subject: History of Golf info [print this page] History of Golf info History of Golf info
When we hear the word "golf", the country that immediately comes to mind is the US. Why? Well, there a lot of Americans' that has made it big just by playing the sport. And they did not just make it big in their own country but they went global, their remarkable success has paved the way for their names and feats to be engraved in history.
However, it wasn't the US's Phil Mickelson, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player nor Tiger Woods, who began the sport. This game was actually founded in Scotland. It began with a shepherd on a Fifeshire sheep pasture who was trying to hit pebbles with his crook until a piece fell into a rabbit hole. The shepherd's friend was watching and challenged him to try and aim the pebbles into the hole. This eventually became the sport now called "golf". St Andrews became the site for this impromptu game, which is also the ecclesiastical capital of Scotland.This eventually became the sport now called "golf". St Andrews became the site for this impromptu game, which is also the ecclesiastical capital of Scotland.
The game soon became a popular pastime for the Scottish, even reaching a point where the Scottish Parliament complained that soldiers were hitting stones into holes when they should be practicing military skills such as archery.
In the earlier stages of the game's history, only the Scottish burghs or towns played for the prestige of being the best golfer. Even the concept of an 18 hole course was first developed in Scotland. The world's oldest golf course, Old Links, now surrounded by Musselburgh Racecourse, is also located in the heart of Scotland. It dates to at least as early as 1672.
Scotland eventually promoted the game to the US in 1743 they sent 96 golf clubs and 432 golf balls to South Carolina from Leith. Scottish merchants were also behind the design and implementation of setting up the first golf club in the US, called the South Carolina Golf Club, in 1786. As per the ruling for the game itself, Scotland's St Andrews Club was the first to lay down the standard rules in 1882. To date, the game continues to evolve, and Scotland remains a top contender in world competitions.
