The Short History of Golf

By: Andrew Kelly

Out of all the games of the world golf is one of the most popular. Irrespective of class or wealth golf is open to all sectors of the community but it is a game that generates massive incomes for television companies, golfing resorts, professional golfers and lots of other people. Out of all the luxurious golf resorts many golfers would class the Scottish town of St Andrews as the most important place to play at least one round. Scotland is known throughout the world as the home of golf.

Of all the other countries that lay claim to being the home of golf only France and Holland offer anything of any substance. The French have two possible games, jeu de mail and chole, and the Dutch have just one, kolven. Unfortunately there is insufficient evidence to prove that any were the actual forerunner of modern golf.

Although there are several games which have fascinating similarities with the game of golf, it is only in golf that the sole purpose of the game is to land the ball in a small hole in the soil. One of the most interesting contenders is the game of paganica which was played, across Europe, by the ancient Romans. In this game they used a small ball made of leather and tightly packed feathers not too dissimilar to the way in which the old golf balls, called featheries, were made.

The Scottish game of gowf is the obvious winner in the fight to be first. Not only does it sound very similar to golf it is, in it's very essence, the same as the modern game. It is known that the game was played in the east of Scotland as early as the 12th century on areas of ground known as links.

Links are the piece of land that 'links' the rich arable land found inland to the sandy coast. Rather hilly and covered in a fine grass, the land had little use other than for grazing and recreation. With cattle and sheep grazing and masses of rabbits, plus the effects of trampling, the grass remained short and springy. Perfect conditions for playing golf.

Although golf was played for a long, long time before 1457, it is only in that year that we can find written proof of the playing of golf (or gowf as it appears on the document). The Scottish king, James II, wanted good fighting men for his army but grew alarmed by the amount of time they spent playing golf. In an effort to force them to take up sports, such as archery, he tried to ban golf by act of parliament.

Less than a century later, in 1552, there is further evidence of golf's popularity. It was in this year that the townsfolk of St Andrews were granted, by charter, the right to use the nearby links for recreation purposes including the playing of golf. Another source of good evidence are the church records which contain a multitude of entries listing the punishments bestowed upon those naughty members of society that had been caught playing golf on Sunday.

One of the oldest golf clubs is the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers. In 1744, when it was known as the Gentlemen Golfers of Leith, they asked Edinburgh City Council to supply a prize of a silver golf club for a competition. The competition was to be held annually on Leith Links and the winner would keep the silver club until it was passed to the next years winner.

After hundreds of years of Scottish golf it wasn't until 1897 that an official set of rules was produced. Created by the Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews the rules haven't really changed much at all. However, in 1951, the R & A, together with the United States Golf Association, settled upon a set of rules which could be used to ensure that everywhere in the world had the same set of official rules and modern golf had been created.

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