The History of Golf

Have you ever taken a swing with your golf club, watched your ball ricochet off a tree, and wonder if you had chosen the right club to make that important shot? Have golf clubs changed over the years? Who ever came up with the idea of the game? There have been many innovations in the design and construction of golf clubs since its origin in the 15th century. When playing golf, selection of the right golf club at the right time is essential and can have a dramatic effect on your game.

The game of golf originated in Scotland in the 15th century. Golf popularity quickly spread. Golfers became so obsessed with the game they neglected their archery practice and military training. As a result, the king of Scotland, King James II, banned the game in 1457. The ban was finally lifted in 1502 by King James IV when he took up the sport. Mary Queen of Scots, who was French, introduced the game to France. The name "caddie" originated from her helpers, cadets in the French Military ("A History of Golf Since 1497").

The first clubs were primitive. Players carved their own clubs and balls from wood. Later, carpenters began to make the clubs. A set of clubs included play clubs (longnoses) for driving, fairway clubs (grassed drivers) for medium range shots, spoons for short range shots, niblicks (similar to modern wedges), and a putting cleek. Clubs heads were made from sturdy wood such as beech or holly. The heads of the wooden clubs were long and thin, and known as "long-nosed woods". The shafts were made from ash or hazel. The shaft and head were connected using a splint and bound with leather straps. These early clubs were known to break and a golfer could expect to fracture at least one club during a round ("A History of Golf Since 1497"). The clubs took long hours to construct and were expensive. The clubs were made or repaired by hand. Clubs had individual characteristics and as a result, owners preferred to have the club repaired rather than replaced if at all possible. Due to the expense involved, golf was associated with the affluent (Henderson and Stirk 52).

The Featherie golf ball was introduced in 1618. This ball was made from three pieces of leather, usually horse or cow hide and stuffed with goose feathers. The pieces were sewn together by hand. The feathers and leather were shaped into a sphere while wet. As the leather shrank and the feathers expanded, it formed a hardened ball. The ball was then painted and marked with the ball-makers name. Unfortunately, the quality of the ball depended on the craftsman. The Featherie was expensive, hand made, and easily damaged. These balls were sometimes even more expensive than a golf club ("A History of Golf Since 1497").

In the 1700's, club-makers experimented with the face of theclub. Leather and other materials were used to increase compression and distance. Occassionaly, the club face was implanted with metal and bone fragments to reduce shattering of the club ("A History of Golf Since 1497"). As early as 1750, forged metal heads were used for the niblicks. Iron clubs were made by blacksmiths until the late 1800's. These clubs were crude, heavy, and hard to use. They also easily damaged the featherie and were not widely used. In 1826, a Scottish club-maker began to use hickory, imported from America, to make shafts. This wood created more long-wearing clubs, but other woods continued to be used as they were less expensive (Nicholls)

A major influence on the design of the golf club has much to do with the changes in golf ball. Therefore, it is important to include a history of the golf ball when discussing the evolution of the golf club. Around 1850 the featherie golf ball was replaced with the "Gutty" ball. This ball was made from the rubber-like sap of the Gutta tree. When heated, the rubber could be molded into the shape of a sphere. This ball could be cheaply produced and could be repaired by reheating and reshaping. It was more durable than the Featherie, but did not travel as far as the Featherie. The "gutty" made longnoses obsolete and were replaced by clubs with larger heads shaped somewhat like a bulb. The larger head made clubs more durable. The "bulger" club is similar to the modern woods ("Rineman").

The early gutty ball was smooth. Golfers soon discovered the balls went further when they had nicks and cuts. In 1880, gutties were produced with patterns on their surface. By 1890, gutties were made in molds, which made them more affordable, and consistent in quality. Many rubber companies began mass producing balls. With the invention of the "gutty" ball, club-makers also began experimenting with iron headed clubs (Nicholls).

Another important change in golf clubs came with the invention and use of the "Haskell" ball in the early 1900's. This ball contained a compressed air core and was combination of a solid core wrapped with rubber string that was covered with gutta percha. The three piece design gave golfers an additional 20 yards in distance. Around 1910, balls with dimples were introduced. The first balls had square dimples, but soon it was discovered round dimples made the ball fly further (Nicholls). Unfortunately, the Haskell ball was known to expand with heat, and a result, explode. Manufacturers experimented with mercury, cork and metal cores. In 1972, Spalding came out with the first two pieced ball, the Executive. This was basically and improved version of the Haskell. Golf clubs continued to evolve to take advantage of the ball being used (Golf Club Revue).

The 20th century brought many changes in golf clubs. Wooden headed clubs were hand made until the early 1900's. Due to the increasing popularity in golf and the huge demand in clubs, factories began producing clubs. Club-makers began experimenting with metal and the first shafts made of steel were introduced. The steel shafts provided more accuracy for the golfer, and were obviously less likely to break than those made of hickory. These clubs were not widely accepted at first as golfers had to develop a different swing technique with these clubs (Golf Club Revue).

There have been many clubs through the years that have had an impact on golf. One of these influential clubs was the Schenectady putter. In 1904, the Schenectady putter was used by golfer Walter Travis in the British Amateur. It was an aluminum center-shafted mallet. The Schenectady putter was very successful and many of these wood and steel putters were made and used. It is interesting to note that metal clubs were not allowed in British tournament play until after the Prince of Wales used a set on the Old Course at St. Andrews in 1929 (Waddell).

Other changes