Who Invented The Game Of Golf ?

by: David Humphrey

Well, who actually did invent the game of Golf? The question has been asked and argued for many years with no true winner. Many countries have a valid claim to an early game that resembles the game of golf. Some of the countries that make this claim are England. Scotland, China, Rome, France, The Netherlands, Belgium and Laos. The most heated debate over who invented golf definitely comes from Great Britain and Scotland.

The first area to look when deciding the answer to our question must be what actually determines when a game with sticks and balls is golf or another game. Most countries in the world have had games where you hit an object with a stick at some sort of target. Is this enough to be called golf, I don’t think so. If so, then these early games could claim the origin of many sports played today. I think it takes more than just a game with some kind of object being hit by a stick to qualify as the origin of golf.

Holland is believed to be the origin of the name of golf but not the actual game itself. Holland played a game in the 1200s called Colf, which means clubs. This was a form of golf but once again the form of many other sports.

Colf has been traced back to Dec. 26, 1297, in the town of Loenen aan de Vecht in northern Holland. On that day, the local townsfolk played four holes of the game to commemorate the relieving of the Kronenburg Castle exactly one year before. The fact that colf was chosen to mark the occasion is proof that the game was already popular by that time.

Great Britain The earliest traces of golf history has golf being played are said to date back to 1340, where in a sketch from a stained glass window, the Great East Window, in the east wing of the Gloucester Cathedral, England, scenes of the Battle of Crecy in France showed a man apparently preparing to strike a ball in a golf-like manner.

One of the early forms of golf were all missing one important ingredient to their games to truly make the game golf and that was the hole. Scotland is widely believed to be the first country to put all the ingredients together and actually start a primitive form of the great game of golf.

Yes, this will always be a disputed point, who actually invented the game of golf. If you believe some of the claims that the game they were playing was golf and they didn’t have a hole, then you could take this same game and turn it into the origin of many games we still play today. I believe the hole is what separates all the early claims to who originated the game of golf.

Look at our Golf History section at the World of Golf Handicap for more detailed information on the History of Golf.

http://www.dave-and-maggie-world-of-golf-handicap.com/golf-history.html

Author
David Humphrey
World of Golf Handicap

http://www.dave-and-maggie-world-of-golf-handicap.com/index.html

---

Your Best Link to the "Links"--A Brief History of Golf

by: Larry Denton

Golf, as we know it today, originated from a game played on the eastern coast of Scotland during the 15th century. Players would hit a pebble around a natural course of sand dunes and rabbit trails using a stick or a primitive club.

Some historians believe that the games of Kolven from Holland and Chole from Belgium influenced the game. The latter being introduced into Scotland in 1421. However, while these are stick and ball games, they are missing that vital ingredient that is unique to golf--the hole. Whatever the argument, there is no dispute that Scotland gave birth to the game we know today as golf.

The status and popularity of golf spread quickly throughout the 16th century due to it's royal endorsement. King Charles I brought the game to England and Mary Queen of Scots, who was French, introduced the game to France while she studied there. In fact, the term "caddie" stems from the name given to her helpers who were cadets in the French military.

The Gentlemen Golfers of Leith (near Edinburgh) was the first club(formed in 1744) to promote an annual competition and to draft the club's rules. The first reference to golf at the historic town of St. Andrews was in 1552. The now famous clubhouse was erected there in 1854 and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews became the premier golf club because of it's fine course, the publication of rules, and it's promotion of the game as a proper sport.

By this time, golfers were using proper clubs and balls. Club heads were made from beech wood and some heads were

Continues next column

Continued from column one

made from hand-forged iron. Shafts were usually ash or hazel wood. Balls were made from tightly packed feathers wrapped in a stitched horse-hide sphere.

The industrial revolution brought with it many social and economic changes. The growth of railroads gave rise to mass tourism and for the first time, ordinary people could explore the countryside as weekend visitors. Golf courses popped up all over the United Kingdom and people could enjoy the challenge of playing a different one each week.

Since most golf equipment was handcrafted it was, therefore, quite expensive and golf was dominated by the wealthy. Once metal club heads and shafts and gutta percha balls (1848) began rolling off production lines, the average person was able to afford golf.

The growth of golf as an organized competitive sport in the United Kingdom was paralleled abroad in India and the United States. In 1894, the United States Golf Association (USGA) was established to regulate the game in the U.S. and Mexico.

By 1900 there were more than 1,000 golf courses in the U.S. Chicago was the first to sport 18 holes. Importantly, American golf courses were specifically designed like parklands unlike those in the U.K., which were typically links courses.

The beginning of the 20th century brought several technological innovations to the game of golf. The one piece rubber-cored ball appeared in 1900, and grooved-faced irons were introduced in 1902. In 1905, William Taylor invented the first dimpled ball and in 1910, steel-shafted clubs first appeared. Within a decade, golfers could hit further and with more accuracy than ever before using equipment which was mass produced rather inexpensively.

While there have been thousands of unbelievable golf shots throughout the centuries, the most famous golf shot must surely belong to Alan Shepard who hit a ball on the moon in 1971, watched by an audience of millions around the globe. Golf--the first sport is space! The club he used can be viewed in the USGA museum in Far Hills, New Jersey.

As prize money grows, so does the sport of golf itself. Millions of people around the world now play the sport, and other millions watch the game religiously on television. Golf is a game for young and old, short and tall, thin and hefty. Golf is truly a "people's game," and continues to grow in popularity.

About the Author

Larry Denton is a retired history teacher having taught 33 years at Hobson High in Hobson, Montana. He is currently V.P. of Elfin Enterprises, Inc., an Internet business providing valuable information on a variety of timely topics. For a club house full of advice, resources and suggestions about golf, visit http://www.GolfWhole.com

---

You Can Play The Oldest Golf Course In The World

by: Gary Hill

If I asked you where the oldest golf course in the world was what would you say? Scotland – yes, good guess so far. But where in Scotland?

When pressed most golfers eventually say St Andrews, but they’re wrong. Golf was played at Musselburgh near Edinburgh at least ten years before any recorded games at St Andrews. Local records suggest that golf was played on the links land near the shore at Musselburgh from around the year 1567.

The “old course” in Musselburgh is still there today and retains much of its original layout. It has nine holes and can be played by all comers. Seven of the holes were laid out before 1830 (and probably much earlier) and the two “new holes” were added in the mid 1800’s.

The British Open golf tournament was held at Musselburgh on five occasions between 1874 and 1889 and the first ever golf competition for women was played on the course in 1811. The club members still compete for the Old Club Cup, which dates back to 1774.

Even the holes in the greens are significant at Musselburgh. In 1829 the members decided to buy a mechanical device from a local blacksmith to cut the holes on the green. By chance he made it with a diameter of exactly four and a half inches. Golf holes at the time could be any size that the members wanted – there was no rule about it. In 1893 the Royal and Ancient Golf Club at St Andrews – who by this time wrote the rules of golf for the game worldwide – decided that all golf holes should be the same size as the ones at Musselburgh and the decision has remained unchanged to this day.

For a course of such historical importance, access is remarkably easy. You can simply pay and play if you wish and there is a small shop selling special souvenirs. Memberships are available for both local and overseas members – the latter might make a particularly unusual golf gift. Each overseas member receives a welcome pack with a history of the club, a special bag tag, special golf balls and tees and is welcome to join in any competitions if they come for a holiday in Scotland.

This truly is golf at it’s most authentic and in its most historical setting. Come try it – you will really feel the history of the place.

About The Author

Gary Hill lives and works near Edinburgh in Scotland.

You can visit his website at www.vacation2europe.com and read more about golf vacations to Scotland and Ireland at www.vacation2europe.com/ireland-golf-vacation.html