Golf History
Golf as a game has many theories on how and where golf began, but despite this there are only a few certainties. One theory goes back to Roman times, with a game played in the streets by Roman boys with a leather ball stuffed with feathers. Another suggestion is that a game played in Holland on the ice and frozen canels called Het Kolven is where golf started. Some have argued the game was brought across the North Sea by the Dutch traders to Scotland.
The most common and plausible explanation of the games origins, is the Scotland theory. Some have put the argument that the game originated from a game played on the eastern coast of Scotland in the Kingdom of Fife during the 15th century. Some argued that the "birth" of golf happened earlier on the shores of Scotland, perhaps as early as the twelfth century. It slowly spread throughout Scotland until by 1456 King James II thought it was taking to much time away from the men’s archery practice, and decreed that the futeball and golfe (as it was spelled at the time) were to be no longer played.
In the earliest days, players used primitive equipment by modern standards. The earliest golf balls were thin leather bags stuffed with feathers. As a result, they did not fly very far when hit with a club. The earliest clubs were made of wood. Some players initially carved their own clubs and balls from wood. But as game developed, some turned to skilled craftsmen to produce competitive equipment to play the game. The earliest reference to a set of specially made clubs is when King James IV of Scotland commissioned a bow-maker in Perth to make him a set in 1502.
But it was between 1750 and 1850 that golf as we know it today came to be. It was in this time that many of today's great golf clubs were founded and the leading players of the era became renowned. Also great club-makers and ball-makers of the era began to emerge and the clubs produced by these skilled craftsmen were coveted som much so that forgeries became commonplace.
Top players began to regularly gather for 'meetings' when medal and match-play rounds were organised, with distinctions made for the first time between amateur and professional players. Allan Robertson, of a famous ball-making family in St Andrews, is widely credited as being the first golf professional. But before Allan, his Grandfather Peter was described as a professional golfer and although history knows little of this man, his reputation survived him and his prowess was widely acknowledged.
Between 1848 and 1852 golf took its shape with two significant events. These events changed the game from being parochial to be a global game played by millions. The first of these events was the discovery of the ‘gutta percha’ based ball, known as the "gutty" by James Patterson in 1848. More importantly, the durability of this new ball in turn encouraged the development of iron-faced clubs and so continued the evolution of golf.
The third event was however probably the most significant to golf. Tom Morris, a leader left St Andrews for Prestwick to create the first purpose built golf course on the links of Monkton parish. It was in 1860 that the first Open Championship was held at Prestwick and was contested by eight leading professionals.
By 1865, the game had expanded to England, Ireland, France, and India. Over the next decades, golf's popularity grew with people wanting to play the game. The game continued to spread with new courses be building all the time and with new players playing the game throughout the world. By the 1870’s, the game had spread to North America with the first club set up in 1873. This was the Royal Montreal Club, Montreal, Canada. In 1888, John Reid and Associates built 6 holes in New York, calling it St Andrews. They claimed to be the first golf club in the USA. In 1891 and 1892, the Shinnecock Hills Golf Club was built and a club house was formed. But the first 18-hole course in the United States was the, Chicago Golf Club, near Wheaton Ill. It was opened in 1893 and designed by Charles Blair Macdonald. The following year the USGA (United States Golf Association) was formed. This organization, whose headquarters are in Far Hills, New Jersey, rules on ball and club specifications as well as such regulations as hazards and scoring. In 1895, the first USA Open for men was played in 1895 in Newport, Rhobe Island. The same year, the women's amateur championship was first played.
In Britain, the game continued to evolve with new courses emerging all the time and new people taking up the game. Between 1890 and 1915, greats such as Harry Vardon from Devon, England and Henry Taylor from Jersey, along with another golfer, James Braid, won 16 British Open Titles and 13 second places. With new golf courses continuing to be built, many players in Britain whet to the USA to play the game. The early US Open Champions were all Scots born players.
In the 20th century, the game has grown even more. The game is now played both by amateurs and professionals in competitions throughout the world. One of the greatest amateur golfers of modern times, Bobby Jones was the only player in the world to win the grand slam in golf. In one year, 1930, he won the four major tournaments of the time: the British Amateur, the British Open, the United States Amateur, and the United States Open. Another leading golfer of the 20th century was Jack Nichlaus. He is the only golfer to win all four of the top professional tournaments at least twice.
|
