first recorded. This was surprisingly said to have been in the Netherlands. The game was played with a stick and a leather ball. Whoever hit the ball the kongest distance and in the least number of times was considered the winner.

The modern game of golf is thought to have originated in Scotland. The word golf might have been derived from the Dutch word “kolf” which means stick or club. The very first 18 hole golf course was also in Scotland. Also the original written rules were said to have come from the Scots.

It was not long before the game had spread to England. The oldest playing golf course in the world is the Old Links at Musselburgh in East Lothian. It was said that Mary Queen of Scots in fact played there back in 1567.

However golf courses have not always been made up of 18 holes. Early golfers at St Andrews made a trench through the rough land playing just eleven holes which were laid out end to end from the clubhouse to the end of the property. Once reaching the end they would turn round and play their way back therefore making a total of 22 holes. It was decided that some of the holes were too short so they became integrated and ended up as 18 holes as we know today.

Golfing equipment has developed a lot over the years. It was in the 1930’s that the US Golf Association set a standard weight and size for golf balls. It was stated that the velocity of the golf ball should not exceed 250 feet per second and since this time it has continued to develop and make an impact on the way the game is played.

Another great factor is of course the evolution of the golf club. The extremely early ones were made of wood. Hickory became the standard wood used for the shafts and Persimmon was the choice of wood for the club head because of its hardness and strength.As the golf ball developed and became much more durable it was then that the iron headed clubs were first introduced to the game. Steel shafts were developed in the 1890’s .

In the early 1970’s shaft technology was introduced to the use of graphite shafts with lightweight titanium heads meaning that the head could be made much larger.

The equipment has been developed massively with the help of modern day technology and now we have more golf equipment than you would have imagined possible. Our forbears were not lucky enough to have such things as golf trolleys and golf buggies to transport them round the course. However one thing that probably has stood the test of time is the sociable drink at the 19th hole at the end of a round of golf!